A comparative thermophysiological study in tops for running

Abstract

Comfort in clothing is essential for user’s performance and is considered as a factor quality when choosing a particular piece of garment. Sportswear needs include comfort and functionality, meaning that the thermophysiological properties are of extreme importance. Halasová says comfort is one of the aspects of higher interference about sports performance. The comfort, according this author, is influenced by humidity in outside and inside clothing, temperature, humidity and body temperature as well [1]. Market surveys demonstrate consumers consider comfort as one of the most important characteristic of decision-making when they buy clothings [2]. The objective of this work is the comparison between six different models of sports bra used specifically for running, taking into consideration the aspects of the thermophysiological properties. This paper is part of an ongoing research aiming to establish a comprehension about function and comfort characteristics for sports bra and propose a new bra with improved characteristics both in ergonomics design as well as in comfort performance.