The Best Compression Socks For Runners

The use of compression garments among athletes has increased significantly in recent years. If you happen to be at the starting line of a recent marathon, it would be impossible not to notice the high percentage of runners wearing compression socks. Compression socks are being worn by both professional and amateur runners, come in different compression ratings, and can be found in any color scheme imaginable.

Running companies are increasing their marketing efforts in compression garments, especially in endurance athletes such as runners and triathletes The companies claim performance gains and quicker recovery, thus overall achieving better results. Are compression socks right for you?

What are Compression Stockings

Compression socks were originally developed for the treatment of deep-vein thrombosis (DVT) which is a blood clot within the veins. The compression socks were designed to mimic our own muscles which squeeze our blood vessels continually to prevent blood pooling.

In running, compression stockings are thought to increase blood return back to heart which can then pump it quickly to the muscles being used to propel you faster. The increased blood flow also aims to help increase deep venous velocity, decrease blood pooling in the calf, and combat against muscle soreness after the competition.

Can Compression Socks Improve Performance

Most of the information we have on compression garments come from word of mouth, meaning that when an athlete likes using compression socks they tell everyone they know how great they are. The medical research isn’t as clear as most of the research studies performed are not great studies and leave few high quality articles to pull information from. As found in a recent review of compression socks in the Journal of Sports Rehabilitation the key findings are (1):

Two studies, 1 with 2 separate experiments, showed no difference in running performance while wearing compression stockings (2,3).
Two studies showed that GCS were effective in improving performance as measured by either maximal work (4) or running performance (5).
One study showed that GCS improved maximum running speed (5).
One study showed lower ratings of perceived muscle soreness 24 hours after exercise with the use of GCS (2).
No differences in the physiological variables of heart rate, oxygen consumption, rating of perceived exertion, or lactate levels were found with the use of GCS

So what does all that mean? Essentially if you like the way compression socks feel, then wear them. There likely is not much of a gain if any, and most people will admit that there may be a placebo effect when using them. In addition if you have had any nagging injuries such as a sprained ankle or Plantar Fasciitis then this may also aid in decreasing the pain signal for those.

A lot of athletes swear by compression socks and there is no downside to wearing them which should at least make you want to consider giving them a try if you are a runner or wanting to be a runner. Plus, most of the companies list below offer a money back guarantee so there is no reason not to give them a try.