How compression clothing and garments affect recovery and performance for running, OCR, and endurance sports
Thomas Solomon, PhD.
Updated onReading time approx 5 minutes (1250 words).
What you’ll learn:
Compression clothing is basically snug kit that gently squeezes your arms or legs — like a portable hug (and yes, it can feel weirdly nice).
Wearing compression after training is likely to reduce how sore you feel and boost your sense of recovery, but it probably won’t bring your performance back faster.
Wearing compression during exercise is unlikely to make you faster or stronger.
Curious about the how and why? Scroll down for the details, the nuances, and the nerdy bits.
The information I provide is not medical advice. Before making any changes to your habits of daily living based on any information I provide, always ensure it is safe for you to do so and consult your doctor if you are unsure.
What is compression clothing?
Compression garments were originally developed for medical use — for example, to help prevent deep-vein thrombosis and to ease symptoms of peripheral vascular disease (a condition where the heart’s output can be too low for blood to return efficiently). In sport and recovery, compression clothes are marketed to “reduce swelling”, “increase blood flow” (help blood return to the heart through the veins), and “prevent blood pooling” in the limbs.
In real life, compression clothing like stockings, tights, and sleeves can feel like a massive hug — and most humans are, annoyingly, wired to like hugs. Many people also swear they feel more recovered when they pull on compression socks after a hard session. I’ve heard that a lot from athletes I’ve worked with, too. In recreational basketball players, compression clothing improved the feeling of recovery but not performance. In rugby players, strength recovery after fatiguing exercise was greater in the group wearing custom-fitted compression garments. Other studies suggest compression may reduce muscle vibrations during running. But these tests are often short (for example, this study used 3-minute runs at 8, 10, and 12 kilometres per hour, roughly 5, 6, and 7.5 miles per hour). And even if vibration is lower, it’s still unclear whether that translates into better recovery, better performance, or fewer injuries.
Those examples are cherry-picked (delicious, but still cherry-picked). So if you’re a healthy athlete thinking, “Wait, why do I need help moving blood around when my heart already does that job literally all day?” … Then yeah, that’s a fair question. “Medical grade” compression can improve blood flow and tissue oxygenation in people with vascular disease. But what happens in healthy runners and endurance athletes, where the “pump and pipes” work just fine?
What is the scientific evidence on the effect of compression clothing and garments on recovery and athletic performance?
In one meta-analysisA meta-analysis quantifies the overall effect size of a treatment by compiling effect sizes from all known studies of that treatment., wearing compression garments after exercise looked like it could increase heart rate and stroke volume (how much blood the heart pumps per beat) during recovery (see Fig. 3 in Lee et al. 2022). The catch: the “average” effect is heavily pushed upward by 1 or 2 studies with huge changes. Most studies show tiny (or trivial) changes.
Compression clothing can slightly increase blood flow in the veins of the legs (for example, calf and thigh) at rest, and sometimes during and after exercise — although not always immediately after exercise. Effects on blood flow in the arteries are less clear (see O'Riordan et al. 2023).
After exercise, compression clothes can have small to moderate effects on lowering blood markers linked with muscle damage, such as creatine kinase (CK) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH). They can also reduce feelings of delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) and improve the feeling of recovery (see Hill et al. 2014, Marqués-Jiménez et al. 2016, Engel et al. 2016, Dupuy et al. 2018, and Mota et al. 2020).
One paper (Brown et al. 2017) concluded that compression helps strength recovery. But their analysis pooled a grab-bag of outcomes (running time trials, time-to-exhaustion tests, strength, power, vertical jump height, and more) and also pooled multiple post-exercise time points into 1 “recovery” number. That approach can make an intervention look helpful when it might not be. When researchers use a more appropriate analysis approach, the conclusion is that wearing compression garments during or after exercise is unlikely to speed up the return of muscle strength or power (János Négyesi et al. 2022).
Brown et al. 2017 also concluded that compression improves next-day cycling performance, but the analysis has the same issues described above. Overall, wearing compression garments during or after endurance exercise (including running) is unlikely to improve the recovery of performance — but this area still needs more high-quality research.
Compression clothing worn during exercise is unlikely to improve performance outcomes such as vertical jump height, V̇O2maxV̇O2max is the maximal rate of oxygen consumption your body can achieve during exercise. It is a measure of cardiorespiratory fitness and indicates the size of your engine, i.e., your maximal aerobic power, which contributes to endurance performance., blood lactate, or rating of perceived exertion (RPE) (see da Silva et al. 2018 and Mota et al. 2020). That said, Engel et al. (2016) focused specifically on running and reported a trivial (but possibly meaningful) effect on time-to-exhaustion and running economyThe rate of energy expenditure (measured in kiloJoules [KJ], kilocalories [kcal] or oxygen consumption [V̇O2]) per kilogram body mass (kg) per unit of distance, i.e. per 1 kilometre travelled. A runner with a lower energy cost per kilometre has a higher economy than a runner with a higher energy cost.. However, there was no meaningful effect on running time trial performance (including half marathon, 15-kilometre trail runs, 5-kilometre and 10-kilometre runs, or 400-metre sprints; consistent with da Silva et al. 2018).
But…
There’s a big “quality of evidence” problem here. Few studies have tested compression with a randomised controlled trialThe “gold standard” approach for determining whether a treatment has a causal effect on an outcome of interest. In such a study, a sample of people representing the population of interest is randomised to receive the treatment or a no-treatment placebo (control), and the outcome of interest is measured before and after exposure to the treatment and control., and the summary effects are often driven by a single study with a huge result. There’s also a lot of variation in study designs and outcomes across the literature, which makes clean conclusions harder. On top of that, most studies don’t actually measure the pressure the garment applies — they just report the manufacturer’s stated range (often 15 to 35 millimetres of mercury, mmHg). So, the “best” pressure and the “best” wear-time are currently unknown.
Also: we’ve known for many moons that moving your body is the best way to increase muscle contraction, blood flow, and cardiac output. No sock, sleeve, or futuristic calf-specific boa constrictor is going to mimic the size of the blood-flow boost you get from easy-exertion movement.
If you’re healthy and you don’t have vascular disease, blood doesn’t “pool” and just sit in your legs like it’s waiting for a bus. It circulates fine at rest. And if you want to crank venous return (blood getting back to the heart), light movement like easy walking, gentle cycling, swimming, or even a short jog will raise heart rate and massively increase limb blood flow — compression clothing won’t match that magnitude.
The good news: compression clothing doesn’t appear to harm recovery or performance. And it does seem to reduce soreness and improve how recovered you feel. That “big hug” sensation may also help you relax — and being calm and rested is kinda the point of recovery, right?
Can compression clothing enhance recovery and athletic performance?
Wearing compression clothing after exercise is likely to reduce muscle soreness and improve how recovered you feel.
The effect sizeA meta-analysis quantifies the overall effect size of a treatment by compiling effect sizes from all known studies of that treatment. is small to medium. It also seems similar between trained and untrained people, and between males and females, but only a few studies have tested those comparisons directly.
Wearing compression clothing after exercise is unlikely to speed up the return of muscle strength, muscle power, or endurance performance.
Wearing compression clothing during exercise is unlikely to improve strength or endurance performance.
Keep in mind: there is high heterogeneity (variability)Heterogeneity shows how much the results in different studies in a meta-analysis vary from each other. It is measured as the percentage of variation (the I2 value). A rule of thumb: if I2 is roughly 25%, that indicates low heterogeneity (good), 50% is moderate, and 75% indicates high heterogeneity (bad). High heterogeneity means there’s more variability in effects between studies and, therefore, a less precise overall effect estimate. in effects between studies , a high risk of biasRisk of bias in a meta-analysis refers to the potential for systematic errors in the studies included in the analysis. Such errors can lead to misleading/invalid results and unreliable conclusions. This can arise because of issues with the way participants are selected (randomisation), how data is collected and analysed, and how the results are reported., and possible publication biasPublication bias in meta-analysis occurs when studies with significant results are more likely to be published than those with non-significant findings, leading to distorted conclusions. This bias can inflate effect sizes and misrepresent the true effectiveness of interventions, making it crucial to identify and correct for it in research.. So, the overall certainty of evidenceCertainty of evidence tells us how confident we are that the published results accurately reflect the true effect. It’s based on factors like study design, risk of bias, consistency, directness, precision, and publication bias. High certainty means that the current evidence is so strong and consistent that future studies are unlikely to change conclusions. Whereas, low certainty means more doubt and less confidence, and that future studies could easily change current conclusions. is low. That’s why more high-quality randomised controlled trials are needed to sharpen the estimate of the true effects.
We also need more research to identify the best compression pressure and how long people should wear it for recovery.
The nice part: compression clothing doesn’t appear to hurt recovery or performance. So, if you like it and believe it works for you, go for it. Just remember: time and money spent doing recovery with something that has no obvious performance benefit might be better spent sitting down, resting, eating something nutritious, and doing something calm.
How to use this: If compression clothing feels good and helps you relax after hard running, OCR, or endurance sessions, it’s a reasonable “comfort tool” to use post-workout — just don’t expect it to magically restore performance. If you want the biggest recovery bang for your buck, pair it with the unsexy basics you’re already tired of hearing about: gentle movement, food, fluids, and sleep.
Information you can trust. All content on Veohtu is meticulously researched and written by Thomas Solomon, PhD. He does not sell supplements, recovery products, or ad space, and he has no sponsorships, brand affiliations, or ambassador roles. Everything you read reflects his independent views, shaped solely by peer-reviewed scientific evidence — and that will never change.
Full list of meta-analyses examining compression clothing and garments for recovery
Here are the meta-analyses I've summarised above:
Do Sports Compression Garments Alter Measures of Peripheral Blood Flow? A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis. Shane F O'Riordan, David J Bishop, Shona L Halson, James R Broatch. Sports Med. 2023
Wearing Compression Garment Enhances Central Hemodynamics? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Daniel C W Lee, Ajmol Ali, Sinead Sheridan, Derwin K C Chan, Stephen H S Wong. J Strength Cond Res. 2022
Putting the Squeeze on Compression Garments: Current Evidence and Recommendations for Future Research: A Systematic Scoping Review. Jonathon Weakley, James Broatch, Shane O’Riordan, Matthew Morrison, Nirav Maniar & Shona L. Halson. Sports Med. 2022
Can Compression Garments Reduce the Deleterious Effects of Physical Exercise on Muscle Strength? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses. János Négyesi, Tibor Hortobágyi, Jessica Hill, Urs Granacher, Ryoichi Nagatomi. Sports Med. 2022
Effects of Wearing Compression Stockings on Exercise Performance and Associated Indicators: A Systematic Review. Mota GR, Simim MAM, Dos Santos IA, Sasaki JE, Marocolo M. Open Access J Sports Med. 2020
Association of Lower Limb Compression Garments During High-Intensity Exercise with Performance and Physiological Responses: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. César Augusto da Silva, Lucas Helal, Roberto Pacheco da Silva, Karlyse Claudino Belli, Daniel Umpierre & Ricardo Stein. Sports Med. 2018
An Evidence-Based Approach for Choosing Post-exercise Recovery Techniques to Reduce Markers of Muscle Damage, Soreness, Fatigue, and Inflammation: A Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis.
Dupuy O, Douzi W, Theurot D, Bosquet L, Dugué B. Front Physiol. 2018
Compression Garments and Recovery from Exercise: A Meta-Analysis.
Brown F, Gissane C, Howatson G, van Someren K, Pedlar C, Hill J. Sports Med. 2017
Are compression garments effective for the recovery of exercise-induced muscle damage? A systematic review with meta-analysis. Marqués-Jiménez D, Calleja-González J, Arratibel I, Delextrat A, Terrados N. Physiol Behav. 2016
Is There Evidence that Runners can Benefit from Wearing Compression Clothing?
Engel F, Holmberg, H, Sperlich B.
Sports Med. 2016
Compression garments and recovery from exercise-induced muscle damage: a meta-analysis. Hill J, Howatson G, van Someren K, Leeder J, Pedlar C. Br J Sports Med. 2014
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Who is Thomas Solomon?
My knowledge has been honed following 20+ years of running, cycling, hiking, cross-country skiing, lifting, and climbing, 15+ years of academic research at world-leading universities and hospitals, and 10+ years advising and coaching in athletic performance and lifestyle change.
I have a BSc in Biochemistry, a PhD in Exercise Science, and over 90 peer-reviewed publications in medical journals.
I'm also an ACSM-certified Exercise Physiologist (ACSM-EP), an ACSM-certified Personal Trainer (ACSM-CPT), a VDOT-certified Distance Running Coach, and a UKVRN Registered Nutritionist (RNutr).
Since 2002, I’ve conducted biomedical research in exercise and nutrition and have taught and led university courses in exercise physiology, active recovery, biochemistry, and molecular medicine.
And, with my personal experience of competing on the track (800m to 10,000m), the road (5 k to marathon), on the trails, and in the mountains, by foot, bicycle, cross-country ski, and during obstacle course races (OCR), I deeply understand what it's like to train and compete — I've been there, done it, and gotten sweat, mud, and tears on my t-shirt.
Disclaimer: I occasionally mention brands and products, but it is important to know that I don't sell recovery products, supplements, or ad space, and I'm not affiliated with / sponsored by / an ambassador for / receiving advertisement royalties from any brands. I have conducted biomedical research for which I’ve received research money from publicly-funded national research councils and medical charities, and also from private companies, including Novo Nordisk Foundation, AstraZeneca, Amylin, the A.P. Møller Foundation, and the Augustinus Foundation. I’ve also consulted for Boost Treadmills and Gu Energy on R&D grant applications, and I provide research and scientific writing services for Examine.com. Some of my articles contain links to information provided by Examine.com but I do not receive any royalties or bonuses from those links. Importantly, none of the companies described above have had any control over the research design, data analysis, or publication outcomes of my work. I research and write my content using state-of-the-art, consensus, peer reviewed, and published scientific evidence combined with my empirical evidence observed in practice and feedback from athletes. My advice is, and always will be, based on my own views and opinions shaped by the scientific evidence available. The information I provide is not medical advice. Before making any changes to your habits of daily living based on any information I provide, always ensure it is safe for you to do so and consult your doctor if you are unsure.