BALEAF Bike Shorts for Men 4D Padded Cycling Shorts Padding Road Riding Biking Bicycle Gear Zipper Pockets UPF 50+

6’ 0”, 35” waist, 196lbs. Size L fits well. Padding is thick at first but adjusts quickly. After a washing they’re fine. 40 miles and they’re fine.Recommend

If you ride a bike as much as I do, which is practically every day, although right about now it’s indoors, bike shorts are a necessity and you get to know the subtle and not-so subtle differences from one brand to another. You also get a very firm idea of what you like, what is necessary, and what is a must-have.Of all of the various bike shorts I have Baleaf makes up more shorts than any other brand and that includes a couple of pricier ones. And they have always been winners. And this, which is a new version, is no exception.First off, the padding is where it needs to be and is probably to most comfortable yet. With indoor trainer riding it seems that however long I’m on the bike I’m peddling and in the saddle from start to finish and even though I’ve had just a few rides with these shorts I haven’t had a moment of discomfort.Pockets are a must for me, particularly indoors because I’m down in the basement and it’s cold-ish and I’m wearing a hoodie with just a couple of side pockets and not a jersey that has three deep pockets in the back. Pockets in bike shorts means there’s a secure place for my phone, secure in that I’m not going to drop it on my tile floor, a set of ear buds, gloves, and whatever else I need. It’s just for transport. Once on the bike my phone is my bike computer but anytime I’m wearing shorts without pockets I greatly feel their absence. Long story short, these Baleaf shorts have deep pockets, three, in fact, with one zippered on top of the right-hand pocket. Pockets – Check!The inseam I think is 9 or 10 inches which means it comes to just over my knees and there is grippy stuff on the end. Inevitably, the legs on any bike shorts ride up a bit but more if there’s not something at least trying to hold them in place. The legs on these shorts seem very secure and ride up so little that I really can’t tell. I’ll see how they do in the warmer weather but my assessment right now is that the legs ride up very little and the grippy stuff works very well. Legs – Check!The waistband is quite wide and I like that very much. A wide waistband means there’s more material that hangs on to you and there is more material for you to grab on to when pulling on the shorts. I know the difference between a narrow and a wide waistband and wide is much better. The waistband on these Baleaf shorts is an inch and three-quarters! Phenomenal! Just like the legs, this waistband isn’t going anywhere! One odd thing: there is also a draw-string. I have never seen a draw string on a pair of bike shorts or, at least, bike shorts for a road bike. They’re quite common for mountain bike shorts. It surprised me so much that I went back to the product page to see if they were considered to be mountain bike shorts. Nope, road bike. Not sure why it’s there. Not that it hurts to have a drawstring but the waistband is tight, as it should be, and I wouldn’t, and couldn’t, make the waist any tighter as the band is tight and stretchy, as it should be. No points deducted. It’s just a bit odd.Sizing it spot on. I wear a Medium, I ordered a Medium, I got a Medium, and Medium fits perfectly. As I think it is well known, sizing is an iffy thing and more often than not on many garments one needs to order a size, or, even two, sizes bigger at times. Not so with these Baleaf shorts, or, for that matter, any Baleaf shorts that I have. Sizing – Check!On every assessment I can think of, sizing, comfort, fit and finish, pockets, these Baleaf shorts are as many stars as there are to give. And, now that I think of it, brands come and go. I have shorts that have looked good, priced right, and worked out very well, and I’ve never seen the brand again. Baleaf has been around for a while and bike shorts are not the only thing from the brand that I have. I trust Baleaf and have, truly, recommended them to friends and they have not been disappointed. I have also talked with Baleaf support on occasion and they have been top-notch. I cannot recommend these bike shorts, or Baleaf, more highly. Five Stars!

Just not very sure about the drawstring bike shorts specifically. I’ve owned other baleaf bike shorts and they are great. These have a seem right down your behind. The pad is also positioned a little too far forward, as it does not help much on the butt bones. They are made of a good quality fabric, look fine, feel okay, but the pad really has me off. It’s just not right.Update 2 weeks later. After riding more with these shorts I have to downgrade my original review from 3 to 2 stars. The padding is not placed properly with these shorts. The older design Baleaf has was spot on and are far superior than these newer shorts. The company needs to bring these back to the drawing board. The material is softer than the original, but the padding is worse and there is a bit of chafing going on too.

Great quality. Comfort, and breathable fabric for easy use.

These are some decent bike shorts. It is worth noting that the fit is on the slim side compared to the size chart. According to the chart I should order a size M. But I normally wear a Large and I trusted my instinct and ordered Large. The size Large shorts fit much slimmer than the size chart would suggest and more like the waist of the Medium. I'd suggest ordering your normal size which likely is one size over what the chart might suggest. The inseam is on the long side, but is a non-issue for me despite not being tall (5'9"). The shorts are well made with convenient pockets on both sides. I can easily fit a large size smartphone in the left or right pocket. The chamois pad is a bit on the thick side. I generally prefer a slightly thinner pad when possible. If thicker pads are problematic for someone, then those people might not like the pad on these shorts. But if you do like thicker pads, then this should be fine. One less common feature of these shorts is a waist drawstring. The drawstrings exit on the outside of the shorts in front. You'll want to tuck them in or tie them so they are left dangling out in front.

I have a number of baeleaf padded undershorts (for mtb shorts) that are great quality but I mostly am on the road now and in bibs or spandex shorts.I wanted these to be my favorite shorts when I ordered them and that may still ring true.Sizing is spot on with all of my other shorts and brands and the rubber grips/band around the legs might be the best of all of my shorts. However the shorts come with a drawstring which none of my other shorts have and I find useless. I will like just remove it.The padding for the shorts seems to be on the narrow side. Not thin in padding but not as much padding width as my other shorts and their padded undershorts. This remains to be seen if it is sufficient or not.The best feature is the zippered pocket on the leg and also sleeve behind it that can accommodate an iPhone easily.Comfort wise there is no issue with fit. No seams that are digging in to the skin and the material seems durable but also not too restrictive.I look forward to putting these in the rotation for spring.