Gymshark's main lines and what each label says
We recorded each composition exactly as listed for the colour shown. Blends can change between seasons and colourways, so check the page or sewn-in label of the exact item you are comparing.
| Product (colour checked) | Construction | Composition as listed | Weight listed | How Gymshark describes it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Everyday Seamless Leggings (Black) | Seamless | 91% nylon, 9% elastane | — | Soft, lightweight, stretchy, second-skin feel; the page warns it can turn sheer when stretched and isn't fully squat-proof |
| Vital Regular Leggings (Black Marl) | Seamless | 93% nylon, 7% elastane | — | Supportive, breathable seamless fabric with mesh dots shaped around the glutes and thighs; made with dope-dyeing technology |
| Lift Seamless 2.0 Mid-Rise Leggings (Black) | Seamless | 92% nylon, 8% elastane | — | Glute-sculpting, with contouring rib textures; nude underwear advised for three named shades |
| Adapt Solid Leggings (Black) | Seamless | 82% nylon, 12% polyester, 6% elastane | 430gsm | Physique-sculpting, with a thicker fabric the brand calls squat-proof |
| CottonMove™ Flared Leggings (Soft Grey Marl) | Seamless | 67% cotton, 24% nylon, 8% elastane, 1% polypropylene | — | Gymshark's cotton-blend fabric, pitched as stretching like seamless and breathing like cotton |
| Whitney High-Rise Regular Leggings (Black) | Cut-and-sew | 78% nylon, 22% elastane (ButterSmooth™) | 230gsm | Its softest fabric, buttery and squat-proof; nude underwear advised for Haze Pink and Butter Yellow |
| Training Leggings 2.0 (Black) | Cut-and-sew* | 78% polyester, 22% elastane | — | Staple gym leggings in a stretchy fabric, with flatlock seams |
| Arrival 5" Shorts (Black) | Cut-and-sew* | 100% polyester | — | Lightweight and sweat-wicking, with a slim fit and drawcord waist |
Construction comes from Gymshark's own product data, which tags items "seamless" or "c&s" (cut-and-sew). *Untagged: the Training page describes flatlock seams, and Gymshark tags newer Arrival 5" colourways "c&s".
Seamless vs cut-and-sew: what the pages show
A seamless garment is knitted on a circular machine as a tube close to its finished size. Texture, support and ventilation are built into the knit by changing the stitch in zones, which is why Gymshark's seamless pages mention Vital's mesh dots and the rib textures on Lift Seamless 2.0 rather than panels. Seamless means no side seams, not zero stitching: a seamless legging still has a few joins, such as at the gusset.
A cut-and-sew garment starts as a roll of fabric that is cut into pattern pieces and sewn together, so its details usually come from seams too: the flatlock seams on Training Leggings 2.0, the ruched scrunch on Whitney, the drawcord waist and side pockets on Arrival.
The compositions follow the construction. Every seamless legging we checked lists 6–9% elastane, while both cut-and-sew leggings list 22%. In seamless, the knit structure and the knitted-to-size tube do much of the shaping, so a lower elastane share can still fit closely. A cut-and-sew legging relies on the fabric itself for compression and recovery, and blends of roughly 20–25% elastane are common for that job.
What each composition means for feel, stretch and opacity
Nylon-led seamless (Everyday, Vital, Lift Seamless 2.0; 91–93% nylon). Fine nylon filament feels smooth and soft against skin, and a small elastane share keeps the hold moderate rather than tight. That matches Gymshark's descriptions: soft and lightweight for Everyday, supportive for Vital, sculpting for Lift, which lists contouring rib textures. The trade-off is opacity: Gymshark warns that the Everyday fabric can turn sheer when stretched and recommends nude underwear with three Lift Seamless 2.0 shades.
Heavier sculpting seamless (Adapt Solid; 82/12/6, 430gsm). This blend adds polyester, and its listed weight is almost twice the 230gsm Gymshark lists for Whitney. Gymshark calls the fabric thicker and squat-proof. The lesson: weight and knit density buy opacity and hold at least as much as the fibre mix does.
Cut-and-sew with 22% elastane (Whitney and Training Leggings 2.0). Same ratio, different base fibre. A 22% elastane share gives strong stretch, quick snap-back and a more compressive feel, while the base fibre steers the hand: nylon generally feels silkier, which fits Gymshark calling ButterSmooth™ its softest fabric, and polyester is the usual workhorse for everyday training pieces. Weight alone does not settle opacity: even at 230gsm, Gymshark advises nude underwear with the Haze Pink and Butter Yellow Whitney shades. More in our guide to nylon vs polyester for activewear.
Cotton-led seamless (CottonMove™; 67% cotton). Cotton gives a drier, more natural touch, and the nylon and elastane supply stretch and recovery. Gymshark pitches the fabric as breathing like cotton and says it holds its shape and snaps back. Cotton absorbs more moisture than nylon or polyester, which suits the studio and Pilates use Gymshark designs these leggings for.
100% polyester, no elastane (Arrival shorts). With no stretch fibre listed, any give comes from the fabric construction and the cut, which is enough for a slim-fit short with a drawcord waist. Polyester absorbs very little water and dries quickly, which is why it is so common in training shorts. Gymshark describes Arrival as lightweight and sweat-wicking.
How to brief a seamless factory for a similar feel
Brief the outcome, not the brand. No factory can rebuild another company's mill specification from a label, and you do not need one to. Describe the hand, the weight direction and the tests the fabric must pass.
- Name the feel in plain words: soft, lightweight second skin, or dense and sculpting.
- Give a fibre direction, not a copied label: nylon-led with a single-digit elastane share for a light seamless legging; a heavier, denser knit for sculpting styles.
- Say where texture goes: rib zones for contour, mesh zones for ventilation.
- Define pass/fail tests: opaque at full stretch in your lightest shade, recovery after repeated stretching, pilling where the thighs rub.
- Ask for two weights on the same block and choose by hand, not by spec sheet.
Sample brief: "Seamless high-rise legging, our own silhouette. Soft, smooth, lightweight second-skin hand with moderate hold. Nylon-led, single-digit elastane share. Knitted rib texture at the back for contour; mesh zone behind the knee. Opaque at full stretch in our lightest shade. Two weights on the same block."
If you hand over a bought garment as a reference, state in writing that it is for hand-feel and weight only, not pattern, logo placement or design.
That is the kind of brief we work from at Yesseam. We make seamless activewear (leggings, sports bras, bralettes, yoga and Pilates pieces, ribbed seamless styles, brushed or naked-feel finishes), and our fabric families map onto the feels above: buttery nylon/spandex for the soft second-skin hand, rib-seamless for contouring texture, air-mesh for zoned ventilation, and GRS recycled nylon or polyester when recycled content matters. Options run from private label on proven styles to OEM from a tech pack or ODM from a reference, sketch or brief, with your logo, labels and packaging, through sample and bulk production. Minimums are 50 garments in total for a stock style without a logo, 100 garments in total with your logo, and usually 300–500 garments per style per colour for full custom development; changing the fit or the knit structure, or adding a knit-in logo, counts as custom development. Custom colours carry a minimum per shade. More on seamless activewear manufacturing.
Chasing a cut-and-sew feel like Whitney's? A buttery seamless knit can come close on softness, but fit and compression will differ, so sample first.
Match the feel, not the design
Fibre blends, weights and knit structures are generic: anyone can order a nylon-led seamless knit or a 78/22 polyester-elastane fabric. What a brand owns is its identity: the Gymshark name and logo, fabric names it marks as trademarks, such as ButterSmooth™ and CottonMove™, and the specific look of its designs. So don't borrow those names, don't copy logos, prints or the exact layout of contour lines and scrunch, and don't sell your product as "the same fabric" as theirs; you don't know their mill specification, and a matching label is not a matching fabric. Design your own silhouettes and compete on a feel you have chosen and tested. If you are unsure where the line sits in your market, ask an IP lawyer.
How to read a composition label
- Order and total. Fibres run from the largest share to the smallest and add up to 100%. The first fibre decides the hand; the elastane figure tells you about stretch and recovery.
- Same numbers, different fabrics. Whitney and Training Leggings 2.0 are both 78/22, one nylon and one polyester. Identical fibre lists can still feel nothing alike, because knit structure, yarn fineness and finishing never appear on a label.
- Weight is optional, so ask for it. Gymshark lists it on some pages (430gsm on Adapt Solid, 230gsm on Whitney, 180 gsm on the Power T-Shirt). Where it is missing, ask for grams per square metre.
- Names vary by market, not by fibre. Gymshark's US pages say elastane; many US labels call the same fibre spandex.
- Recycled content is only what is stated. The Arrival T-Shirt lists 100% recycled polyester; the Arrival shorts list 100% polyester. Vital's dope-dyeing note describes how colour was added (pigment goes into the polymer before the fibre is spun), not what the fibre is.
- A line name is not a fabric. Gymshark's Vital collection page describes Vital Soft and Vital Warm, a fleece, alongside the original Vital, so read the label of the exact product.
- Read the care line. Vital's page says to machine wash cold with similar colours and to skip dry cleaning, ironing, fabric softener and bleach, standard advice for elastane blends because heat and bleach shorten elastane's life.
Sources
| Source | What it establishes here |
|---|---|
| Gymshark: Everyday Seamless Leggings (Black) | 91/9 nylon/elastane; seamless; sheer warning |
| Gymshark: Vital Regular Leggings (Black Marl) | 93/7; mesh dots; dope dyeing; care |
| Gymshark: Lift Seamless 2.0 Mid-Rise Leggings (Black) | 92/8; contouring rib textures; shade note |
| Gymshark: Adapt Solid Leggings (Black) | 82/12/6 blend; 430gsm |
| Gymshark: CottonMove™ Flared Leggings (Soft Grey Marl) | 67% cotton blend; CottonMove™ wording |
| Gymshark: Whitney High-Rise Regular Leggings (Black) | ButterSmooth™, 78/22 nylon/elastane, 230gsm; "c&s" tag |
| Gymshark: Training Leggings 2.0 (Black) | 78/22 polyester/elastane; flatlock seams |
| Gymshark: Arrival 5" Shorts (Black) | 100% polyester; product data for Arrival 7" Shorts, Arrival T-Shirt and Power T-Shirt |
| Gymshark: Vital collection (women's) | Vital Soft and Vital Warm variants |
FAQ
What fabric is Gymshark?
Gymshark mostly uses synthetic blends, nylon or polyester with elastane, plus cotton blends in some lines. Its Everyday Seamless, Vital and Lift Seamless 2.0 leggings list 91–93% nylon with 7–9% elastane, its Whitney leggings use a fabric it calls ButterSmooth™ (78% nylon, 22% elastane), and its CottonMove™ Flared Leggings are 67% cotton. Blends vary by line and colourway.
What material is Gymshark made of, nylon or polyester?
Both: Gymshark's leggings lean on nylon, while its Arrival training shorts and tees are polyester. Of the eight products we checked, five list nylon as the main fibre, two list polyester (Training Leggings 2.0 and the Arrival 5" Shorts) and one lists cotton (CottonMove™). Adapt Solid mixes 82% nylon with 12% polyester.
What material are Gymshark leggings made of?
Gymshark leggings are made mainly of nylon and elastane, with the elastane share depending on construction. Its seamless leggings list 6–9% elastane (Everyday Seamless 91/9, Vital 93/7, Lift Seamless 2.0 92/8, Adapt Solid 82% nylon, 12% polyester, 6% elastane), while the cut-and-sew Whitney leggings list 78% nylon and 22% elastane. The exceptions are Training Leggings 2.0 (78% polyester, 22% elastane) and CottonMove™ (67% cotton).
What material are Gymshark clothes made of besides leggings?
Gymshark's training tops and shorts are mostly polyester, with cotton-rich options in some lines. The Arrival T-Shirt lists 100% recycled polyester, the Arrival 5" and 7" Shorts list 100% polyester, and the Power T-Shirt lists 95% cotton and 5% elastane at 180 gsm.
What material are Gymshark Arrival shorts made of?
Gymshark Arrival shorts are 100% polyester. Both the 5" and 7" versions list 100% polyester on gymshark.com (US), with no elastane. Gymshark describes them as lightweight and sweat-wicking, with a slim fit, a drawcord waist and open side pockets.
What is Gymshark ButterSmooth fabric?
ButterSmooth™ is Gymshark's name for the fabric in its Whitney collection, listed as 78% nylon and 22% elastane at 230gsm on the Whitney High-Rise Regular Leggings page. Gymshark calls it its softest fabric and describes it as buttery soft and squat-proof, while recommending nude underwear with the Haze Pink and Butter Yellow shades. Its product data tags these leggings as cut-and-sew.