If you know me, you know that I can be very girly girl at times. I love dressing up and looking cute. But I also like to be comfortable. When I first started running, I was annoyed by most of the bottom options of running clothes. While I like my winter tights, once it started warming up, I found that running shorts loooove to ride up. I just couldn’t run in them. But tights were impractical for warm weather. Sure, I could have gotten some tight compression shorts, but I felt self-conscious in those.

Enter, the running skirt (or skort). Running skirts are basically compression shorts covered by a skirt. So you get shorts that don’t ride up, plus something cute to cover them up with. Perfect! I’ve tried many brands over the last year, so I thought I would sum up my thoughts in one post.

Brooks

Photo by Michael Reyes.

PR Mesh Skort II ($34-$52)
Glycerin Skort ($30-$46)

The first running skirt I ever bought was by Brooks. It’s the blue one in the photo above, the PR Mesh Skort II. This is the skirt that made me fall in love with running skirts and soon after I bought a second Brooks running skirt, the Glycerin Skort.

The main thing that makes me love these skirts is they have a pocket on the right leg of the shorts underneath that perfectly fits my iPhone. I can put my phone there and know it won’t move. I wish there was another one on the other leg, though I’m not sure why, since it’s not like I carry two phones. This pocket has spoiled me, as you will be able to tell from my next reviews.

The shorts also have a little grip on the bottom hem that holds them in place. I’ve never had an issue with them riding up. I will say that they did shrink a bit after washing, so it may be a better option to hang dry if they are already a good fit.

I don’t know the exact differences between the two styles I have, but I generally enjoy wearing the Glycerin slightly more. I don’t know if I just like the color more or the way it fits, since both skirts are pretty similar. I bought both of mine on sale (Brooks generally has some colors on sale and some not), which makes them a great deal for training.

Lululemon

Pace Setter Skirt ($58)

For the marathon relay, I wanted a black skirt, since we were color coordinating. Brooks didn’t have any black options that looked appealing, so I decided to try out the popular Lululemon brand, since their Pace Setter skirt had a cute ruffled back.

I really like the fit of this skirt and the length. But the weirdest thing about it to me? It has a tennis ball pocket on the left leg of the shorts. That means it’s an upside down pocket. That is completely useless to me, and I don’t understand why they would put that on something marketed as a running skirt. I’m contemplating seeing if I can remove it and flip it right side up, so I might be able to actually use it. However, the skirt does have a couple small waistband pockets that hold things like gels and keys, as well as a back zippered pocket. There’s just no place to put my phone, so I have to resort to an armband or waistpack if I want to carry it with me.

Since the brand is so popular, you will also notice that practically everyone who is wearing a running skirt will be wearing the same one you are. At the relatively small marathon relay (around 150 people total), I saw two others in the same skirt I was wearing. Same style and same color.

RunningSkirts

Runbow Athletic Skirt ($69)

For the Color Run, I wanted a colorful skirt that matched the vibrant colors represented on the Color Run shirt. RunningSkirts had just the item. The only thing is this particular item does not come in “running skirt” length. This is the “athletic skirt” length, which I found a little long. Also, the skirt seemed to run a little big, as it fits a little looser than my other running skirts. While it does have two pockets, they are located on the sides of the skirt itself and not the shorts. They also do not comfortably fit my phone, so I can’t put it there without worrying it’s going to fly out while I’m running. They have some cute designs, but being one of the most expensive options on the list, I tend to like some of the other skirts better.

SparkleSkirts

DressMeUp Blue SparkleTech ($75)
SoftPlum SparkleTech ($65) with Rapunzel embellishment ($10)

I own two of these, though I’ve only run in one of them so far. One, of course, is the Rapunzel skirt for my costume for the Disney half. The other I bought because, while I don’t want to run in something new on race day, I also don’t want to wear my Rapunzel skirt ahead of time because of the glitter. So I bought a non-glitter but very cute skirt I can see myself being able to wear a lot over the years.

On trying on these skirts, my impressions were that they seemed to fit slightly smaller than the others I own. But not too much; I wouldn’t go up a size unless you are already kind of inbetween sizes. The skirts are swingy and around the perfect length. And…guess what? My pocket dreams have come true! They have TWO pockets (one on each short leg) that are more than roomy enough for my phone and other items. They also have a zippered pocket that you can wear in either the front or the back. They also come in super cute designs, but since they are some of the priciest, I would save these for specific outfits for races. The Brooks skirts are better for regular training for the price.

I wore one at The Mo Run, and, while I wasn’t running, I had no issues with it riding up and was perfectly comfortable over a pair of running tights.

K Swiss

Accomplish Pleated Skirt ($50)

I haven’t run in this one yet, but I thought I would include it since I own it. I actually bought this for my Halloween costume (Velma from Scooby Doo), but figured I could get some use out of it as a running skirt. It’s super cute and looks like a normal skirt, but does have a distinct lack of any kind of pockets. I imagine it would make a cute skirt for a 5k. I didn’t have any issues with the shorts riding up when I wore it with my costume, and the fit and length seems spot on.