One embodiment relates to an orthopedic precast comprises a knitted shell portion and a knitted flexible portion. Heat or other hardening agent is used to harden the shell portion, while retaining flexibility in the flexible portion. Contemplated hardening agents include light, heat, and chemical polymerizing agents. In some embodiments the shell portion includes thermoplastic threads or yarns, which is then hardened by heating the thermoplastic sufficiently to at least partially melt, and thereby fuse together some of the threads or yarns, and then cooling to ambient temperature for enhanced rigidity. In other embodiments, the precast is contained in a bag or other airtight container, along with a self-heating composition that is triggered to release heat upon contact with oxygen. In still other embodiments, the precast includes a prepolymer of other polymerizable composition, which is polymerized by effective application of light, heat, and/or chemical agent(s) or deployed as a wearable.

This document presents a footwear article that covers the foot and ankle of the wearer. The footwear object protects the wearer's feet and ankle while improving blood circulation, and supporting the toes, arches, and ankles of the wearer. The footwear object is manufactured of layered fabrics that are knitted and/or woven from both man-made and natural fibers. The footwear object has portions providing compression, padding, and grip to provide support and prevent injury to the wearer's feet and ankles.

The present invention is a compression sock for enhanced ballet performance and training. The compression sock is designed to be worn over a ballet shoe. The compression sock has two areas of extra enhanced compression, one on the medial side and one on the lateral side of the sock as worn on the foot. If worn while training, these compression areas help prevent sickling of the foot and improve ballet technique.

A knit sock includes a foot portion having an upper instep area and a lower sole area integrally knit of a body yarn in circumferential courses and axial wales. The lower sole area defines inner and outer arch regions. The inner arch region incorporates a targeted compression zone adapted to reside generally adjacent an inner arch of a wearer's foot. The compression zone includes axially extending compression ridges of variable length spaced apart from a top of the compression zone to a bottom of the compression zone. When the sock is worn, a compression force applied by the foot portion within the targeted compression zone is greater than the compression force in directly adjacent areas of said foot portion.

Shaping garments including one or more slimming elastic bands are disclosed. In some embodiments, shaping garments include a first horizontal elastic band and a second diagonal elastic band positioned to reshape the inner and outer upper legs creating a slimmer appearance, while also lifting the buttocks.

An elastic hosiery formed of a stretchable elastic textile material, wherein the elastic textile material has the elastic property that when a length of unstretched material is stretched to different circumferential lengths, with different yield rates, the pressure exerted by such different circumferential lengths having the same length of unstretched elastic material varies less than 30% over a range of approximately circular circumferences providing a range of yield rates from λ.sub.1 to λ.sub.2, wherein λ.sub.2/λ.sub.1>1.8. The elastic textile material may be a weft knitted material, and including elastic threads or yarns of an elastic material arranged as inlays in weft direction.

A woman's multi-tummy layer body shaper with variable density mesh undergarment which includes breast pockets and buttocks pockets made of flexible lace patterned mesh, includes a top region and a multi-layer compression abdominal region below the breasts. For women, the garment has a crotch area made of two overlapping pieces of fabric, leaving a gap to use in the restroom. The garment also includes a pair of arm coverings which cover at least a shoulder clavicle area of the wearer, with optional short sleeves, half sleeves or full sleeves, and optional leg coverings of variable lengths. The body shaper undergarment also includes an abdominal compression area, which includes an inner skin contact compressive breathable, sweat-porous layer therethrough, a middle textured, breathable, sweat-porous compressive layer and an outer breathable, sweat-porous, compressive layer. An optional front openable corset may be provided to the body shaper undergarment.

In order to provide an upper body article of apparel, in particular a shirt, a bodysuit, an undershirt or an oversleeve which is suitable for reducing the risk of injury to the wearer of the upper body article of apparel, particularly during sports activities and to achieve compensation of possible functional imbalances in the musculoskeletal system of the wearer, it is proposed that the upper body article of apparel comprises at least one compression region in which, in the worn state, the upper body article of apparel exerts a compression effect on the body of the wearer of the upper body article of apparel, and comprises at least one stimulus-inducing structure which, in the worn state, is arranged on an inside of the upper body article of apparel facing toward the body of the wearer of the upper body article of apparel.

The present disclosure relates to a sock for preventing ankle injury of a subject, comprising a sock body which includes a leg section and a foot section, wherein the leg section comprises a fixation band comprising a first zone of high compression, configured to contour the transversal leg subject body, wherein the foot section comprises a second zone of high compression positioned to match the back of the ankle of the subject and configured to minimize subject adduction/abduct ion movements; a third zone of high compression that bounds to the subject leg section and foot section with a X-shape that begins in the fixation band and contours the plant of the foot section and the upper part of the foot section, configured to restrict the movement of subject plantar flexion, namely eversion/inversion movements, wherein the first zone and the second zone of high compression are bound by a vertical band, wherein such vertical band accompanies laterally the peroneal alignment path of the subject ending in the fixation band, wherein the remaining zones are low compression zones.

Shaping garments including one or more slimming elastic bands are disclosed. In some embodiments, shaping garments include a first horizontal elastic band and a second diagonal elastic band positioned to reshape the inner and outer upper legs creating a slimmer appearance, while also lifting the buttocks.