Serena Williams’ Nike catsuit was a big talking point earlier this year when she wore it during the French Open. Not only was the suit aesthetically unique but it was designed to support Williams by preventing blood clots.
Developments such as Williams’ catsuit are not uncommon – athlete support and wellbeing are in fact big focal points in the textile industry at the moment. According to a recent WTiN Intelligence report, the rising level of health and wellbeing globally is one of the biggest drivers of the global sportswear market.
Here, some of the latest in wellbeing and support sportswear apparel are explored.
Under Armour Perpetual Powerprint apparel
The Perpetual Powerprint series is made of UA’s signature HeatGear fabric
One of the latest developments on the market is the Under Armour Perpetual Powerprint apparel range.
Lunges, squats and deadlifts are among the exercises that are most associated with gym-related injuries due to poor form. All require some degree of stability, a crucial yet often overlooked part of an athlete’s training. Under Armour recognised and sought to address this training deficiency with the brand’s new Perpetual Powerprint apparel for men and women.
The Powerprint design is strategically placed to support and guide muscles through a range of upper and lower body movements without restriction. The form-fitting sports bra, tops and bottoms increase muscle awareness, and encourage dynamic flex – the sensation that muscle groups are moving efficiently, as one.
The Powerprint design is strategically placed to support and guide muscles
"It was imperative that our designers understood which muscle groups need extra support,” says Paul Winsper, vice president, Athlete Performance at Under Armour. “We teamed up and went through the motions of exercises where stability is often compromised.”
The process to create the Perpetual Powerprint apparel involved designers meeting with Under Armour’s Athlete Performance team at the company’s innovation center in Portland, Oregon, US. They were taken through a series of training workouts to pinpoint areas of the body where support and guidance are most needed.
In addition to being durable and sturdy, the Perpetual Powerprint series is made of the company’s signature HeatGear fabric, which is sweat wicking, quick drying and allows for maximum breathability.
Adidas Alphaskin
Alphaskin offers kinetic wrapping in a range of compression levels that suit each athlete’s personal preferences
Adidas has also recently launched a new performance layer called Alphaskin.
Unlike traditional base layers, each section of Alphaskin is carefully constructed to match the body’s movements in sport. By removing unnatural friction between the fabric and skin, athletes wearing Alphaskin are able to fully focus on delivering in training and competition.
“We’re committed to creating only the best for athletes and that’s exactly what we’ve done with the disruptive design of Alphaskin. After taking a deep dive into their movements, needs and culture, we created a performance layer that keeps up with all of those elements,” says Rob Lee, vice president of design for Adidas training.
“Alphaskin was made to enable and move with athletes’ bodies while they compete or train and help eliminate the unwanted distractions of base layers from the past,” he adds. “By using our highly advanced ARAMIS system instead of a traditional static mannequin for testing, we were able to understand how to make Alphaskin and athlete’s bodies move as one.”
Alphaskin offers kinetic wrapping in a range of compression levels that suit each athlete’s personal preference.
2XU
Focusing again on compression wear, 2XU is most well-known for its proprietary compression fabric which has been developed for sport using the most advanced medical technology.
2XU compression delivers graduated pressure, with decreasing compression power from the extremity of the limb to the top of the limb to promote blood flow back to the heart. Additionally, the compression fabric features durable high-filament nylon yarns and powerful and long-lasting elastane yarns for consistent power, shape and comfort with repeated wear.
2XU (pronounced Two Times You) was launched when former professional triathlete Jamie Hunt turned his passion for sport into an obsession with performance fabrics. Together with two business partners – Australian retail guru Clyde Davenport (founder and past owner of Davenport Industries) and marketing specialist Aidan Clarke – Hunt created 2XU in Melbourne, Australia in 2005.
Anita Active Sport
Compression fabric appears to be trending at the moment, but the Anita Sport tights go one step further and provide the wearer with a massage.
Anita Active Sport tights are made from textured compression fabric with three-dimensional raised dots that massage and tone the wearer’s body. Additionally, the Anita Sport tights massage won this year’s ISPO iF Design Award.
“The sport tights massage is made from textured Power fabric featuring three-dimensional nubs which massage and tone,” says Katrin Prillwitz, Anita Active designer. “Moreover, the fast-drying, breathable nub structure transports moisture away from the body and keeps the skin dry.”
The company also prides itself on its range of sports bras. Choosing a sports bra should be just as important as choosing the perfect trainers. Breasts are exposed to extreme strains during sports such as jogging, and the bust can move up and down by up to 9cm per step. A perfect fitting sports bra can reduce this movement by up to 78% and will help the breast tissue stay tight – the Anita collection includes the patented DeltaPad design and the Red Dot Design Award winning DynamiXstar Racerback bra.
Dagsmejan
And after a day of exercising, sleep gives the body a chance to rest and recover. Although pyjamas are not classed as sportswear, some innovations can help to optimise a person’s sleep to promote body restoration.
For example, by understanding nightly temperature and sweat patterns, as well as sleep positions and movements, Dagsmejan has designed a range of clothing optimised for sleep.
The company uses Nattwell fabric, which is based on a natural fibre called MicroModal. The natural moisture absorption properties of the fibre’s core remain unchanged, while the outer layer is adapted to make it water resistant and moisture repellent. This gives Nattwell fabric revolutionary moisture and temperature management properties. Additionally, the sleepwear is designed to move with a person throughout the night – there are no tags, and all seems are flat and with stretch engineered waistbands and built-in gussets, there is no need to worry about the pants riding up or waistbands cutting in.
Dagsmejan was also selected as the winner of the A' Design Award Silver in Fashion, Apparel and Garment Design for its ground-breaking design combining the finest natural fibres with integrated thermoregulation structures.
The companies and designs outlined above are only a few examples of recent wellbeing and support sportswear innovations, but with the sportswear market estimated to reach around US$278.7bn by 2020 according to a WTiN report, this is an exciting field to follow.
