CW-X PerformX Tights Review

I've recently been looking for ways to help aid in my recovery and have run across several ads for CW-X tights.  I finally bit the bullet and decided to try some out.  I'm not against running in tights but wanted them more for post-run recovery, so I settled on the CW-X PerformX tights.  I paid $70 for them at Zappos, where I've also purchased Saucony Fastwitch 4s, which I'll review soon as well.  

So I received my pair of tights on a Friday afternoon and opened them up when I got home.

Tried to put something to reference the pre-wear size

Fit: 

     I'm 5'9" and weigh about 156 so according to the size chart, I was in the gray area between a small and medium, so I went with a small, figuring snug is better than loose.  Of course, I reconsidered after trying them on (as well as wondered WHY women ever want to put on panty hose).  They suggest to get them fitted around your knees first, which took minimal effort once I got my size-12 feet through the ankle holes.  And snug they were, but that's the point.  The compression should increase blood flow to aid recovery.  

Snug as a bug.  

Construction:
  
     I'm not sure, but I think the seams alone could stop bullets.  Each leg is made up of just a few pieces of fabric that sort of swirl around your leg.  The seams are incredibly solid and I would be surprised if they ever give.  The waistband is double-reinforced and has a flat string which does help in the comfort department.  They're also constructed gender-specific so make sure you fill out your order correctly or you could get some chafing where you'd rather not have it.

Performance:

     I don't plan to wear them to bed every night, mainly after speed/tempo days or my long runs.  The first night I wore them was on an off day but I still felt like giving them a try to make sure I wasn't uncomfortable wearing them through the night.  I never felt any discomfort, except for the extra bathroom trips, which I wasn't sure if they were due to the compression or the extra coffee I drank a little too late.  But in the morning, getting up for a pre-dawn 5-miler, my legs felt refreshed and I didn't feel any soreness or fatigue in them during my run.

     The second time I tried them was after a 14-mile run.  I wore them for about 4 hours afterwards and my legs did not feel like they had just hit the ground about 20,000 times earlier in the day.  Over the next week, I alternated wearing them or not, after runs similar in length.  I did wake up feeling a bit more fatigue on the days I didn't wear them.

Conclusion:


     After wearing them after both long and short runs, and not wearing them after some runs, I have to say that these tights do the job.  I only wore them overnight once.  The other times I ended up taking them off after about 4 hours each time.  Because of where I live (south Texas), I'm not sure if I'd ever get a pair to actually run in outside, although if I do, I'll update you guys on how those perform.

The PerformX style is only available in one style, black and dark grey.  CW-X has several different styles and the site allows you to narrow down which ones might work best for you depending on your activity, areas of concern, as well as insulated styles and pants, 3/4 and shorts.

Keep on runnin'!