Know your gear

It's not on TOP, it's the UNDERWEAR

One of the most vivid pictures of the 2007/2008 cricket season was bowler Dale Steyn punching the air while aggressively mimicking a knockoutpunch. He delivered 78 of those in a period of seven months, during which he briefly rose to joint number one on the world rankings of the International Cricket Council.

Let’s change the scene somewhat, to Ahmedabad, with AB de Villiers on his back in the dirt as the bowler, Anil Kumble watches him. But Kumble’s expression is not that of gleeful celebration. And although De Villiers grimaces momentarily as he is on the ground, he is still pretty upbeat when he gets up again. He has good reason to be optimistic, for he just smashed a ferocious six right out of the ground on his way to a career-best undefeated 217 off 333 balls.

Now for a change of sport to a scene that has become familiar to many South Africans: Robbie Hunter lifting both hands from the handlebars in a victory salute as he speeds across the finish line in his second Cape Argus race in a row.

De Villiers and Hunter are two of the many athletes who wear a Linebreak baselayer. Did it benefit their career-defining performances? Did Steyn, and his equally impressive fast bowling colleague, Morné Morkel, benefit from wearing Canterbury BaseLayer products?

Many benefits

Recent research shows that there are indeed substantial performance benefits to be had by using compression clothing made to provide pressure and structure to an athlete’s muscles and limbs. Simply slipping into a baselayer garment can boost performance, speed recovery, regulate temperature and minimize swelling during air travel.

No wonder Superman slipped into phone booths to emerge in his underwear to perform marvellous feats, Sports Trader commented in 2005 when we introduced the “miracle” features of baselayers to retailers. After all, have you ever seen Superman with swollen ankles after travelling thousands of kilometres across the skies and continents at bullet speed?

Wayne Schonegevel of OBO SA, supplier of Linebreak, says there are two components of baselayers that help athletes to improve their performance, namely thermo-regulation and compression.

Keep it cool

Most baselayer brands offer thermo-regulatory properties. This entails maintaining optimum body temperature so that muscles can operate at the most efficient levels. It is done by utilising the moisture management properties in the fabric.

Helly Hansen is acknowledged as the developer of baselayers more than 30 years ago. The main benefit of their garments is that they assist the body to stay dry during any form of activity, says Rebecca Laird of local distributor Texas Peak. When the skin’s surface is dry, the body can regulate its natural, ideal body temperature. For example, keeping warmer when it is cold outside, staying cooler when it is hot outside.

The aptly named CCC BaseLayer, supplied by Canterbury, is available in two temperature control ranges, namely Baselayer Hot and Baselayer Cold, says marketing manager Carole Messham. Baselayer Hot is designed to keep you cool in the harshest of conditions, including training in the gymnasium, on or off the field. It allows you to train harder and recover faster.

Baselayer Cold is in turn designed to keep you warm in the coldest conditions and works like a thermal.

These garments are designed to be worn close to the skin. They actively control body temperature by wicking sweat away from the body and increasing the evaporation process. Acting like blotting paper, sweat is dispersed along the fibres of the fabric.

In a nutshell: the greater the area of evaporation, the greater the cooling effect.

They also feature muscle compression properties that support and promote muscle alignment, significantly preventing muscle fatigue due to lactic acid building up during performances.

Compression benefits

The compression benefits of baselayers would depend on a specific type of weave and fabric composition that provides optimum pressure across major muscle groups, says Schonegevel. For example:

» By increasing and improving blood flow, which flushes out lactic acids, faster recovery is ensured;
» Micro-muscle tears, which occur during any form of exercise, are repaired;
» The use of the baselayer also creates greater muscle endurance, and reduces delayed onset of muscle soreness;
» Schonegevel says the baselayer also increases the level of pro-prioception — in layman’s terms it means that the athlete is able to maintain muscle form for a longer period of time. For example: a golfer is able to maintain his swing arc over a longer period before muscles start getting tired.
» Baselayers offer bio-acceleration, says Rassie Erasmus, marketing manager of JGSA (Gilbert in the olden days), supplier of Skins Technical Compression Garments, developed and designed to provide engineered gradient compression. When compression is engineered to apply a balanced and accurate surface pressure over specific body parts, it triggers an acceleration of blood flow.

This increases oxygen delivery to the working muscles to enhance their performance. “The circulation improvements also help the body to eliminate lactic acid and other metabolic wastes,” says Pieterse.

According to Jodie Louw, supplier of Rockets compression garments, the compression garment basically generates between 8 and 12 mm mercury of pressure on the surface of the skin, which improves athletic performance by speeding up one’s recovery rate. This concept has been scientifically tested and proven, he says.

Other pertinent advantages for athletes wearing compression ranges or baselayer garments is that of muscle support, enhanced body posture and, of course, the psychological advantage, says Gary Blakey of Rugbytech.

“Most of the garment manufacturers on the market today have designed specific panels into their garments that give the athlete support in the critical areas like the hamstring, calf and torso areas of the body — this allows for good body posture and support during competition (don’t forget the wicking and thermal advantages as well) and when off the field or bike, helps with recovery.

“Knowing that his or her muscles are well cared for during your activity definitely gives the athlete a psychological boost,” says Blakey.

The Rugbytech Compression range has been specially developed using interwoven Sorona and Spandex fabrics. The Sorona fabric is a revolutionary textile produced by DuPont in that it is the first of its kind to be manufactured from naturally occurring starch in the kernels of corn. It is therefore an environmentally friendly product too.

Sorona has many advantages with incredibly high wicking, excellent heat regulation and cutting edge stain resistance (a must for rugby performance wear) properties.

For frequent flyers

The baselayer enhances circulation and helps to prevent cramps and deep vein thrombosis. Many athletes — and also other frequent flyers — are now flying in compression tights and socks.

Schonegevel quotes the SA Olympic swimmer Ryk Neethling as saying about Linebreak Tights: “The gear has been awesome, especially for travelling. I feel it cuts down on my recovery time after the 18 hour flight to the US.”

It will be safe to predict that plane loads full of athletes travelling to Beijing will be wearing compression baselayers on board.

Erasmus has high expectations of good sales of the Skins Travel & Recovery long tights before the Beijing Olympics. They are body-moulded, compression tights, with built-in Bio-Acceleration Technology. They also regulate body temperature by wicking perspiration away from the skin and are sanitised.

Ian Wright, owner of Tanclar Sports Distributors, supplier of McDavid baselayers, cautions that these will not necessarily help improve performance in ALL sports.

“If one requires significant heat management and one is looking for a slight edge through compression of muscles, and if these elements are factors in the performance of a sport, then the garments will offer benefits,” he says. “Otherwise, they are not a necessity for optimal sports performance.”

Anna Stark of Just Fun Sports, suppliers of Under Armour, disagrees. She believes baselayers are ideal for any form of physical activity.

“I receive many questions with regards to watersports. Baselayer products are not waterproof, but Under Armour, for example, offers UPF 50 sun protection and is very quick drying.”

Consumer awareness

Is the increased hype about compression garments and baselayers matched by growing awareness amongst athletes and recreational users about the benefits of the garments?

The demand for baselayers is most definitely on the increase, says Messham. She believes that athletes from more sporting disciplines now appreciate the advantages of products like the CCC BaseLayer and realise that undergarments can benefit their performance and comfort on the field, pitch, court and bike.

Says Schonegevel: “As the elite athlete and weekend warrior are becoming more aware and educated regarding the benefits of baselayers — and specifically the compression benefits — we are finding that the demand is increasing at a major rate. I have no doubt that we are only at the tip of the iceberg in terms of the potential for the undergarment/baselayer category.”

Wright agrees that compression garments are now a trend in SA, and they are also becoming increasingly popular. He says that professional athletes currently make optimal use of baselayers and they are then copied by the younger generation.

“These days they (baselayers) have become increasingly popular amongst all levels of athletes, but unfortunately, there remains a major problem,” he says. “Most youngsters or amateurs are typically wearing a baselayer, a protective garment and then their actual team kit. So many layers of different material basically nullifies the effects of the various garments — especially when it comes to moisture management and heat control by the body. This could actually have a negative effect on the athlete’s performance,” says Wright.

Schonegevel agrees that lack of knowledge from consumers about the benefits of wearing compression garments is a big problem.

“Even our elite and serious amateur athletes seem to be behind their overseas counterparts in embracing the benefits. However, we are beginning to see that as more of these athletes are wearing baselayers, the demand from the weekend warrior is growing.”

Blakey however has such faith in the power of baselayers that he believes “you only have to use the product whilst taking part in your sport to see what awesome advantages it offers,” he says.

Wright adds that SA unfortunately remains a follower in terms of the sports apparel market. Rugby is a prime example of a sporting code where these garments are often bought on the strength of a brand’s strength, and unfortunately this means that the garments are often sold, or worn, for the wrong purposes, he says.

Typically, cricket and soccer are also sports where baselayers are common, but again, the general public often buy them as more a fashion statement, which are the incorrect reasons.

Elite or weekend warrior?

Messham says CCC BaseLayer can be used at all levels of sport, from the professional to the school athlete. This Canterbury product is predominantly used in the rugby fraternity, but it can also be utilised in many other sporting disciplines.

“You will see the likes of Steyn and Morkel currently wearing our baselayer, while the Western Province ladies golf team, David Frost, Michael Campbell, as well as many other individual golfers, also use the product,” says Messham.

Linebreak is worn by people who want the true benefits of compression and thermo-regulation in order to improve their performance,” says Schonegevel.

“Being specialists in compression, we have found that currently our brand is mainly used by the elite athlete (25%), provincial athletes (20%), serious amateur athletes (30%), school first team players (20%), while other users only comprise about 5%.”

The Helly Hansen user base in SA would be split among club level athletes (65%), provincial (15%), elite (15%) and school level athletes (5%), says Laird.

According to her, paddling, cycling, athletics and watersports are the most popular users of their baselayers.

Although developed and designed by rugby players, the Rugbytech baselayer range is a multi-port product and can be used by cyclists, paddlers, adventure racers, soccer players, cricket players and athletes alike, says Blakey.

Skins is the official teammate to the Vodacom Bulls and the Sharks — and also the supplier of compression and therapeutic wear to 49 elite sporting teams and individuals, says Erasmus.

Under Armour introduced baselayers to American football, and then extended the use to baseball, says Stark. “Locally, I would estimate that the sporting codes with the biggest market share will be rugby and cricket, with a growing awareness in football,” she says. “Baselayers have also created a strong awareness in athletics.”

It is clear that increasing numbers of people in SA engaged in all kinds of activities benefit from using baselayers. These include paddling, hiking, water-skiing, snow-skiing, climbing, cycling, running, soccer, rugby, tennis, athletics, kite surfing, sailing, walking, mountain biking, cricket and hockey.