My Boring Life: Confessions Of A Closet Compression Sock Wearer

Hi, my name is Mike and I'm addicted to endurance sports. It's the good sort of addiction. You know, the kind that gives you: killer calves, a resting heart rate in the upper 40s, and the ability to eat whatever you want without gaining weight (at least during peak training!).

The problems begin when you hit plateaus and want to get stronger, faster, and gain better endurance. How do you increase the workload when you're already riding 250+ miles per week, swimming a few times and running once in a while? You have to find a way to recover faster! This is why compression socks have become popular in the last few years among triathletes.

Here's a useful link detailing the science:
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-compression-socks.htm

I've been a bit skeptical of the benefits of compression socks, given that I'd only seen them at races being worn by dorky looking folks. Why would you wear knee high white socks (and perhaps arm sleeves as well) in a race? I'd always just thought of them as the latest in the average triathlete's attempt to differentiate themselves from other cyclists and runners out there. Is this just the latest fad? Will it go the way of sticking gel blocks to your top tube or peeing down your leg during the bike? Will the companies that make compression socks start making them look cool? Actually, they've already started. I'm just waiting for the purple ones with green polka dots on them before I'll wear them in a race... ; )

Following the Devil Mountain Double, I realized that the compression socks might be worthwhile for there other purpose; assisting in recovery from traumatically long rides. So I did a little research on the subject:

http://runningtimes.com/Article.aspx?ArticleID=13830

As it turns out, they aren't really useful for during the actual race; but are defintely helpful after the race. So I decided to give them a try...

Unfortunately, I didn't pick up a pair until a couple of days after the DMD, so can't give a complete picture of how they have worked so far. But I will certainly try them after the Davis 24-hour Challenge next weekend to see how they work out.

I can tell you though, that my legs did feel better on Wednesday than they did on the Wednesday after the DMD last year. But whether that's the compression socks or just being better trained this year I can't really say. I'll certainly post more comments as I try them out.

Oh, and here's what I got. They were $28 at Sports Basement.