Leg warmers are coverings for the lower legs, similar to socks but thicker and generally footless. They were originally used as dancewear by ballet and other classic dancers in order to keep the leg muscles warm and to prevent cramping or other muscle injuries.

Traditionally knitted from pure wool, modern variants are more typically made of cotton, synthetic fibers, or both. Some are made of other materials, such as chenille.

Leg warmers can vary in length, though not in width, due to the material's stretchiness. They are commonly worn to just below the knee, though many dancers prefer it to extend to cover the lower parts of the thigh. Some cover the entire foot; these warmers usually have a pad that grips the floor so the dancer does not slip - however this has been known to cause career-ending injury^{[citation needed]}. Some leg warmers are particularly short and made of thinner material; these are also known as 'ankle warmers'.

Originally worn by dancers to keep their muscles from cramping after stretching, in the early 1980s leg warmers became a fad and wearing them was fashionable among teenage girls. Their popularity was partly due to the influence of the films Fame and Flashdance and the concurrent aerobics craze. They were worn with leggings, jeans, and tights or as part of aerobic wear.

David Nicholas O'Doherty (born 18 December 1975 in Dublin, Ireland) is a Perrier Award winning Irish stand-up comedian, author, musician, actor and playwright. His stand-up has won two awards at the Edinburgh Fringe, Best Newcomer first of all and the if.comedy award in 2008 for his show Let's Comedy. He has been nominated twice more for his work at the festival. O'Doherty has also written a children's book, composed two plays and released two comedy CDs, the first of which Giggle Me Timbers (Jokes Ahoy) was recorded at his home in front of 35 people. O'Doherty's second more recent CD release called Let's David O'Doherty was recorded in Whelans of Dublin and released in December 2009. His television series The Modest Adventures of David O'Doherty was broadcast on RTÉ Television in 2007. In 2006 he claimed that it took him "about three years to get a decent hour together and seven years to achieve this level of fame where (he is) the number three ranked person called David O'Doherty on Google".