Muscle recovery is always a worry, whether you’re a weekend warrior or a professional athlete. Avoiding post-exercise muscle soreness allows you to return to your workouts and training regimens more quickly and keeps you more comfortable.
It’s hardly surprising that a lot of study focuses on muscle recovery, as well as a number of items claiming to speed up the process, reduce discomfort, and cut the time it takes to rebuild your muscles after strenuous workouts. Compression garments are an example of these goods used by athletes and recreationally active individuals who want to speed up their healing.
What Exactly Are Compression Garments?
Compression garments are tight-fitting articles of clothing worn on various body areas that provide compression. Though other materials are utilized, they often comprise a spandex and nylon combination.
Compression garments are available in various pressure levels, while a physician typically prescribes higher compression levels for medical usage. They are thought to improve performance and expedite muscle recovery in sportswear.
Compression Garments Types
Medical compression garments aid recovery from surgery or enhance circulation in those who require it. On the other hand, athletic apparel compression garments are designed to be worn alone or as part of an outfit to cover the majority of your body. There are sleeves that merely cover a portion of your body.
The following sports compression clothing are available:
- Full-length tights
- Knee sleeves
- Three-quarter length pants
- Shorts
- Calf sleeves
- Knee sleeves
- Long and short sleeve shirts
- Socks
- Quad sleeves
Do Compression Clothes Help Muscle Recovery?
Prior to you using compression garments or muscle recovery, you need to know if they are effective for this goal. There are numerous claims to investigate; however, encouraging data supports the use of compression clothing to aid in muscle rehabilitation. Understanding what causes muscle discomfort and which compression garments can help is also a good idea.
Muscles usually need 24 to 48 hours to mend themselves. Working the same muscle parts too quickly can result in tissue breakdown and hinder muscular growth. Make time to rest and heal.
The Source of Muscle Pain
Exercise is supposed to generate minute tears in your muscles as a natural process that builds new muscle fibers, making you stronger and faster. Muscle pain may be caused by an inflammatory response caused by these tears. The level of your post-exercise muscular pain, also known as DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness), is determined by the time and intensity of your workout.
Normal muscular pain differs from pain caused by an injury such as a sprain or muscle strain. While those injuries necessitate medical treatment, delayed onset muscle pain can be addressed at home. DOMS normally has its maximal effect 48 to 72 hours after your workout. Sharp pains, sprains, swelling, or prolonged pain may indicate something more severe and necessitate medical attention. Consult a doctor if anything looks out of the ordinary with your muscular pain.
What Science Has to Say
Compression clothing can help with muscle rehabilitation, according to numerous hypotheses. Wearing compression clothing for restoration has been shown to have some clear benefits. According to the evidence, compression garments provide the following advantages:
May lower Muscle Damage: Compression garments have been demonstrated to reduce a biomarker of muscle damage called creatine kinase (CK) following exercise. When CK levels are lowered, recovery time is extended due to greater waste metabolite removal and muscle tissue repair.
Reduce Pain and Inflammation: Compression clothing assist in decreasing both pain and inflammation after a workout.
Reduce Muscle Pain and Fatigue: Two meta-analyses found that wearing compression garments reduces post-workout leg soreness, muscular fatigue, and exercise-induced muscle damage. These effects are caused by increased blood flow and lymphatic outflow.
Beneficial for a Wide Range of Athletes: A 2017 meta-analysis published in Sports Medicine investigated whether compression garments are practical for healing in various workout modalities, such as strength, power, and endurance performance after an initial bout of resistance, running, or non-load-bearing endurance exercise.
Resistance training provided the highest clear recovery advantages from compression clothing, followed by cycling, allowing for next-day performance increases.
When worn post-workout, it promotes recovery: Most evidence suggests that wearing compression garments for muscle rehabilitation is best done immediately after exercise. According to conflicting data, their usage during training is not fully supported.
Compression Garments Buying Guide
Here are some suggestions for selecting compression clothes that are appropriate for you.
- Any compression level works: Research suggests there isn’t much difference in muscle healing when it comes to compression level, so choose whichever you prefer.
- Sport-specific: If you primarily engage in running, cycling, or similar cardiovascular endurance exercise, a lower-body compression garment makes sense.
- Specific pain points: If you frequently have muscle discomfort in a specific body part, such as your calves, wearing a sleeve in that area is a good idea.
- Support vs. flexibility: Some compression garments provide greater support with more severe compression than others. Before deciding whether or not to wear the apparel while exercising, examine the type of exercise you will be doing. Running and other activities may require more flexibility than weightlifting and pilates.
Kim’s Final Thoughts…
Compression garments are a realistic choice for improving muscle recovery after exercise, minimizing soreness, and allowing you to return to your workout program sooner. Numerous solutions are available depending on the type of workout you undertake and the body sections you believe could benefit the most from recovery. Remember to listen to your body and rest and recover when necessary. Speak with a healthcare practitioner if any pain appears intense, long-lasting, or unusual.