I've been wearing Castelli BodyPaint shorts and bibs for years and love them. But they are no longer made, so I tried the Free Aero Race 4.
Yeah. I get it. Race kit should be tight. But, this is ridiculous. I ordered size M, which is what I have been ordering for years, and I haven't gained weight or grown taller since then. It is practically impossible to get these things on. Not only is the overall cut very small, but the hems are so sticky that you can't just pull them on because they catch on your skin. So, here you are: squirming to get into the shorts and having to roll the hem so it wouldn't tug all the while.
Once you manage to get the bibs on, the straps dig it. This is because, unlike BodyPaint which has comfy, stretchy, flat ribbon straps, the Aero has reinforced hems on the sides of the straps.
The cut in the front is like a man's: rather than the "waist" being cut straight across, it dips into a downward curve. Now, I could stand to lose 5 lbs, but if you have any fat whatsoever, the cut and the tight fit make your belly stick out.
The chamois cut into my inner thigh when I walked.
Now, I get it: race kits should be tight. But, honestly, friends, to what extent does techno-fabrics contribute to fast race times compared to the little bit of extra training to get better fit? Even if you consider the psychological factor of wearing fancy race shorts to give you that extra boost, I don't think these shorts are the ones to pick.
So, I say forgo the expense and impossible fit of the Castelli Free Aero 4 Race shorts and just train a little harder.