How to Run Faster / Compression Clothing Benefits

If you’ve ever felt a burning sensation in your muscles and can’t keep going, then you know all about fatigue. Find out how compression technology helps you gain an extra edge in our guide to muscle support.

Why your muscles get tired

We’ve all felt that feeling at some point during a race when your heart is pounding and your muscles are burning, crying out at you to stop or slow down. But why does this happen?

It’s all because of oxygen. Oxygen fuels our muscles during exercise, giving us the power to go further and faster, and ultimately to cross the finish line. When you don’t have enough oxygen in your body, you produce lactic acid, which causes that all too common burning sensation and the tiredness that every runner has felt.

• The heart has to beat faster the further and harder you go – once again, it’s all down to oxygen.
• Blood passes through the lungs, where it picks up oxygen to deliver to the muscles (oxygenated blood)
• The heart pumps oxygenated blood to your muscles where it drops off the oxygen your muscles need and picks up waste lactic acid
• The blood – now deoxygenated – returns to the heart through your veins, ready to start the whole process again

So, to reduce tiredness and fatigue, you need to be able to deliver oxygen more efficiently. But you also need to get deoxygenated blood back to the heart to remove lactic acid from your muscles as quickly as possible.

That’s where compression running clothing comes in.

How compression clothing works

Compression clothing features compression panels that are graduated throughout the garment. Greater pressure is applied to the muscles further away from the heart than those closest to it.

Using a pair of compression running tights as an example, the pressure is greater around the ankle than it is around the knee, squeezing the calf muscles and giving your veins a helping hand to push deoxygenated blood back up the legs and towards the heart.

That means you can:

• Run further as you’ll get more oxygen into the blood to power your muscles
• Recover faster because you’ll be removing waste lactic acid more quickly to reduce soreness in the muscles

Head-to-toe: how ASICS clothing uses compression

The ASICS muscle support range is designed specifically for running and targets key areas to reduce muscle vibration and improve your posture.

Take a look at how some of our muscle support clothing works:

Compression running tights

Compression running tights provide more than just warmth. They apply a healthy squeeze to the leg muscles that need it the most, namely the quads, the glutes and the muscles around the knees. That pressure helps to squeeze blood away from your legs and back to your heart, while also cutting down on muscle vibration to improve running efficiency and provide additional support for weakened areas such as the knees.

Compression running tops

Compression running tops work to adjust your posture, opening up the chest and allowing you to take in more oxygen to feed your muscles. They provide core support for the stomach, sides and lower back on long runs and help to reduce muscle oscillation and cramping.

Compression calf sleeves

Calf sleeves are ideal for when it’s too hot for full-length tights. They help to increase the circulation of deoxygenated blood from your calf muscles and back to the heart.

Compression calf support

Compression calf supports provide additional support for your calf muscles to reduce vibration so they can work efficiently and recover more quickly.

Compression running socks

Compression running socks provide pressure from the ankle to the calf to increase blood flow and reduce muscle vibration caused by the impact during your run. That helps them to work more efficiently.

Recovery socks

These can be worn all day and are made of a special CELLIANT™ material that promotes healthy blood flow and oxygen levels. They also provide compression to help your muscles recover more quickly. The difference between sport specific and recovery compression socks is the softness and feel of the material.

What size running tights should I buy?

Compression running tights must be a snug fit to work effectively, but they should not be so tight that they restrict your circulation, as that will severely hamper your performance. Compression running tights must also be comfortable and allow complete freedom of movement.

So how tight is too tight? When buying compression running tights and compression running tops, it’s not necessary to buy a smaller size than you’d usually wear. We have already factored in the need for a tighter profile when sizing our muscle support products. There is a size guide when you click on each of our products to help you find the right fit.

Are compression running tights worth it?

Compression running tights and tops are worn by a wide variety of professional and amateur athletes to help them train, compete and recover. Below are some of the main reasons why compression clothing is considered to be such an important part of their equipment.

• Support

Compression clothing applies pressure to the muscles, providing extra support that reduces the vibration and damage that causes muscle pain during and after exercise.

• Reduced muscle soreness

By increasing the flow of oxygenated blood to the muscles after exercise, compression running tights, tops and socks can help to reduce water retention and swelling that may cause discomfort and soreness. The extra blood flow also flushes out the harmful by-products of exercise, such as lactic acid, more quickly.

• Muscle repair

Strenuous exercise stretches and damages the muscles, which is what causes the soreness you often feel after a workout. By increasing the flow of oxygenated blood to the muscles, compression wear can help them repair more quickly so you’re ready for your next training session.

Take a look at our range of running clothing for men and women and order your ASICS compression wear online.