Armour your workout gear
HI-TECH: MORE SATISFYING EXERCISE IN
↣ The worldwide shift back to fitness routines is getting a little help from new technology.
It was one thing when my running shoes could speak to an app on my smartphone to keep me updated on pace, stride length and distance. It was altogether a different experience when my shoes told me it was time for a trade-in.
That is what happened when I headed out of lockdown for a run wearing Under Armour’s (UA) Hovr Phantom SE “smart shoes”.
They were about a year old, but still seemed fine.
Suddenly, the MapMyRun app, which syncs with UA-connected shoes via a chip built into their soles, gave me an alert I had never seen before: “You will soon need to replace your shoes.”
Sure, that may be a gimmick to sell more shoes, but podiatrists will tell you that even the best running shoes need to be replaced every year or so, as they stop giving your feet the support they need.
The MapMyRun app considers both distance and condition and gives you the right advice before you need to see that podiatrist. For the price of a couple of appointments, you can get the next generation of shoe.
The choice of high-tech shoe is wide and every manufacturer has its own proprietary technology.
Nike pioneered smart shoes with the Nike+iPod Sports Kit as far back as 2006.
Back then, it was almost revolutionary to measure and record the distance and pace of a walk or run.
Today, it has to go a few steps further.
The new Nike HyperAdapts are battery-powered, self-lacing shoes with LED mid-sole indicator lights and will probably set you back more than R10 000.
Adidas’ answer is the more down-to-earth Ultra Boost range with foam cushions that “return energy” with every stride.
It has also come up with a 3D runner that uses a spiderweb-style sole for higher-density webbing and greater longevity.
The UltraBoost Summer. Rdy shoe has a “super-breathable” knit upper that promises a cooling sensation as one runs.
My favourite remains the shoe that tells me when it needs a break.
One of the latest in the UA range, the Hovr Machina, combines the best of all these worlds. “With lightweight foam and a Pebax-carbon plate, the UA Hovr Machina is a gofast trainer,” was Runner’s World’s takeaway. However, the real magic lies in the extent to which both engineering and the chip’s interaction with the app provide a futuristic running experience. UA is also continually enhancing the tech that goes into its running shorts, shirts and tracksuits. It has developed four categories of technology: CoolSwitch, HeatGear, HeatGear Armour and Microthread. But these are the 2020s, and high-tech collaboration is now the order of the day.
UA has now partnered with Celliant to create UA Rush, described as “a mineral-infused fabric” designed to enhance performance, “giving athletes that extra edge by recycling the body’s energy during moments of performance”.
The reality is that a shirt can’t give one energy by itself but, as with the shoes, by dissipation and distribution of heat and energy, it makes physical exertion a little more comfortable, allowing one to push a little harder through mental barriers.
That is also the thinking behind UA’s Athlete Recovery Sleepwear, which “uses the heat energy ... to help your cells recover faster and improve your sleep”.
It temporarily improves localised blood flow to muscles, aiding in recovery after a workout. Think of it as a wearable weighted blanket without the weight.
And I can confirm that this gear has provided some of my most comfortable and satisfying – not to mention most high-tech – runs yet.