Mens Active Shorts: 5 Inch Inseam Style

I was looking for some new gym shorts. In my search, I noticed a selection of shorts that had a length of three to five inches. I had known that some gym trainers liked short shorts for the flexibility of movement for leg day. The style was popular in the 1980s, so the fashion trend is a blast from the past.

On TikTok, there are posts encouraging guys to ditch long-length shorts in favor of 5-inch inseam shorts (aka short shorts). (See an article by Esquire Magazine.)

In 2021, in the New York Post, there was an article about actor Milo Ventimiglia wearing runner’s shorts to the gym.

Fraser Wilson, a personal trainer from Melbourne, Australia, is sponsored by GymShark.

In the YouTube video at the right, Fraser performs a follow-along mobility workout while wearing five-inch inseam shorts.

The Guardian newspaper had an article about men’s interest in short shorts (the way shorts were in the 1970s and 1980s) (author Priya Elan). Men’s shorts became longer in the 1990s and early 2000s. The theme of the story was the connection of menswear, sensuality, and affordable style.

There is some tension as the inseam gets to 5 inches and lower. (See discussion below.) See also the table.

In the bodybuilding (and physique) world, I think that there is a desire to show the results of leg day training as well as practicality—better movement in the gym. With athleisure clothing, this gym wear is also worn in casual wear.

(See a previous article on leg day shorts.)

An article in the New Idea, a publication for Australian women, also supports short shorts and provides practical tips (author Rhys McKay).

Some parts of Australian fashion embraced short shorts (for example, brands (2Eros (Zyzz (the late Aziz Sergeyevich Shavershian (1989-2011)) shorts, also known as the S01 Icon Shorts (mentioned in a previous blog article) and fitness trainer and YouTuber Daniel Vadnal) as well as sports (the Australian Football League (AFL) and Australian rugby).

For shorter shorts, there may be some negative feedback received from the guy showing too much leg. Rick for The Running Channel on YouTube investigated this question with two-inch inseam side-split running shorts.

The Guardian‘s Priya Elan wrote an article asking how low can men’s short short’s go. There is a split opinion on where short shorts should be worn.

Teo van den Broeke, British GQ’s styling and grooming director, agreed: “We’re more au fait with wearing sport shorts right now, given how much exercising we’ve all been doing, we feel more comfortable going a little short.”

Others think micro is not the way to go. “In most urban contexts, it would be more acceptable for men to wear knee-grazing shorts,” said Elizabeth Wyse, at the etiquette experts Debrett’s.

Priya Elan, Micro shorts for men: how short is too short?

Bang Clothing brand offers show shorts that have a three-inch inseam.

As discussed above with the Guardian article, the shorts force a connection between men’s fashion and sensuality. However, bodybuilders and AFL athletes has embraced the fashion trend enthusiastically.

A YouTuber and male model, Brandon Pikulinski, was having this debate in his video log. He’s a tall guy, 6’3″ or 1.91 meters. Brandon is a jogger, wore short shorts and leggings on a hot day to go for a jog (at about 30 second-mark in the video).

Later, for a swim, he tried on short swim trunks with a four-inch inseam and felt the shorts were too short (at about the 6:52 mark in the video). His girlfriend liked them.

If you decide to embrace short shorts, be confident and go for it. Maybe another guy is debating the same question internally. If more guys embrace it (as in the 1970s), it will encourage other guys to support it.

Agree or disagree? Let me know in the comments.

London, UK, based fashion and fitness blogger Ollie Pearce did a YouTube video on short shorts. While the shorts that Ollie showed on his video was a form of board shorts, he did discuss how shorter length shorts can help taller guys as well as guys who love leg days at the gym.