If you like Lululemon but not the price or the ubiquity, the useful move is to match the shape and the material rather than hunting a copy. A convincing alternative copies the proportion and the material, not the logo or the hardware. The details that give a cheap version away are lining, edge finishing and the weight of the fastenings. A high waistband stays put; a mid one rolls. The groups below run from the decision that matters most to the ones you make afterwards.

What decides this is compression, waistband height and fabric recovery. Everything else is preference. Two from the first group show the range: skims.com's NikeSKIMS MATTE CORSET 26" LEGGING | IVORY at $128, and La Ligne's The Perfect Track Pant at $275. The first is the easy entry point; the second is where the money goes. Squat test anything light coloured before you commit to it. A high waistband stays put; a mid one rolls. A higher price mostly buys materials and finishing, and occasionally it buys nothing at all.

One colour top to bottom makes cheap activewear look expensive. From the second group, splits59.com's Airweight High Waist 7/8 Pocket Legging - Black ($118) is the one that earns its place, because it works in more than one context without being restyled. The third group is smaller and deliberately narrower, activewear, for the decisions you make after the main one. None of this needs the whole group. One piece from each is usually enough.

There are 20 activewear here from 14 brands, $28 to $325, all in stock when this was written. We would not buy all of them, and neither should you. NYDJ's Modern Legging Pants - Caramel Cat at $28 is the low-risk way in, and L'Agence's Winny Polo Tennis Dress at $325 only makes sense if this is a category you already use constantly. Read as a set, they get you close to Lululemon without any single purchase being compulsory. Nothing here is included because it is famous, and price is not used as a proxy for quality anywhere on this page. If you take one thing away: one considered purchase beats three hedged ones.