 This is a new series that I’ll be adding to my blog. The aim of this and future posts will be to give you my opinion on what three different brand’s have to offer, at three different price points. I’ll give my recommendations on which, give you, the best bang for your buck. This post will look at 3 brand’s sportswear. Under Armour, ASOS and New Look are all featured, I’ve made a conscious effort to steer clear of Adidas and Nike in this post in order to give you something a little different. So let’s jump straight into it. Under Armour – £££ Training Fleece Half-Zip Sweat (Black) – £45  The half-zip is a style that I really like for any sportswear and Under Armour are a brand that do it really well. They have a wide variety of mid-layers. This is one of their more premium mid-layers and the quality of this piece of clothing is clear once you put it on. The detailing of the Under Armour logo on the back is also an example of the care that is taken with this top. During the cold weather, the fleece lining has been fantastic and makes this the perfect top to use outdoors or even travelling to and from the gym. This would have been a great alternative choice for my City Runs blog.   Training Threadborne Elite T-shirt (Green) – £19.50  This t-shirt is made from a stretch-breathable material, perfect for running in or as gym wear. I can imagine a few raised eyebrows at this one, and I wouldn’t normally choose a green camo top, but when I saw this in the sale I thought I’d go for it and I’m glad that I did. There is a clear quality to the top and with the style being something a little different it stands out from the crowd. ASOS (4505) – ££ 4505 Muscle Hoodie In 4 Way Stretch Jersey (Blue) – £38  A slightly cheaper option than the Under Armour mid-layer. With a full zip, hood and a material that feels similar to a scuba suit, this option gives a good mixture of style and function for half the price of a Nike or Adidas equivalent. I would definitely recommend the ASOS sports brand – 4505. This is my first sportswear purchase from ASOS and I’ve been pleasantly surprised and would definitely consider buying more from them with clear care taken to get even the smallest details right. However, for the extra £7 I think I’d still be tempted to plump for the Under Armour alternative.   4505 Compression Long Sleeve T-shirt with Seamless Knit – £20  This one went down very well in the Tapley household, with it apparently looking like something out of Batman according to my Mum. Not sure which batman film she’s been watching. This top is made of compression material and feels extremely high quality. It is, however, slightly too thick to be an under-layer, so you’ll have to wear it as a fashion choice, not just something you can wear under another top. If you prefer a bit more room to breathe and a looser fit, then perhaps this top isn’t for you. As you can see in the pictures, if you’re smuggling raisins when its cold, it will show. New Look – £ Navy Marl Crew Neck Sports T-shirt – £12.99  This is the perfect top if you need to pad out your wardrobe after just joining the gym. A safe, stylish and more importantly cheap option to get you started. Just getting into the gym or a new sport and need something to train in? Pick one or two of these up and it wont have set you back any more than a large pizza meal from Papa John’s. However, that’s as far as this will take you, if you’re a regular gym goer, into your sportswear or even just have the use of your eyes, I doubt this will cut the mustard for you. It just lacks that little bit of quality and care, with a bit of a boring design and loose threads, under close inspection it just comes up short. That being said, I stick with the opinion that it’s a good beginners choice. Black Running Shorts – £9.99  I expected these to be a little cheap and cheerful and I was correct. They aren’t going to win any awards for design looking like something you’d wear to your year 3 swimming lessons, but they’ll do a job for you. They’re a little baggy and don’t have zip pockets (which are in my opinion a must on sports shorts), but for £10, can you really complain? They’re comfortable, have lining inside for extra support and are pretty un-offensive. One word to sum these up…Meh.
Verdict – Under Armour – £££ The brand that I think offers the best value for money out of the items featured in this post has to be Under Armour. The quality is so far ahead of any of the other brands featured that I feel like although you’re paying slightly more for it (or in the case of new look nearly double), you’ll get so much more use out of it. That being said ASOS’s 4505 sportswear brand comes very close and if they could lower their price ever so slightly, then it may have pipped Under Armour. New Look need to up their quality, if they upped the durability and care given to their sportswear even with a slight price increase, they would be a very viable option. Let me know if you liked this blog and would like to see more of the Price Point series. A follow and a like on any social media would be greatly appreciated! I post regularly on social media with blog posts: Twitter: @matt_tapley Instagram: @matt_tapley
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