"The 33"-Road Bike Racing - Compression Tights

Zoot rep gave a pair of compression recovery tights and so far I am really digging them.

I rode 150 on Saturday and put them on within 30 minutes of completing the ride and wore them for the rest of the day. I woke up Sunday morning and felt really good, I had no soreness in my legs at all.

Anyone have any experience with this stuff, I am drinking the Kool-Aid so far.

My friends also drank the Kool-Aid. I haven't had a taste yet, but apparently it's pretty good stuff.

I drank the Kool-Aid as well. I think my 2XU recovery tights are awesome, i almost always put them on after hard training.

I don't have any full on tights (yet) but I do wear calf socks. My legs don't feel as bad after wearing them. I also usually wear them during the day, since I work on my feet. At the end of the day, my legs don't seem as fatigued from standing compared to not wearing them

http://i292.photobucket.com/albums/mm21/mike9903/koolaid-1.jpg

Use them...love them...

What brand are you guys using? I might try out a pair.

Screw the bike specific stuff. Get Jobst Relief tights for half the price. They look like pantyhose, but it's not like you'd be running around outside in your Zoot/2XU/Skins tights either.

Link?

it's not like you'd be running around outside in your Zoot/2XU/Skins tights either.

I've got a friend who does. Full on skins tights and a t-shirt

http://paulmach.com/090415/213151/Skins:-So-cool-they-should-spell-it-with-a-Z

apparently they are all the rage in the pro peleton

Anyone use the active compression shorts that go under your bibs?

My Assos bibs say they have some compression in them, curious if it is at all similar to wearing compression shorts while riding.

Anyone use the active compression shorts that go under your bibs?

My Assos bibs say they have some compression in them, curious if it is at all similar to wearing compression shorts while riding.

I thought the rule was nothing under the bibs?

Have any of you tried different brands? Which do you prefer?

A tri buddy recommended these to me a while back...

I wear them after the cycling, not during. I think they would become uncomfortable during.

Here's a link for some Jobst Relief tights (http://www.compressionstore.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=1502&idcategory=96). Cheaper than the cycling ones, just as good or better in my experience, except you have to be more careful or they will run.

I thought the rule was nothing under the bibs?

I thought the same thing, but the Zoot rep said they go under, seems really strange to me.

used some skinz at track nationals this year. Seems like they do aid recovery.

Around here it's pretty much only pros who get them for free and dudes with more money than miles who wear them. Weird. I'm sure that will start to change.

I wear the tights after long rides. Love 'em.
I wear the shorts while playing tennis and other active sports. Love 'em.
I also wear the short sleeve shirt under the jersey while riding. The jury's still out on that one.

My wife bought me a set of the 2XU tights last night...we'll see how they work. i slept with them last night after a tough ride and felt pretty good today. i was using a set of arm warmers on my calves...they seemed to work ok also.

Not discounting personal experience, but are there any studies on the efficacy of these things?

I tried some skinz for a few weeks and didnt notice a difference. If you want recovery try an ice bath.

For what it is worth, Joe Friel is says the few studies that have been done are inconclusive:

http://www.trainingbible.com/joesblog/2009/03/compression-socks-update.html

For what it is worth, Joe Friel is says the few studies that have been done are inconclusive:

http://www.trainingbible.com/joesblog/2009/03/compression-socks-update.html

wha? did you read this:

"There was, however, a reduction in delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) 24 hours after exercise with compression socks. Two runners in the compression socks experienced DOMS. Thirteen in the standard athletic socks experienced DOMS."

wha? did you read this:

"There was, however, a reduction in delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) 24 hours after exercise with compression socks. Two runners in the compression socks experienced DOMS. Thirteen in the standard athletic socks experienced DOMS."

I was just pointing out the Friel thinks the results of current studies are inconclusive, or as he put it "So what does all of this mean? I really can't say. It's too early to tell."

A single study that shows less DOMS in recreational runners doesn't mean they absolutely help cyclists recover. Personally I'd like to see some studies on cyclists.

I'm not sure how a conclusive study ever gets done. "How good you feel" after using tights after riding is ultimately subjective, and possibly even misleadingly so given the placebo effect. I'm not a doctor (or a physiologist, or a reseracher -- okay, I'm not even that smart), but I doubt there is any sort of blood-chemicals measurement or the like that would objectively teach us much (if anything) about this practice. (Except, maybe, some sort of area-specific lactic acid measurements?)

So, us BFers will have to buy tights or not buy tights on the same basis that we make so many gear decisions: "Dude, Cavendish swears by these things he's getting paid to wear, so I should go drop some serious money on them." (I'm not mocking that, mind you -- it's how I buy lots of my stuff.)

im intrigued

FWIW I have both the Zoot and 2XU brands...the 2XU fit tighter.

I'm not sure how a conclusive study ever gets done. "How good you feel" after using tights after riding is ultimately subjective, and possibly even misleadingly so given the placebo effect. I'm not a doctor (or a physiologist, or a reseracher -- okay, I'm not even that smart), but I doubt there is any sort of blood-chemicals measurement or the like that would objectively teach us much (if anything) about this practice. (Except, maybe, some sort of area-specific lactic acid measurements?)

So, us BFers will have to buy tights or not buy tights on the same basis that we make so many gear decisions: "Dude, Cavendish swears by these things he's getting paid to wear, so I should go drop some serious money on them." (I'm not mocking that, mind you -- it's how I buy lots of my stuff.)

Set up a study kind of like this: 20 cyclists are put on an ergometer and ride at thier FTP for 3 x 20' intervals with 10 minutes rest in between. 10 put on compression tights for the rest of the day and overnight, and 10 don't. Put the cyclists on the ergometer the next morning and have them do another 3x20' as hard as they can. Did the cyclists wearing the compression tights perform better than those without relative to thier first day's performance? You can't do this study blind, but with enough of this type of study, you could get definitive results.

I wear Skinz and love em.

FWIW I have both the Zoot and 2XU brands...the 2XU fit tighter.

Tights or socks? Thinking of going with the socks, as I can sleep in them.

And if the socks... are the 2XU's "race" or "recovery"?

i participated in a study that measured how compression socks aided (if at all) the flushing of Lactic acid during hard exercise and that particular study showed no significant difference in wearing the socks or not.

not exactly the same thing but.....

I use Skins long tights after a hard ride and often sleep in them and find my legs don't feel as sore. I also have a pair of Diadora brand tights, about 1/4 price of Skins, but you get what you pay for. They just feel like normal long cycling tights, they don't seem to fit as well as the Skins.

Does anyone have a pointer to the theoretical basis for this? What, exactly, are they supposed to do for you?

Does anyone have a pointer to the theoretical basis for this? What, exactly, are they supposed to do for you?

Real basic explanation, increase the blood flow back to the heart and also removes lactic acid from the muscles, meaning you will recover faster from hard efforts.

Here is a link to Zoot's study on their compression tights:
http://zootsports.com/pdfs/Zoot_White_Paper.pdf

The same thing can be accomplished with a couple pillows under your knees while you sleep.

The same thing can be accomplished with a couple pillows under your knees while you sleep.

assuming you sleep in one position all night long?

Real basic explanation, increase the blood flow back to the heart and also removes lactic acid from the muscles, meaning you will recover faster from hard efforts.

Here is a link to Zoot's study on their compression tights:
http://zootsports.com/pdfs/Zoot_White_Paper.pdfI read the study and it seems pretty inconclusive to me. They went to the trouble of conducting a study and found lower RPE during a 60 min exercise and lower lactate levels. It would have been much more convincing if they were able to demonstrate a performance improvement in a 60min TT. 3 cups of coffee before a time trial has been shown to be effective so presumably if there was a performance improvement to be had wearing compression stockings someone should be able to confirm with a study.

There is lots of evidence supporting compression both during and following high impact sports like running.

However, for low "jiggle" sports like cycling there is little evidence supporting use during exercise and only weak evidence for use during recovery.

The effects of wearing lower-body compression garments during endurance cycling.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19223669?ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
RESULTS: A likely practically significant increase (86%:12%:2%; eta2=0.6) in power output at AnT was observed in the LBCG condition (CONT: 245.9+/-55.7 W; LBCG: 259.8+/-44.6 W). Further, a possible practically significant improvement (78%:19%:3%; eta2=0.6) was reported in muscle oxygenation economy (W.%mOxy(-1)) across the 1HTT (mOxy: CONT: 52.2+/-12.2%; LBCG: 57.3+/-8.2%). CONCLUSIONS: The present results demonstrated limited physiological benefits and no performance enhancement through wearing LBCG during a cycling time trial.


Effects of graduated compression stockings on blood lactate following an exhaustive bout of exercise.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3605315?ordinalpos=2&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
Significant differences in post exercise blood lactate values were found in the second experiment. The GCS trial resulted in significantly less lactate when compared to the GCS-O/O and the NO-GCS trials. There was no significant difference in post exercise lactate values between the NO-GCS and the GCS-O/O trials. Plasma volume changes were not significantly different among trials. Results of both experiments showed recovery lactate values to be lower with the use of GCS. These lower values are not ascribable to plasma volume shifts but rather appear to be due to an inverse gradient created by the GCS resulting in the lactate being retained in the muscular bed.

Nice job enthalpic.

Well yeah. With your legs elevated you tend to not shift so much during sleep.. could be just me tho. That's why they make those adjustable beds for old ppl with fluid retention, kidney problems etc.

looky (http://www.cvs.com/CVSApp/catalog/shop_product_detail.jsp?filterBy=default&skuId=423860&productId=423860&navAction=push&navCount=6&no_new_crumb=true)

use an ace bandage. custom pressure! pinpoint specific areas! skin colored! $2!

http://www.skins.net/au/en/Research

Just did two rides in my Skins Bib Longs (http://www.skins.net/us/en/Products/BioAcceleration_Technology/cycle/female_bib_longs) and have to say that they've hit the mark with their chamois. I've been using their tights for recovery and was eager to try the cycling specific products. I actually like these better than my Assos and you have the added benefit of the compression with them. I need a couple more pairs, I am going to have a hard time wearing anything else!

Here is a review from cyclingnews.com on the Zoot compression gear:

http://cyclingnews.com/tech.php?id=/tech/2009/reviews/zoot_sports_compressrx09

what doesn't make sense to me is how these tights can supposedly work uni-directionally.

how can they aid blood flow back to the heart and flushing of lactic wastes away from your tired muscles without constricting nourishing bloodflow to your legs (or whatever other part of your body where you are wearing compression garments)?

regardless, i'd still be willing to try them, but logically, something seems off

i thought the same^^^ but for whatever reason the compression feels great for short periods and eliminates sore and restless legs...seriously try ace bandages...you get the same affect.

Hard workout today and now I have a compression wrap on my left leg but not my right. I'll see if I feel a difference in DOMS.

I just got a pair of Large 2xu recovery socks. Should these things feel tight? They don't. They feel like knee-length dress socks.

I think I should have gone with the medium. I wear a 10.5. Crap.

what doesn't make sense to me is how these tights can supposedly work uni-directionally.

how can they aid blood flow back to the heart and flushing of lactic wastes away from your tired muscles without constricting nourishing bloodflow to your legs (or whatever other part of your body where you are wearing compression garments)?

regardless, i'd still be willing to try them, but logically, something seems off

2 possibilities that I can think of:
1) Arterial pressure is much higher than veinous pressure. The arterial pressure is high enough to overcome the compression, the veinous pressure, not as much so the veins. Or at least the veins don't expand with the pressure as much and so there is less pooling.
2) There are valves in your veins that keep blood from flowing back towards your muscles.

Disclaimer - I'm not real edumacated on this. I'm just speculating.