Compression
A little over a week I took the plunge and bought a pair of the compression tights that are a bit of a rage these days among cyclists. The claim is that they help with blood flow and aid in flushing out toxins after training and racing. A few teammates have them and professed the benefits. Curiosity got the best of me and decided to give them a try.
My first impression is that I thought they would be tighter. They fit snugly, but not overly tight. I would say they are only slightly tighter than a typically cycling short. My other immediate thought was “Why do they even bother having a drawstring to tie the waistband?” They are not going to slide off your waist.
Each time I used the tights they have been worn for extended periods. If I rode in the evening, they stayed on the rest of the night and I took them off in the morning. If I rode in the morning, they were probably taken off before going to bed.
I have had the tights for a little over a week now. There have been eight rides during this time with the majority of the rides being relatively short (2+ hrs) but very intense. Since I have no way of knowing for sure whether the claimed physiological effects are really taking place, I can just go judge the way I feel after wearing them and try to compare to how I felt when not wearing them. After the hard rides that I have had the past week or so, my legs do seem to feel less fatigued the next day. Is it my imagination? Bad memory? Maybe, but I don’t think so. My thighs and calves will feel rather good. But my ankles and feet, the parts of the leg that the compression tight does not cover, still feel somewhat more fatigued. I’m actually tempted to get some socks now to help out in the foot area, too.
My first impression is that I thought they would be tighter. They fit snugly, but not overly tight. I would say they are only slightly tighter than a typically cycling short. My other immediate thought was “Why do they even bother having a drawstring to tie the waistband?” They are not going to slide off your waist.
Each time I used the tights they have been worn for extended periods. If I rode in the evening, they stayed on the rest of the night and I took them off in the morning. If I rode in the morning, they were probably taken off before going to bed.
I have had the tights for a little over a week now. There have been eight rides during this time with the majority of the rides being relatively short (2+ hrs) but very intense. Since I have no way of knowing for sure whether the claimed physiological effects are really taking place, I can just go judge the way I feel after wearing them and try to compare to how I felt when not wearing them. After the hard rides that I have had the past week or so, my legs do seem to feel less fatigued the next day. Is it my imagination? Bad memory? Maybe, but I don’t think so. My thighs and calves will feel rather good. But my ankles and feet, the parts of the leg that the compression tight does not cover, still feel somewhat more fatigued. I’m actually tempted to get some socks now to help out in the foot area, too.
1 Comments:
you just like wearing tights, jim.
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