Winter cycling requires another layer of clothing, especially if you want to avoid numb legs and chilblains on your knees. I kid you not! I once braved an early winter ride in only cycling shorts and a decent thermal cycling jersey and ended up with itchy, painful and purple knees. Now I always wear a pair of cycling tights as soon as winter arrives. Cycling tights come in various thicknesses from lightweight to thermal and fleecy backed. They can be waist high or bibbed with shoulder straps. Some cycle tights have a padded insert already fitted while others are non-padded so you can wear them over your normal cycle shorts.

dhb Aeron Roubaix Bib Tights

These are good value bib tights with a great fit and a lovely brush-fleeced fabric for warmth on really cold bike rides. The top of the tights is slightly different for men and women, as is the cycling pad. They are each designed to better suit the male and female physique. The addition of reflective details, silicone grippers at the leg openings and YKK lockdown ankle zippers make these tights well worth considering. dhb Aeron Roubaix Bib Tight for men are £60. (List price £80). dhb Aeron Roubaix Bib Tight for women are £56.

Gore Power 2.0 Thermo Lady Bibtights+

Bib tights are brilliant for warmth because they prevent any gap happening between the top of a pair of tights and a jersey. However, for women, there is the issue for speedy toilet breaks. With most bib tights and shorts, women need to strip off all their outer layers to be able to access the straps for a trip to the loo. Gore, however, have come up with a solution. Their Gore Power 2.0 tights have a two-zipped system that allows for unzipping at the back and simple toilet breaks without removing other clothing. On a chilly winter’s day you will be very grateful for this small but innovative detail. The tights also have a female-specific pad, an X-shaped closure so the top of the tights are comfortable for women, reflective details and gripper elastic on the bottom hem. POWER 2.0 Thermo Lady Bibtights+ are £109.99

Endura Thermolite Longs

If you prefer tights to bib tights, the Endura winter warm tights are a good choice. They are made with a fleecy-backed Thermolite/Lycra fabric that also has a DWR (durable water repellency) treatment to repel light rain. There is the addition of double thickness fabric at the knees for warmth (exactly what you need to keep chilblains away) and what Endura call an “ergonomic panel construction” with flatlock seams for cycling comfort. A slimline ankle zip has a snap-down puller to make them easier to pull on or off and the tights have silicon ankle grippers to keep them in place while you ride your bike. Endura Thermolite Longs sell for £64.59 at Edinburgh Bicycle Cooperative.