Reasons Top Athletes Support Under Armour's Recovery Wear

In recent years, recovery wear has surged in popularity due to heightened awareness of sleep and rest.

Under Armour answered the enthusiastic calls from top athletes and resumed the sales of Recovery Wear in 2024 after it was discontinued in 2020.

Why do athletes who pay attention to their physical conditioning support Under Armour? I spoke with Ryoji Ogane of DOME Corporation.

Recovery Wear Developed with NFL's Top Athletes

Under Armour's Recovery Wear was developed in response to top NFL players.

"One of the contracted athletes at Under Armour had a strong focus on sleep; he paid attention not only to sleep duration and bedding but also the temperature while sleeping. This led to the decision to develop functional sleepwear for performance enhancement."

However, in 2018, the U.S. headquarters decided to cease production of Recovery Wear, which also led to its discontinuation in Japan in 2020. Despite this, requests for its revival flooded in from not only contracted athletes but also those who were not under contract.

"Some athletes continued to wear past products even when the fabric was worn out."

As a brand that promotes supporting athletes' performance improvement, recovery is a crucial factor, and the demand in Japan is high. They repeatedly offered to resume sales to the headquarters.

However, due to the complexities of the global brand's business scale, those voices were not reflected in decisions.

"In light of strong requests from athletes, we aimed to revive it through Japanese planning, which eventually led to the approval from the headquarters for the 2024 resale."

Design Considerations for Athletes' Daily Life

In addition to the functionality of the popular "Sleep" series from before the discontinuation, we developed thicker hoodies, cardigans, sweatpants, and eye masks that can also be worn outside.

"Athletes dedicate almost all their time outside of competition to conditioning. To support athletes during various daily situations such as sleep, post-practice, travel to the next match location, and relaxation time indoors, we increased the variety of products.

"Another focus in Japanese planning was the silhouette. The previous products predominantly reflected the needs of the American market, often resulting in items that were too short or had large openings in the back, not matching the style of Japanese people.

"Thus, the 'Sleep' series is designed to fit the body to a certain extent while not feeling constricted, and considering situations like stepping out from the hotel room to the hallway, the design does not resemble pajamas.

"Since overly sporty sweatpants can be hard to wear casually, we decided to minimize the logo's visibility, considering the situations in which athletes would wear them."

Additionally, being unisex and with many contracted athletes in rugby and basketball, the size range available is extensive, from XS to 5XL.

"From a business perspective this may not be efficient, but fitting the body is important, so from the perspective of athlete-first, we want to respond carefully in various details."

Reasons Under Armour's Recovery Wear is Supported by Top Athletes

Recovery Wear operates on a mechanism that reflects far-infrared rays emitted from the body back to the skin, promoting blood circulation and aiding in fatigue reduction.

The principle is the same for Under Armour's Recovery Wear, which promotes blood circulation by printing a blend of 13 types of minerals, known as "Celliant," on the backside of the fabric.

However, why is Under Armour's Recovery Wear so widely supported by athletes despite having the same principle?

"The secret lies in the printing. Some general recovery wear incorporates ceramics into the fabric, which is highly effective but requires advanced technology, limiting the types of fabric that can be used, which is a drawback.

"Our recovery wear uses fibers made from pulp derived from wood, resulting in a soft fabric that feels great against the skin. One of the major reasons for its popularity is that it can be worn comfortably by those with sensitive skin or who may experience irritation from chemical fibers."

In fact, when you pick up Under Armour's recovery wear, you can truly feel its supple, soft touch against your skin.

Although the product was recently restocked, it has quickly gained popularity, with some athletes purchasing up to ten boxes of the same item. The long pants sold out almost immediately.［1］

Both athletes and the rest of us want to approach each day with our best performance. Why not incorporate Under Armour's recovery wear, recognized by professionals for its strict conditioning, into your everyday life?