Sports Underwear - Banish Chafing and Sweating
Is your ‘normal’ sports underwear letting you down during hiking, especially on longer hikes? Using specific sports underwear is a good way to easily reduce the impact of a day's hiking on the sensitive areas of your body and it is therefore an important part of your overall hiking equipment.
Commonly, hiking causes friction from movement and heat that can lead to problems such as:
Excessive perspiration (not just uncomfortable but the odour from the genital area can sometimes be embarrassing). Heat rashes. Infections such as jock itch or vaginal thrush. Chafes (sore skin caused by movement and rubbing). Usually affects the top of the legs, underarms, nipples and sometimes the genitals of both sexes. Ouch!
How Sports Underwear Helps…
And How a Sports Bra Saved a Hiker's Life in the Alps
Generally, specifically designed sports underwear refers to sport shorts & underpants for both sexes and sports bras for women.They reduce heat and sweating through the use of lightweight, moisture-wicking fabrics (usually man made synthetics such as polyester or mixes). sometimes with silver added! Again, cotton is a no-no for sports gear as it retains heat and, more problematically, the moisture. Some designers use a machine-washable antimicrobial finish to reduce bacteria and odour. They are also designed to reduce friction on the skin by offering various levels of support to suit the sport and the requirements of the wearer. The level of support is a very individual choice on what feels comfortable for your shape and size.
For Both Sexes, Compression Shorts
There are compression shorts designed for men and for women and look similar in appearance to a pair of spandex cycling shorts. The meaning of compression is that they provide groin support and a gentle pressure across the abdomen and thighs. The materials are lightweight, expandable (stretching easily) and are comfortable. This type of athletics underwear is used by professional athletes and is gaining wider popularity. The larger brand names, such as Patagonia, Calvin Klein, DKNY and Tommy Hilfiger all have good ranges.Compression shorts are also available as boxer length. For women there is a similar length sports panty, which doesn’t rub along the leg/groin join as a pair of hiking knickers might. Nice little features include seamless sides and sown in labels.
Additionally for Men, the Jock Strap
An alternative to compression shorts is the simple wide band jock strap. This provides a closer fitting support and uplift though remains comfortable. It is also less expensive.
Sports Bra
Sports bras look like a short tank top. There are two main types; compression bras apply pressure to the breasts to restrict movement and encapsulation bras that have moulded breast shape cups. Compression bras are best suited to A and B cup women while encapsulation bras for C cup or larger.For hiking you will need a sports bra classed as medium impact to provide adequate support to prevent bounce and nipple chafe. Nice little features are seamless sides, no labels or tags and no hard wires. Oh, how can a sports bra save your life? Well a hiker who fell and was trapped on a ledge in the Alps took off her sports bra from under her top and used it to flag the attention of local logger men by attaching it to a logging wire that took it down the mountain. A great way to get a rescue team running to help you!
 
Some other points to consider:
Reduce your expenditure on sports underwear by buying non-brand sports underwear. Or buy ‘normal’ underwear but ensure it is a polyester or other man made synthetic i.e. avoid cotton. Take off all labels (don’t cut off and leave a stub though), tags and fly buttons. You could even look to wear these inside out so that those big, irritating sewn seams are on the outside. Keep pubic hair and underarm hair trimmed back, especially during the summer, as this will help make those areas cooler and dry quicker. Don't forget to use underarm antiperspirant deodorant and talc in skin joints and in your socks.
In conclusion, once you switch to sports underwear you’ll wonder how you ever went hiking in ‘normal’ underwear. You may also feel a lot sexier on the mountain!
 
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