Take the exhaustive results of 100 women, anatomists and scientists testing new “revolutionary responsive leg wear technology” and you have performance brand Berghaus’s all-new ZonalAdapt.

Promising to deliver technology that’s “engineered to adapt to the way women’s bodies move and change”, the legwear marks the return of MtnHaus, Berghaus’s pioneering innovation initiative.

ZonalAdapt is the result of an 18-month project and comes with those extensive consumer insights based on Berghaus research that claims over 50% of women avoid wearing their favourite clothes due to bloating, while 70% feel restricted in leggings when their bodies fluctuate.

“Women report feeling self-conscious when bloated, two-and-a-half times more than men”, its research also shows.

Led by head of innovation Rosie O’Sullivan, the MtnHaus team therefore set out to engineer leggings and trousers “that truly support the natural shifts of women’s bodies, without compromising on performance”.
 
Ranging from mid-torso to upper thigh, research was based on ‘The Zone’ where discomfort for women hits hardest.

MtnHaus then partnered with Dr Yasmin Carter, a world-leading specialist in translational female anatomy, and researchers at Newcastle University, to translate its findings into biomedical and physiological data. Dr Carter said: “I’ve never seen anyone do that before — come back to the very foundation and say, ‘what if everything we thought was wrong, and how do we get back to listening to the people who are actually living in these bodies?’”

O’Sullivan added: “Every decision we made can be traced back to real conversations with real people, through hours spent together. We tried to get under the skin of people’s frustrations; what makes them feel less confident, more self-conscious, and impacts their likelihood to get outside and enjoy it. By starting there, we had a greater chance of creating something meaningful.”

The result is two ZonalAdapt products launched for AW25 – the Farren leggings and trousers. Both products incorporate three key features. First is the Responsive waistband which maps the abdominal muscles with a front panel that redirects pressure from the stomach during bloating. The second targets Compression Zones, activating the leg muscles and stimulating lymphatic drainage to reduce puffiness and fatigue, “keeping leggings in place without relying on a restrictive waistband”, says Berghaus. Finally, its Lumbar support panel grips the lower back to create support at the base of the spine and hold the leggings in place — without adding pressure to the stomach.

The Berghaus Farren products are made with Lycra Adaptiv fibre (78% polyamide 22% elastane), which adapts to the body’s shape, delivering stretch, support, and comfort that responds to every movement.

Sarah Nyikos, Berghaus’ senior product developer, added: “We’ve championed female empowerment every step of the way and felt it ourselves, creating solutions that work in the real world, not just on paper.”

Available in black and green, the legwear is available exclusively at berghaus.com, retailing at £100 in sizes from XS (6-8) to XXL (18-20), while trousers retail at £135, in sizes from 8-20.