Tech-Pant / Performance-Pant (noun): A type of men’s casual trouser which uses scientifically-developed fabrics to provide moisture-wicking properties, breathability, ease of movement, and an overall higher level of comfort compared to all-cotton or mostly cotton traditional alternatives. Made for year-round use, these types of pants are especially favored during the hotter months, as they are particularly adept at preventing conditions such as “crotch-rot”, “monkey butt” and “swamp arse”.
A note on why a gusseted crotch is an asset: It’s the geometry. Human bodies aren’t flat. Cheaper, non-gusseted pants have all four seams (front rise, back rise, and both leg inseams) meet at one, particularly non-flexible, inelegant point. Imagine if your shoulders moved like your knees do. Limiting, right? Now imagine if your knees moved like your shoulders do. WOW that’d be fun! So in essence a gusset is an extra, articulating “joint” for a garment. Bottom line: pants made with a gusseted crotch move easier. A lot easier.
These are shockingly good. While the rest of the industry flails & fails to replicate the magic of Lululemon’s best selling ABC/Commission pants, it’s Target, at forty bucks, that gets the closest. Not identical to lululemon. But the closest. No gusseted crotch on these, but the fabric is awfully similar to the Warpstreme material Lululemon uses, albeit a little thinner/lighter feeling here. Great stretch, feels nice and cool, wicking/breathable/etc. Fit is more straight than slim, which makes sense since they’re made as a golf/athletic wear pair of casual trousers…. but they look great with t-shirts and sneakers, polos, and chinos, etc. Color shown is the “dark gray” option, and it’s more of a medium gray in person. Eight colors to pick from.
Would have been #1 except for how much they cost. They are EXPENSIVE. Lululemon absolutely makes you pay for them. Flat out fantastic in every other metric. Multiple fits (and the fit is superb). Plenty of colors. Available in either a true chino-pocket-style (commission), or 5-pocket style (ABC). The fabric is downright perfect. Incredibly comfortable. They breathe, they stretch, they move with you, they wick… all of it. AND they don’t make the “swish swish” sound cheaper tech pants make. They can also be dressed up or down. How versatile are they? You can see them in action here here here and here.
Still a favorite for many if you can catch them during a rare discount. The quality is there, the mainly cotton blend fabric is smooth, has good stretch, and works both dressed up and down. BR claims these pants have something called “37.5 Technology and the power of active particles derived from volcanic sand” to help regulate your temperature. Pretty skeptical on the whole volcanic sand thing, but they truly are lighter in weight and even in the dead of summer, seem to help keep you cool. ESPECIALLY when compared to a standard all cotton or 98% cotton/2% spandex pair of chinos. Just wish they came in straight and/or athletic tapered. Slim is a true slim through the legs. A bit tight for some of us. Available in six colors, and they’re the colors you’d expect.
They move good, they look good, they feel good. Compared to a standard all cotton or mainly cotton/bit of stretch chino, these feel lighter in weight. They move with you too. That 40% poly blend to the fabric is doing some sort of magic. “Soft washed twill” has an almost lightly sueded/brushed feel to it.
VRST is a new-ish Dick’s Sporting Goods exclusive brand. Along with the fabric used in the Target All in Motion golf pants, the material they use with these VRST “Limitless” trousers are as close as you’re gonna find to Lululemon’s warpstreme material. VRST uses a 100% poly tricot, while Lulu = 53% Elastomultiester, 47% Recycled polyester. These don’t swish swish, they look professional, and they’re available in multiple styles (slant pocket traditional look, 5 pocket more casual look, etc.) But they aren’t gusseted. Which means while the fabric moves and stretches, the garment itself doesn’t have quite the easy-moving geometry of Lululemon with their gusseted crotch area. They’re very, very good. But the alternative from Target is half the price. Yet these VRST pants are almost fifty bucks less than Lululemon. Choices… right?
They’re comfortable, they move well, they come in multiple fits and often go on sale… but they make that classic “swish swish” noise so many abhor. If you’re good with that (many of us don’t care, for real…) than they’re absolutely worth a look. Know they run a little generous in terms of sizing. A size 32×30 (shown above) is too big on my frame and I had to exchange them for a 31×30.
An outlier compared to all of the other pants on this list. They’re much, much more of a hard wearing stretch-canvas pant than a smoother tech chino. But the inclusion of Sorbtek into the mainly cotton blend means they wick “4x faster than the competition.” Apologies, we did not time how quickly they wick. But they are comfortable, the stretch is miles ahead of an average pair of Dickies, and the gusseted crotch is a very, very big deal for those of us who move around quite a bit while wearing our chosen trousers. Make sure you wash them separately on cold since excess pigment can bleed out for the first couple of washes. Wear the hell out of them though. You’ll want to.
Surprisingly not bad! Nice slim fit, five colors to choose from, fabric is soft and smooth. Kinda-sorta-maybe a super-budget “warpstreme” from lululemon? Okay, not that nice, but still, not bad! 98% poly, but no “swish swish” sound when you walk. But that permanent front crease down each leg is a bit budget country club looking. Reminds too many of us of bad school uniform chinos. Fabric does claim to be “performance” and moisture wicking, but it has a little bit of a circa 1997 “microfiber” feel to it. Doesn’t feel as airy as the other options on this list.
An outlier on this list due to their very very very camping-man/outdoorsy look, but when you’re gonna be outdoors for a good amount of time and want to stay comfortable, it’s hard to get anything better. They might be one of the best hiking pants out there… but they’re still a hiking pant. Not gonna look right in the boardroom or on a date. Unless that meeting or that date is happening at the top of a mountain. And if it is? Lucky you!
Suit shown above: Banana Republic’s Signature Italian Nailhead Wool Suit Jacket & Trouser = $600 total. If you wait for a 30% off sale, they’ll run $420. Hold tight for the rare 40% off Friends and Family discount, and they’ll drop to $360. Size shown above is a 36R jacket and 31 trouser on Ryan who is 5’9″/160.
If you own a year-round, basic wool suit, then you already own these things. No extra buying needed. Wool is nature’s tech fabric. It breathes, it wicks, it’s super comfortable. It resists wrinkles better than cotton and linen pants. But wearing suit pants separate from the jacket, with some frequency, will cause the trousers to wear out faster than the jacket. Solution? Suit up! Wear that jacket too. Just make sure it’s lined in something somewhat breathable like Bemberg, or only quarter lined (or not lined at all!) in the back. Don’t get heat stroke out there.
Got a favorite tech-pant/tech-chino that didn’t make the list? Send those suggestions into joe@dappered.com
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