Compression Clothing – The Benefits for Performance and Recovery
presented at Performance Days
in Munich, on Monday 21st November 2011 at 15h30
By Mr Jun.-Prof.
Dr. Billy Sperlich of University Wuppertal
Jun.-Prof. Dr. Billy Sperlich works in the department of Sport Science of the University of Wuppertal. His main research topic is exercise science including thermoregulation involving the evaluation of different clothing for elite and recreational athletes. In numerous projects, he identifies strategies for improving performance and recovery in athletes including the use of different compression garments in different sport disciplines.
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.
Questions to the speaker & discussion