Wednesday, 25 February 2009
Proof that my calf guards aren't just a placebo effect....
Last week, I posted about my 2XU calf guards. Now I see the Training Peaks blog is citing a study that supports my subjective analysis that these knee-high socks make me faster. Apparently there's a "higher mechanical efficiency" from wearing them. I hope this doesn't mean they will soon be banned! :(
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3 comments:
Any idea regarding if they help with shin splints?
They definitely helped with my shin splints. I had suffered from them quite badly about 2 years before where they kept me from running for 3-4 months. When I started back with it I had to be very careful (i.e., paranoid) about every little twinge and pain I got in my shins. I managed to complete an Ironman and marathon but never really got enough mileage or intensity in training because I was often experiencing the warning signs of shin splints and had to back off. My calf muscles had always been on the tight side, so with massage I was managing to stay healthy but it wasn't fun.
When I got the calf guards I was a bit skeptical whether they would do anything, but within a few weeks my tight calves were much better and all my shin pain was gone. Since then I've gone on to do 50-60km training weeks (previously 35km was a big week) and lots of intense intervals and hill running. Shin splints have completely disappeared and I'm a lot faster these days too. :)
So yeah, I would say they help but I'm not sure if any real research has been done to prove it. My first post about this shows my amazement at how much a difference wearing calf guards has made to my running.
Hi Maryka I am not a professional cyclist but I would like to try these knee-high socks and see if it helps me to reduce my time, thanks a lot!
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