Why activewear dries quickly and cools you down...
Activewear is designed to be worn next to the skin, providing the wearer comfort by maintaining body temperature and controlling moisture. The fabrics used are highly wicking (they will spread moisture out over a large area), fast drying and breathable. It is therefore essential to maintain these properties when caring for base layers.
Sports clothes need to be cared for properly to keep them in top condition...
To keep sports clothing functioning properly, care must be taken when washing. Using conventional household detergents or fabric softeners can impair wicking properties, causing the fabric to retain moisture. This leads to reduced wicking capabilities and slow drying of the fabric. Over time a build-up of bacteria and body oils, especially in synthetic active clothes, can lead to them smelling. If using conventional detergents or fabric softeners, odors will not be adequately removed. Instead, they are masked by perfumes which fail quickly, leaving you with smelly items!
Conventional household detergents and fabric softeners reduce the performance of your activewear…
Using conventional household detergents and fabric softeners will impair the wicking properties of active fabrics. Standard household detergents do not stop odors from building up in the fabric when in use. Conventional fabric softeners leave water-hating (hydrophobic) residues that will reduce the performance of the fabric, preventing it from spreading moisture and working to its maximum potential. Nikwax Sports Refresh outperforms conventional household detergents and fabric softeners at improving wicking, accelerating drying, and removing and preventing odor build up.