Nowadays, people have become more health-conscious and paying more attention to their workout routines.
To make the best of their workout routines, they always look for modern workout equipment to burn calories fast and achieve their ideal body shape.
Therefore, it is no surprise why new types of workout equipment are introduced now and then.
In recent times, weighted vests have become immensely popular among people for all the right reasons.
They can help athletes, trainers, or fitness enthusiasts boost their performance as the extra weight will force their muscles to work harder, resulting in increased strength.
Now, you must be wondering who came up with this brilliant idea and when people knew about weighted shirts.
If you are a fan of Shark Tank, you might already know about Titin – a line of gel-weighted compression vests and shorts.
While many people are familiar with the Shark Tank Titin story, there are still quite a few that have no idea about it.
Do you fall into a similar category?
Please read this article to learn about Titin’s Shark Tank tale and how it has been doing recently!
What is Titin?
Titin refers to a line of gel-weighted shirts and shorts to help you make the most of your training session.
The gel-weighted shirt gives an additional 8 lb weight to force muscles and joints to work harder.
The athletes, trainers, or fitness enthusiasts that have used Titin’s products cannot stop raving about them.
They love the ability to heat or freeze the gel inserts like it is featured in the photographs.
After the Titin episode aired on Shark Tank, the demand for weighted shirts and shorts increased significantly.
Many other manufacturers of weighted shirts and shorts emerged in the market, but no one could match the level of Titin in terms of quality and features.
Titin’s weighted shirts and shorts are made of moisture-wicking tissue, and hydrogel inserts are positioned in a way that allows zero movements of inserts while increasing muscle growth during strenuous workouts.
Also, the founder of Titin – Patrick Whaley, understands that athletes or trainers go through post-workout pain and inflammation.
Therefore, Titin’s gel inserts are detachable to help fitness enthusiasts heat or cool them for post-workout healing therapy.
Features of Titin
What makes Titin’s line of weighted shirts and shorts so special? Many features make Titin products one of a kind.
The Titin gel-weighted shirts and shorts ensure that weight is placed on the muscles and joints properly without causing any harm to them.
With the help of these weighted shirts and shorts, you can help boost the efficiency of your workout and improve your speed, endurance, and balance.
Titin’s weighted shirts and shorts will offer you a comfortable fit without restricting your movements.
Also, the best part about Titin’s weighted shirts and shorts system is that it can be heated or cooled for use during or after workouts.
The gel inserts can remain hot or cold for at least 30 to 45 minutes, delivering the best post-workout healing therapy.
With Titin’s weighted shirts and shorts, you will not have to worry about smelling nasty as it is made with moisture-wicking antimicrobial material to block germs and odor.
Here are the most prominent features of Titin weighted shirts and shorts:
- Effective training equipment
- Comfortable to wear
- The gel inserts can be heated or cooled for pre or post-workout therapy
- Increases your muscle and bone strength
- Improves your posture and balance
Who is the Founder of Titin?
Titin Tech was founded by Patrick Whaley, a mechanical engineer who changed his specialty to Kinesiology from Physiology.
Patrick might have started Titin Tech in 2005, but he has been experimenting with the idea of weighted tops and shorts since he was a skinny elementary school student.
He would often overstuff his backpack to get his class fellows to stop trolling, trying to gain muscle mass.
However, by doing so, he would only hurt his shoulder rather than achieve anything. In middle school, he developed prototypes for his shirt and jacket and continued to refine them in high school.
However, he knew in mind that he was missing some details. Later, he went to Georgia Tech to study mechanical engineering, kinesiology, and biomechanics.
While juggling with other ideas and inventions, he did not stop working on his masterpiece – the weighted shirts and shorts system.
Eventually, his constant hard work paid off, and he immediately developed gel-weighted shirts and shorts that grabbed the attention of athletes, fitness trainers, and fitness enthusiasts.
You might think the craziest part about Patrick Whaley’s story is that he turned his childhood idea into an actual business.
However, that is not only it. This gear helped Patrick Whaley recover from a near-fatal gunshot wound which inspired him to think highly of his product.
How Did the Titin’s Pitch Go on Shark Tank?
When Patrick fully recovered, he started working on gaining maximum exposure for his Titin shirt. In 2014, he launched a Kickstarter effort to raise funds for his products.
While Whaley was only looking for $100,000, he raised $117,000. Later, Patrick Whaley was invited by Shark Tank producers to appear on the show, which he happily accepted.
Patrick Whaley began his pitch by asking the sharks for $500,000 in return for a 5% equity stake in Titin which shocked the Sharks.
However, Whaley was confident and told them he had grown Titin’s revenue from $10,000 to $1 million in one year.
Also, he highlighted many prominent features of his weighted shirt, which all sounded too good to be true.
When Patrick Whaley ended his pitch, all the Sharks looked doubtful, and no one was able to believe that his business idea had any potential.
Patrick repeated his pitch and claimed that the weights in the shirt could act as internal weights and increase workout effectiveness without harming muscles or joints.
While Mark was still unconvinced, Kevin O’Leary and Daymond John showed some interest and inquired Patrick about Titin’s last year’s sales.
Kevin O’Leary felt the business had some potential and offered $500,000 in return for 15% equity in Titin Tech.
However, Patrick did not accept his offer as the Canadian businessman made insulting remarks about him.
Daymond John also stepped in with an alternative proposal. He offered Whaley half a million-dollar investment for 20% equity.
Also, he assured Whaley that he would help him handle the inventory of Titin Tech. Although Patrick initially showed some resistance, he accepted Daymond’s offer, and they both shook hands on the deal.
How Shark Tank Impacted Titin’s Success?
After the Shark Tank’s Titin episode went on air, the company gained immense popularity and did quite well.
Soon, the gel-filled weighted shirts and shorts were available at various retailers, including Walmart and Amazon.
Also, the customer reviews were quite positive. Many users of Titin praised the products for being effective and well-made.
Besides the positive customer reviews, many high-profile athletes were spotted wearing Titin’s weighted shirts, including Dustin Pedroia, Jonny Gomes, and Paul Millsap.
However, the success was short-termed, and soon the company started failing miserably.
Is Titin Still in Business?
As of 2022, Titin Tech is no longer a company. They are no longer selling gel-weighted compression shirts and shorts.
Titin’s range of weighted shirts and shorts gained immense popularity and was well-received by customers.
However, the company still failed. Do you wonder how? It is reported that one of the customers, Titin, was selling the compression gear, and a woman named Sarah Zabian claimed that the technology used in the making of Titin compression gear was stolen from her.
Even a lawsuit was filed against Titin which, unfortunately, later Titin did not win. It eventually made the company go down, resulting in its official website being permanently deactivated.
You must be wondering where Patrick Whaley is now and what he is doing. Patrick Whaley now runs a new company called Whaley Ventures.
Conclusion:
Nowadays, new businesses emerge in the market almost every day. However, not all of them can survive in the highly competitive market.
The majority of new businesses, due to lack of expertise and sufficient funds, disappear from the market within a few months.
Shark Tank has helped many aspiring entrepreneurs in building successful businesses for themselves.
However, if you think that every business that has made it big on Shark Tank is doing well now, you are highly mistaken.
Shark Tank gives growth opportunities to many businesses. However, only a few can grow when given the opportunity.
Others fail miserably and disappear from the market like they never existed. The same happened with Titin Tech.
If you are looking for weighted shirts and shorts for yourself, you must check on popular platforms like Amazon and Walmart.
While Patrick Whaley might have introduced them, many other manufacturers are now selling them!
