Let the blood flow
If I were to give you one beneficial difference between average cycling clothing and truly high-performance clothing, it would be ‘compression.’ Fundamentally, it shows that the designer has thought a lot about the cyclist and their biomechanics, their endurance and their recovery. They’ve also ensured that the fabrics chosen for the garments, have the necessary technicality and properties to help you, the cyclist. Now, you may ask ‘how does the compression work’ and ‘what are the benefits’ - let’s take a more detailed look then!
Blood flow and muscles
The first thing I need to say is that I’m a layman here. I simply listened well in school, and I’ve spoken lots over the years, to some of the best cycling coaches and athletes. Ultimately, it’s quite simple when you look at it. Muscles need blood to flow to them in order to perform, and the more we can help that blood to flow through clothing design, then the better it is. At a basic level, when cycling, blood flow is moved around the body and redistributed from physically inactive tissues to those hard-working leg muscles. It’s unknown how long this situation persists after a very intense exercise or whether it differs between intense exhausting and non-exhausting exercise.
However, keeping the muscles warm and the blood flowing is a useful way of adding to the general performance of the rider. By using the right fabrics and understanding the body and biometrics, the clothing can actively target the right areas of the legs and compress the blood vessels – hence the term ‘compression clothing.’ This compression then ensures that the blood flow is increased, and as we all know from biology lessons at school – more oxygen is moved to the muscles. This increased oxygen flow then transfers to increased performance – voila! And, at the end of the ride, it aids you even further, by assisting in recovery.
Fabric technology to increase performance
Here at Stickman, we’re really keen to ensure that our fabrics are the very best available. We don’t just want you to look good – you already do 😉. Our designs simply wrap up a very beautiful package – you! No, we’re really keen to make sure that our cycle clothing is the very best in the world, and that it makes you look good, feel good and perform to your very best. That means bringing in all of this great information from fabric scientists, and designing clothing that utilises it.
For example, the closer the fit to the skin – and we like our Stickman cycling shorts to feel like a second skin – the less cold air can get in between the fabric and the skin, and the warmer the muscles stays. This reduces fatigue and ensures that with the extra blood flow, the muscles stay warm and keep performing to their maximum – achieving great endurance.
The end results
If your clothing feels like a second skin, and if that clothing is delivering an increased oxygen flow to the muscles, then your chances of an improved recovery are also increased. Stickman cycling clothing isn’t just about bringing you ‘art on 2 wheels’ - which we do, better than anyone else in the world. It’s also about bringing you the best Italian technical fabrics and applying a little bit of science into the mix and delivering performance.
Yes, some cycle clothing might seem to be a real bargain in terms of price and maybe yes, the designs might not look too shabby either. However, here at Stickman cycling, we don’t settle for second best - we strive for perfection. Ultimately, that means ensuring that the performance of our cycle clothing range is equal to our fantastic designs by the superbly talented and creative artists who produce the most unique, limited edition cycle clothing in the world. And, because we do this, your own achievements on the make are never limited, they're always maximised – Stickman style!