There are many benefits to wearing Compression Sportswear, but how does it actually work? Keep on reading to find out.
GOTTA GET OUT ON YOUR RUN? HERE ARE THE CLIFF NOTES:
SKINS Compression Sportswear works by protecting your muscles and encouraging the rate at which blood, and therefore oxygen, is pumped around your body and back to your muscles. This process results in many benefits that can be summarised as enhanced performance and sped up recovery... that's why we say it all the time.
RECOVERING AND GOT SOME EXTRA TIME? KEEP ON READING:
The word 'compressive' gets thrown around a lot in the sportswear world. And, sometimes that means it's hard to differentiate between Compression Sportswear with real benefits and sportswear that's compressive but doesn't really offer any real compression benefits.
SKINS Compression Sportswear is compressive and does offer all the compression benefits you should expect from Compression Sportswear.
THE FABRIC
To understand how Compression Sportswear works, it's helpful to know how SKINS are constructed. SKINS are built from (a unique to us) warp-knit fabric. This is essential because the tension in the fabric is one of the strongest on the market, and it isn't lost through use or damage. This controlled and robust tension is a crucial element to the successful implementation of compression with our garments.
PANELING
Paneling also plays a crucial role in our compression. We've created a gradient compression through intelligent paneling that the big boys wish they could figure out. To let you in on a not-so-well-kept secret, our SERIES-5 Long Tights are made up of around 24 panels, that wrap the working muscle groups. Paneling = targeted compression = compression benefits. Applying random pressure won't help. You need to apply the correct pressure to the right area. Too much pressure in the wrong place can create circulation issues and impede performance.
THAT'S ENOUGH OF THAT, THOUGH; YOU'RE HERE TO LEARN HOW COMPRESSION SPORTSWEAR WORKS
SKINS Compression Sportswear works by wrapping your muscle bellies (the fleshy, central part of the skeletal muscle). This protects the muscles and reduces vibrations that cause energy loss. By safeguarding the muscles, SKINS™ promote proprioception and reduce the risk of injury.
And then, of course, there's the blood circulation. The targeted compression in SKINS™ increases your blood flow. This means more blood is oxygenated and delivered to your working muscles. More oxygen is good because your muscles need it to work optimally and more efficiently. As well as this, the increased blood circulation assists in the dissipation of waste products, such as lactic acid build-up, which is the stuff that causes muscle soreness.
When you look at your body, you'll notice the darker, blue veins near the surface of the skin. The darker veins are the ones that bring your used blood back to the heart for oxygenation and renewal. When targeted pressure is applied to these darker, blue veins, it accelerates the flow through pressure graduation. Kind of like squeezing a tube of toothpaste - you apply targeted pressure to increase the rate at which the toothpaste comes out. It's the increased blood circulation through the use of SKINS that we're talking about when we say that SKINS are a natural performance enhancer.
MORE ON COMPRESSION SPORTSWEAR
If data, numbers, and science are your things and you'd like to discover more about SKINS Compression Sportswear, we'd encourage you to check out our Discover Science page. This is where you'll find all the peer-reviewed, independent research papers carried out over the years. On the other hand, if you're not a data, number, and science kind of person but you'd still like to discover more, then we'd suggest having a browse through our website, checking out some of our other journals, and following us on Instagram.
We believe in knowledge, learning, and improving, so we put a lot back into research and development. Because without it, how can we do our job of assisting elite and everyday athletes in their pursuit of athletic excellence?
