Most of us would never have thought to group the words “Athlete” and “Compression stockings” into one sentence let alone suggest that they might be a good idea to wear during athletic activities. After all, aren’t compression stockings just for little old ladies?
As it turns out, not even close. Over the course of the last few years, top medical investigators have joined with world class athletes in the distance biking, triathlon, and marathon fields.
One of the toughest problems they all has to overcome was cramping. It is sometimes referred to as “hitting the wall” which is caused by lactic acid build up. This build-up takes place when the aerobic threshold reached and pushed past.
The findings prove that wearing graduated compression stockings can help. These graduated stockings have the highest compression starting at the ankles and get less tightly compressed as you move up past the knee.
How They Help
Wearing these stockings helps to prevent the pooling of blood in the muscles and affects the arterial flow to the muscles. The muscle in the arterial wall relaxes and this increases in the dimeter of the veins help with performance via higher cellular oxygen as well as faster recovery times.
Marathon Runners – A Study
A conjoined study including 19 marathon runners used running socks for three months during training as well as competition came to the following conclusions:
- Sixty percent of runners who suffered from muscle and tendon aches in the lower leg or experience pain in the ankle joint reported feeling relief from these aches as a result of wearing compression sport socks.
2. Forty seven percent of the group experienced an easier run over all and fifty three percent said the calf muscles were more relaxed.
The Real Question: Are They Comfortable?
The group report no significant issues as far as comfortability of stockings even out in the heat. Especially as they can be sprayed down with water during a run on a particularly hot day.
Are you an athlete? If so we are glad you stumbled on to this article. Help protect the health of your veins and circulatory system by considering proactively wearing compression stockings during workouts and competitions.
If you are in the Tampa Bay Florida area and need a Vein Specialist look no further. West Florida Vein Center has you covered. Give us a call to schedule today. 727-712-3233 or visit us online at www.westfloridaveincenter.com.
