What Are Compression Boots - And How Do They Work?
Posted on 15th January 2025 at 13:33
Compression boots are air flowing recovery sleeves that cover the feet and lower limbs. They contain multiple of chambers and within each sleeve the chambers fill with air one after the other, to compress each section of the lower limb at a time. This process is called intermittent pneumatic compression and medical professionals have long used it to help reduced foot and leg swelling in patient with serious health conditions.
How Do Compression Boots Work?
In athletes, pneumatic compression works by pushing out deoxygenated blood, and lactic acid (wastage product of exercise) out of the lower limb towards the heart. A little bit like squeezing a tube of toothpaste from the bottom to the top! With the help of removing the waste product through our circulatory system, the body can replenish with new freshly oxygenated bloody which helps our muscular system heal and recover. The body naturally does this on its own following exercise without the help of external devices. External devices like the recovery sleeves, foam rolling, sports massage and yoga are all shown to help promote this natural mechanism so athletes can train at a similar intensity much quicker.
Benefits of Recovery Boots:
• Reduce delayed muscle soreness (DOMS) from training and competition
• Reduces water accumulation, inflammation and muscle tension
• Improve circulation.
• Speed up recovery time.
• Improves joint range of motion.
How to Use Compression Boots:
Compression therapy is best reserved for after a tough workout, training or competition. Use them after you cool down or set aside a 20-30min recovery session that may involve 20min on the recovery boots, 5min foam rolling and 10min of a mobility sequence.
For the recovery boots, we recommend a 20min session up to twice per week to help assist with recovery.
Please note, there are contraindication in using compression boots, therefore, we recommend you speak with our Rehabilitation Team before use.
If you are interested in using our compression boots, please contact us to book your first session.
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