Under Shield: How Their Garments Impact Sports Performance

Under Shield: How Their Garments Impact Sports Performance

What do you look for when choosing your sports kit? When you’re training hard to achieve a result, whether it’s winning a race, achieving a PB or completing a challenging course, your choice of kit can make a big difference. At the very least, it should not inhibit your performance. However, with new technology available, it can now have the potential to improve it. Our blog this week reviews the new Under Shield range of sportswear for its benefits to performance.

Temperature regulation

During exercise, your muscles produce a lot of heat when creating energy for your work out. Being unable to get rid of this excess heat means that your performance will be affected; you may begin to feel weak and dizzy and, if left unresolved, you could collapse.

Under Shield offers improved temperature stabilisation with its garments; the fluctuation in body heat, caused by physical activity, is three times less volatile than polyester (the next best-performing fabric).

This is achieved by facilitating the body’s natural responses to overheating. Undershield’s carbon energised fibre material offers better sweat expulsion, rated as 100, compared to 80 from its nearest rival, polyester. Its breathability is also unrivalled, due to its sweat-wicking properties. Additionally, its garments use ultralight openwork fabric in areas that heat the most, keeping the body cooler and minimising the accumulation of moisture.

Even in cooler temperatures, during exercise, your body may sweat. If your kit retains this moisture, you may then start to feel cold. Undershield’s sweat-wicking properties and reduced moisture absorption mean fabrics dry quickly so your temperature remains stable.

A further benefit of these sweat-wicking properties is that, as the skin is kept dry, the build-up of bacteria is avoided, keeping your skin healthier.

Heart rate and respiration

Your heart rate determines the intensity of your workout; a higher heart rate meaning that you are working at a more intense level.

By wearing fabrics that regulate your temperature, your heart rate will be lower and, equally, your breathing will be more efficient. This means that you will be able to perform at a higher level.

The properties of Undershield garments have been shown to lower heart rate by 4 beats per minute compared to polyester.

Breathing is also improved with a reduction of oxygen intake by an average of 3 litres per minute.

Comfort, freedom of movement and support

Whatever form your sport takes, whether it is running, cycling, team sports or working out at the gym, your kit needs to be comfortable and allow you the freedom of movement to perform the activity to the best of your ability.

The Under Shield garments are seamless, allowing unrestricted freedom of movement in whichever direction is required. However, their construction also provides support for the muscles in strategic points, so that your body moves only as you require it to.

It’s not the weather, it’s the kit

We’re still facing another good month or so of winter and as the temperatures drop and the rain turns to sleet, facing an outdoor workout may not seem appealing. However, the temperature outside is not a factor if you have the right kit!

Under Shield offers a range of categorised garments from ‘Ultra Light’ to ‘Warm Plus’ allowing you to face the outdoors whatever the weather.

A certified product - OEKO-TEX Standard 100

As athletes, we put a lot of trust in sports manufacturers that they are producing kit that will work for us and also that will do us no harm.

As an independent regulator for some of the world’s best-known labels for textiles, Oeko-Tex® Standard 100, rigorously tests every aspect of a product to certify that it is harmless in human ecological terms.

As skin-contact garments, Under Shield have achieved their certification confirming that there is nothing in the make-up of their products that could be harmful to our body’s health.

This can give you confidence that the garments bought are of a high standard of product safety.

When choosing the right kit for performance in your sport, there will be many factors to consider. The new technology behind Under Shield means the benefits offered could see you reaching new levels in your achievement this season.