When it comes to running it is important to take care of your body, especially your legs. Here are 7 benefits of wearing compression socks for running.
Want to live a longer life? Here’s a tip: Start running—and keep running for as long as you possibly can.
There are, of course, other things you can do to exercise and keep yourself in good shape. You can cycle, swim, play recreational sports, and more to stay active.
But according to a 2017 study, running is the best form of exercise for those who want to live longer. It can reduce your risk of premature mortality by up to 40 percent.
Consider wearing compression socks for running when you’re logging all your miles, too. Compression socks can enhance your runs and make them even more effective than they would be otherwise.
Here are 7 benefits that will come along with putting a pair of compression socks on before your next run.
1. Improves Blood Circulation
There are so many benefits of compression socks for runners. But even if this particular benefit was the only benefit of wearing them, they would still be well worth the investment.
When you’re out on a run, you want to keep the blood in your body circulating as quickly as it can. It allows your blood to deliver oxygen to your muscles, which in turn keeps them feeling and performing at their best.
Compression socks will improve your blood circulation by applying a tiny bit of pressure to the blood vessels located in your legs. This will keep the blood flowing through them while you run and improve your workouts overall.
2. Prevents Muscle Soreness
Do you find that the muscles in your legs are almost always sore on the days after long runs? This is likely because lactic acid is building up in your leg muscles and causing soreness to set in.
You can get rid of some of this lactic acid by making sure you stretch well before and after workouts. You can also do it by getting massages or using massagers at home.
And compression socks for running can help with this issue as well. When you wear compression socks both during and after your runs, you can prevent lactic acid from building up and causing muscle soreness.
3. Cuts Down on Cramping
If you cramp up a lot when you’re running, you might be beyond frustrated at this point as far as finding a cure for it. No matter how much water you take in and how long you spend stretching, you can still cramp up if you push your leg muscles too hard.
Compression socks for running will help eliminate some of the strain that you put on the calf muscles in your legs when you’re running. It’ll cut way down on the cramping that you experience and allow you to run for longer distances at the same time.
4. Stops Swelling
Swelling is yet another problem that plagues many runners in the aftermath of workouts. It’s not uncommon for people to experience swelling in their legs, feet, and ankles following a run.
If swelling is something that has become an issue for you in recent weeks, compression socks for running might be the solution to your problem. You can prevent fluid from building up in your legs, feet, and ankles by putting compression socks on before your runs.
Your compression socks will gently squeeze your legs, feet, and ankles and stop fluids from sitting in them for extended periods of time. You won’t have to worry about your legs feeling heavy, tired, and achy anymore due to excessive swelling.
5. Encourages Healing
While you’re more than welcome to take your compression socks off once you’re done running, it’s often beneficial to keep a pair on for at least a few hours after you’re finished with a run.
When you continue to wear compression socks while you’re resting, it’ll keep the blood pumping throughout your body, and that blood will continue to bring nutrient-rich oxygen to your muscles for hours on end. That’ll encourage healing in your muscles and make your muscles stronger over time.
In fact, you could argue that wearing compression socks after a run is even more important than wearing them during it. One study done on marathon runners in 2015 found that those runners who wore compression socks for 48 hours following a race performed better in a treadmill test two weeks later than those who didn’t wear them.
Researchers believe that was the case because the runners who wore compression socks were able to recover quicker than they would have been able to otherwise.
6. Offers Protection
If you spend most of your time running on a treadmill or running around your neighborhood, you don’t have to worry about protecting your legs that much. But if you like to run on trails, protecting your legs is very important.
Your legs are going to be subjected to branches, poison ivy, dirt, and more. You can provide them with the protection they’ll need when you throw on a pair of compression socks for running. They won’t get nicked up anymore when you’re running around.
7. Looks Great
When most people think about compression socks, they think about the socks that older people wear. Those socks aren’t all that attractive.
But compression socks for running look much different than your average compression socks. They’re available in a wide range of colors and patterns and will enhance the look of your running gear.
You’ll feel more like a runner when you have compression socks on. They’ll let others know that you mean business when you start up a run.
Buy Compression Socks for Running Today
If you enjoy running and you haven’t had the chance to try compression socks for running yet, change that today. Pick up a pair of compression socks and see how much better they make your legs feel when you run.
You won’t have to deal with tired, achy, swollen legs anymore. It’ll make running more enjoyable than ever before and give you a chance to get more out of your runs moving forward.
Read our blog to learn about some of the many benefits of running that you might not realize.
