[Closed] Compression socks for recovery, do they work

As I understand it, no science to back up the better/faster recovery & lessen risk of injury. That said anecdotally, some find them beneficial.

your legs may vary

I use them, feel to me like they help with recovery but i’ve not done any scientific trial!

Can also be quite amusing trying to get them on when knackered after a long hard ride, I’ve been defeated by them a few times 🙂

Pretty much in line with my reading about it. I may buy some from Decathlon and give it a go. Worst case it's pair of socks that look stupid in the hotel at the end of the day when I'm on my trips.

They work for me in terms of reduced fatigue while exercising and also recovery.

If you're a big unit like me there's a lot of you to move about and compression kit feels good. Smaller whippet types may not feel the same benefit.

rocketman - so wearing or sleeping in them after a long ride, you feel a noticeable benefit the following day?

On long trips (over 100miles each day) I got less cramp,jumpy legs and it felt better getting going in the mornings.

so wearing or sleeping in them after a long ride, you feel a noticeable benefit the following day?

In terms of benefit I can tell I've ridden but I don't feel sore if that makes sense

As I understand it, no science to back up the better/faster recovery

I believe that there is - and that might be why they require you to wear them in hospital and on planes. I've also read some stuff before I committed to buying my 2xU stuff .

rocketman - so wearing or sleeping in them after a long ride, you feel a noticeable benefit the following day?

My anecdote is :

I was on a weeks off-piste skiing course.

By Thursday night I was knackered, even my knees where aching as I walked up stairs, far more knackered than I normally get skiing.

I had bought some compression tights in a size down from normal, so small instead of medium.

I had a shower and then put them on and slept in them overnight.

The next day felt like I had brand new legs, no aches anywhere.

We skied all the next day and we had to strap our skis to our packs twice and climb for about 40 minutes to get to where we wanted to ski from. At the end we were in a valley and had to skate out along a path.

My legs were still fine by the end of the day, it could have been my first days skiing.

I think they have been shown to increase the blood flow so helping with recovery and also draining nasties away.

My anecdote is :

I was on a two-week cycling holiday in Mongolia. Jeep tracks, some decent climbs, averaged 60km a day for ten days. Wore compression tights every night, legs felt fresh every morning.

I've tried them, never tried them for riding or post ride but have tried them for post Trail Marathons and running. I tried them as the behest of my mate who is an Ultra Marathon Runner and he swears by them, so he said I should give them a go and I bought a couple of pairs of Hilly ones.

I can't run in them very well, feel like they're squashing my legs up, but then I've only really tried them a few times. I have used them when resting post long run, yes they feel a bit odd and I'm yet to be convinced if they actually work for me.

You can try them, they're only £25 or so. Let us know if you do.

I started using a pair of knee length socks after I was given a pair in hospital. I've always had twitchy muscles after exercise and often restless legs at night after exercise too, and I have found the compression socks (Decathlon ones, replaced the nhs-issue ones) have all but eliminated these problems. I put them on after the sort of ride that would previously make me twitch and wear them until bedtime.

My turn for an anecdote:
In 2016 I spent three weeks riding 1000 miles across France. I was pretty unprepared, but my legs held up remarkably well. I (rightly or wrongly) put that down to wearing compression tights every night.