When it comes to sport, the right equipment matters. After all, you wouldn’t play tennis with a golf club or snooker with a hockey stick. So it’s time to bin the ill-fitting Lycra and your boyfriend’s hoodie and get some workout gear you actually want to wear – like that made by HPE, Lucas Hugh and Laain, three labels to get your pulse racing.

HPE (HUMAN PERFORMANCE ENGINEERING)
“I have been lucky enough to work with some amazing athletes and clients, from Formula 1 world champions, Grand Slam-winning tennis players, Olympians, Robert Downey Jr and AC/DC,” says HPE founder Nick Harris, a human-performance specialist. He first had the idea for a label when he put together a human-performance strategy for Formula 1 in the late 1990s, but only turned designer in 2013. The resulting line brings his scientific knowledge to performance clothes. “All our styles are made with our Freshfit fabric,” he explains. “This has silver technology designed to resist bacterial buildup and a moisture-management system to reduce fluid loss and maintain body temperature. All our leggings have compression that increases blood flow back to the heart and delivers much-needed oxygen to working muscles, reducing fatigue and soreness by better managing lactic-acid accumulation. I love pushing the boundaries of fabric technology and bringing our customers the best possible product to increase their workout experience and recovery.” Nick wants to give people in his designs the confidence to become, and then remain, active. “After all,” he says, “your body is the greatest thing you’ll ever own.”

LUCAS HUGH
You may not have noticed, but the tributes in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire were all wearing Lucas Hugh workout wear. Clothes to hunt humans in? Those must be some special garments, and Lucas Hugh provides just that. New Zealand-born founder Anjhe Mules named the label after her two grandfathers, one of whom lived by the motto, “Fit in the mind, fit in the body” (now her maxim, too). Anjhe designed swimwear for 15 years, spending over a decade working out what would flatter women’s bodies. She then spent another three years researching clothes that would stand up to sweat and friction, before launching her label in 2010. “Each garment is designed with a specific sport in mind,” she says. “Structured ventilation panels, iPod holders with headset eyelets, light-reflective, high-visibility detailing, internal support and concealed pockets are typical and practical features.” There are even colour options, she says – for once, women’s workout clothes are “not just pink and purple!”

LAAIN
Sheila McKain-Waid and Tamara Rothstein, the two women behind Laain, bring serious fashion credentials to the world of sportswear. Sheila, an American mother of two who favours cycling and yoga, has worked for Donna Karan, Halston, Oscar de la Renta, Daks and currently Jaeger. Londoner Tamara, who prefers a solitary morning jog after dropping her daughter at school, pursued styling, clocking up time with Dior, Louis Vuitton and style titles including Pop, i-D and Arena Homme Plus, alongside consultancy work. Both women know what it means to manage a career, raise children in central London and sneak in time to exercise. And both shared a frustration at not finding great workout clothes to suit their lives. Having met at Daks (Sheila designing, Tamara styling shows), the pair set up Laain in 2013 with a refreshing approach to gymwear. “You want to feel good about doing something good for yourself,” Sheila says. “We felt there was a real niche for a label doing it in a different way, bringing ready-to-wear elements and something a bit more chic to sport.” While Sheila talks about American sportswear, Tamara recalls school Aertex shirts and running shorts – and the combination makes for a line that looks too good to break a sweat in. But for SS15, the focus is on getting active. “We saw a girl in baggy running shorts and really liked the idea of turning them into something much more luxurious,” Sheila explains. “Then we started thinking about how you turn smarter fabrics into activewear. We decided to take the great leap into performancewear.” Their clothes are absolutely practical and stylish, but they are also – crucially – designed so that women will actually wear them. “We want to make activewear that my mum would feel comfortable wearing,” says Tamara. “You’re meant to do sport throughout your life, so it should be for anybody. Someone may not want to wear a crop top – they may want long sleeves and to cover their bum.” Be still our beating hearts.

Text by Naomi Bikis