I am not going to lie. Like some of you, I was recently contacted by Champion, maker of cool and affordable fitness clothes. They asked me to highlight the Champion Innovation Lab on my blog in exchange for some Champion schwag to later review on said blog (and maybe model and maybe giveaway). Because I love new things (especially of the *free* variety) and because this program is actually pretty cool I thought it was a decent trade off.
What is the Champion Innovation Lab? Good question. I had no clue until they contacted me. Here's the gist:
Starting this past September, participants were given product from Champion’s extensive portfolio, including apparel from the popular Double Dry, Compression and Seamless lines. Athletes are then asked to catalogue their experiences in a provided Training Log, answering questions on weather, pace, route (e.g., train, street, treadmill), comfort, fit and washing machine care. Insights garnered from these logs continue to provide Champion with updates on how its products are delivering in real life. Runners are additionally outfitted in Champion apparel for the Half and Full Marathon events and are announced as Innovation Lab participants when crossing the finish line.
What is the Champion Innovation Lab? Good question. I had no clue until they contacted me. Here's the gist:
Starting this past September, participants were given product from Champion’s extensive portfolio, including apparel from the popular Double Dry, Compression and Seamless lines. Athletes are then asked to catalogue their experiences in a provided Training Log, answering questions on weather, pace, route (e.g., train, street, treadmill), comfort, fit and washing machine care. Insights garnered from these logs continue to provide Champion with updates on how its products are delivering in real life. Runners are additionally outfitted in Champion apparel for the Half and Full Marathon events and are announced as Innovation Lab participants when crossing the finish line.
In fact, Champion had many Innovation Lab Athletes running at the Disney World Half Marathon today. I hope the clothes didn't freeze into their skin. Were any of you there for the Florida cold fest?
I think this lab thing is innovative. Guess that's why it's the Innovation Lab Here's the main reason I like this innovating Innovation Lab:
You don't just wear the stuff and say, "I liked it" or "It sucked" or "It made my butt look fat." You actually think about how you liked it under certain conditions.
- When you were stinking hot, did the clothing wick well and keep you dry?
- When you washed it, did it retain its shape, color, etc? Did the skid marks wash out easily?
- When you were on that 20 mile run, did the shorts ride up? Did the shirt chafe in scary places?
You get the picture. A company trying to solicit this kind of detail and satisfaction level from its customers clearly wants to do a good job.
My question to you is: how do you choose your running clothes. Brand? Quality? How phat it looks? Practicality? Price? I usually choose mine based on how well it fits, how good it looks, and how well reputed the company is who makes it. Price is important too. I'm not stuck on any particular brand. If it's comfy, looks good, is the right price and makes me look like I got a boob job, I'll probably buy it.
Hope you're Saturday is everything that you dreamed it would be.
