A fun and interesting challenge! I think the answer is "it depends" --- on personal preferences, walking and camping 'style' issues, and particular gear choices.



What stands out to me in this is that you're talking about below-the-waist clothing items, which are always a bigger PITA because you often have to remove footwear and either have an incredible sense of balance, or a sufficiently warm, dry, clean place to sit, and just generally more time. My solution is to rarely use rain pants, unless on winter day hikes where I'm okay carrying a heavier pair of full side-zip units. I rarely walk in long johns; if I use them at all it's to augment my sleep system at night, and in that context I'm likely in my tent and on a sleeping pad when I'm putting them on. For below-the-waist rain gear I like rain skirts unless it's pretty windy, or rain chaps (easier to put on literally one leg at a time). Or so very often nothing. If your upper body core is warm, the lower body can typically manage.

Proper sizing: amen to that, you do indeed need to select your outer layer(s) to allow inner layer(s) to loft. Shell too big: either get one that's properly sized or just make sure to really batten down all of the hatches. Or at least, that approach works for me.

It could also be a matter of body chemistry --- what works for me in terms of puffy clothing and the like might not be sufficient for you in the same conditions, so I don't mean to say that my personal experience is universally applicable (!).

In the "style" area, I'll add that in colder weather I tend to spend a lot of time with my lower body in my sleeping bag, which mitigates things a lot. Therefore for me the more important insulation by far is what's on the upper body.



This certainly captures a lot of truth, but for me at least it's a little over simplified. I find it very helpful to have some flexibility to adjust warmth when I'm walking, both via stuff I put on my hands and head, and what's on my core. Going downhill (less body heat generation) and the wind picks up and maybe I hike down into a colder zone --- big difference from hiking steeply uphill with no wind. Rain, snow, hail, wind, all impact this of course.

For in-camp use I mostly agree with you, though one can certainly imagine a situation where a beefy coat is overkill while other clothing options are either wet or otherwise inadequate.

Carrying too much clothing is a key reason why folks have heavy pack weights; getting the right balance that fits both you personally and the particular conditions that you're in takes a fine balance of experience, wisdom, and luck.