Can Your Socks Make You Faster?

Joe Friel's Blog: Can Your Socks Make You Faster?: "This was the Year of the Compression Sock at the Hawaii Ironman. In past years they were evident, but this year they seemed to be every where. The accompanying picture of these elastic stockings was taken in Kona on race day. The users say they improve their performance by…

* improving venous return to the heart,
* preventing muscles from moving unnecessarily as with excess vibration meaning less fatigue, and
* speeding recovery.

They also claim that wearing them on long flights as when going to Hawaii reduces leg and foot swelling due to fluids pooling in legs.

Elastic compression stockings have been around for a long time and used in the treatment of several leg conditions such as blood clotting in deep veins (“thrombosis”) and faulty valves in the veins with weakened vein walls (“varicose veins”). The research generally supports their use for such injuries, but do they improve athletic performance such as the claims made above?"