Skins Clothing Performance Question

Hey Timy,

I have a quick question about a product that you may have experience with…..“Skins”…

I have read a bit about this “gear” and wanted to ask you why and under what circumstances you would recommend this product to another athlete.

I have been climbing for 15 years, currently live in Germany, boulder 7A after a few tries and usually within a few days of projecting send 7B-7C and climb in the 7c range redpoint. I am 38 and practice mobility training mornings as well as flexibility training every other evening, and employ relaxation techniques a few times per week. My nutrition is solid whole food based and supplements like wobenzyme -n, Citrulline malat, beta alanine, zma, creatine, and a multi are cycled in when needed.

I boulder, climb, or train basically 6 days a week while trying to mix it up to avoid overtraining. Occasionally I will add a 20 minute jog in 1x per week (this is probably a weak point for me according to something you wrote awhile back about running for recovery) My current aims are to solidify my bouldering to a 7b flash level and bring my route climbing “composure” to a higher level.

So having given a bit of background, what do you think about skins for a person on my level? Im thinking of the long sleeved CROM top and the half tights, but maybe through your experience you would recommend something else?

I hope I didnt take up too much of your time, I just wanted to get a climbers opinion before I buy, as the 200€ could also buy alot of road trip diesel…and really I just dont need all the marketing tricks and trends. Im mainly interested in just “no bullshit” stuff that has function

Thanks for the motivation, keep it up,

Peace,

Eric Wilson
Germany
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TF Response:

Thank you for a great question regarding a new performance clothing concept that has just entered the sport of climbing. First off, I would like to commend you on how you have designed your training regimen. I wish more climbers would invest that much of themselves in educating themselves about the process of athletic training – especially in our sport.

Skins compression clothing most benefits those athletes who engage in a comprehensive training program involving multiple days/week, different types of workout routines, strength and conditioning, cross-training and hence where the recovery component of the protocol is paramount to maintaining a rigorous schedule.

I personally came into contact with using compression clothing years ago as a youth soccer player. We wore unpadded cycling shorts for groin and glut injuries under our soccer shorts. I later came into contact (well after the 80’s lycra craze) with the concept as a professional rock climber in my training a few years ago as the result of some advice of a friend who trains on my private wall. I tested another name brand that is not as well crafted and precisely fitting in my opinion. I experienced some performance benefit and gravitated towards wearing the garments whenever I was training. I then researched the concept of “compression clothing” for performance further and discovered “Skins”.

Shortly thereafter I contacted Skins about sponsorship and they sent me some clothing (long sleeve sport top & long tights) which I tested through my training on the wall, strength training and running. I noticed that the fit was precise and the quality was unrivaled. The fashion style was pretty dope as well. The company seemed to be very serious about offering a product that yielded concrete results to serious athletes and had research to back their claims.

Once I learned more about how physiotherapists and trainers were actually implementing the clothing with success to professional athletes in Australia in other major sports such as Rugby, AFL, Cricket, Track & Field, Cycling, Soccer etc. I realized that this type of clothing could benefit any serious athlete and that perhaps there were many benefits to the clothing beyond what I had initially perceived. I then pursued sponsorship with the company.

I had always sensed that there must have been some validity to the concept of compression wear in athletic performance based on how athletes in other sports for years have been wearing some form of tight clothing as part of their uniform. I have noticed that Olympic lifters compress their knees, many footballers (soccer players) and NBA players wear tight shorts under their team kit shorts, NFL players wear tight pants, sprinters wear tight one-piece suits, distance runners and cyclists who train high volume have been using tights for recovery between workouts for decades.

Over time I have observed that most NBA players and European footballers are wearing short sleeve compression tops under their team jerseys. My friend who is a retired professional bull rider (‘97 PBR World Champion) has used multiple layers of tight shorts to ride with groin injuries. Not all of these athletes could have been landing major endorsement contracts to front the gear so there must have been a legitimate reason why athletes in all types of disciplines had started to gravitate towards using compression clothing independently of one another.

FYI: While I was in New Zealand last Summer for a photo shoot at Castle Hill I attended an “All Blacks” vs. England Rugby match. I noticed before the match that Jonathan Thurston who is sponsored by Skins was wearing a black Long Sleeve CROM Top and Short Tights under his team jersey. It turns out that he played a bad ass game and was subsequently presented with an award after the game because he was nominated “Man of the match”.

Last season I was told by friends that they saw numerous NFL wide receivers wearing Skins tops in televised training clips and even during games. Ray Thoma, the North American Skins sales manager, subsequently informed me that those NFL players have been buying Skins clothing ($2,000 worth at a time) with their own cash (which we all know is quite plentiful) and deliberately not seeking sponsorship so as to not attract attention to their newly found secret weapon. Ray, who is a former professional baseball (3rd base/short stop) player himself, also informed me that several Major League pitchers have been using Skins in their training under the radar. Interesting…………………………………

I use Skins clothing in the following aspects of my training as an under garment:

Warm-up routines (Long Sleeve Crom)
Strength & conditioning (Short Sleeve Crom)
Bouldering in the cold (Long Sleeve Crom/Long Tights)
Wall training sessions: (Sleeveless Sport Top/Short Tights)

Running: (Short Tights/Short Sleeve Crom Top in warm weather/Long Tights/Long Sleeve Crom Top in cold weather)

Recovery & Therapy:
Post massage/chiropractic (Long Sleeve Sport Top/Long Tights)
Cryotherapy/Icing post workout recovery & injuries (Long Sleeve Sport Top) – this helps with freeze blisters if you ice regularly
Air Travel: (Long Sleeve Top/Long Tights)

Light Weight Cooling System:

Skins compression clothing tops can be soaked in water and wrung out periodically throughout the workout session to help keep your core temperature cool in hot conditions. I do this routinely while training on my home wall, at the rock or before a run during the Summer months.

I’ve started wearing the new Skins Ice CROM Tops in hot conditions.

Heart Rate Monitor Retention:

Skins compression clothing keeps my heart rate monitor properly positioned during workouts – which is helpful in a sport where we encounter radical contortion of the upper body and generally have mutated physiques with wide lats and narrow waist (Although I am only 5’7”/140# I am cursed with an 11” drop – so having my dress suits tailored is always interesting). This is a considerable benefit because I wear a heart rate monitor during strength and conditioning, running, power endurance sessions on my wall and long routes on the rock.

I think that you are correct to start with a Long Sleeve CROM Top and a pair of the Short Tights. With all of the training in which you are presently engaged you will get more than your fair share of usage from a few Skins garments somehow. While you’re at it, you should buy some Skins garments for your lady so that the rest of us can get your money’s worth out of the deal as well. The women’s line is sexy!

Let me know how it works out for you,

Sincerely,

Timy Fairfield
PS: No Bullshit!

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