Compression Clothing – The Benefits for Performance and Recovery

Various forms of compression clothing have been used by elite and leisure athletes with increasing popularity for performance and recovery purposes in different sports. However, clear evidence is lacking regarding the benefits for athletes. Various studies have reported contradictory findings concerning the performance enhancing effects for athletes using compression clothing compared to non-compression garments. Since there is uncertainty among athletes, coaches and consumers regarding compression clothing, the purpose of this presentation is 1) to summarize the results from existing data, 2) to identify exercise modalities which show benefits by the application of compression clothing, and 3) to provide recommendations for the  athlete or consumer.