Recovery Savvy ... or Superhero in Disguise!

In the beginning, there was absolutely no way in hell you would ever be able to squeeze me into a pair of tights.  I grew up with a ballerina sister and those things were reserved for the daintily feminine.  But, as I got into winter training and fighting through the brutally cold and variable weather patterns of the Northeastern United States, tights became a necessity, one that I took to very slowly. 

At first I wore shorts over my tights, just like I had seen my brother’s college soccer team do at the end of their fall season.  Well, that and the fact that there was just something weird about wearing something form fitting and having my non-existent posterior end and velociraptor legs on pseudo-display.  I just wasn’t comfortable with it.  Then, after much harassment from running teammates and my coach I gave up the ghost and stopped with the shorts-on-top look and wore them as the running Gods fully intended me to … with my break lights blaring!  But, I digress. 

Shortly after the 2010 Chicago I came upon a pair of recovery tights – I know, MORE tights for the guy who wouldn’t even THINK of wearing tights a few years ago – adorned by a pair of awesome individuals, Lee and Isis (aka @runningcouple on twitter).  I was immediately curious as I caught a glimpse of the stirrup-style feet and asked if they were recovery socks.  They said no, they were full tights (Zoot CompressRx Recovery Tights) and that they absolutely loved them and lived in them after long runs and races.  I did a little research into them, since I have toyed with a number of recovery products and these just sounded interesting.  Four months later I bought a pair and I have to tell you I am completely sold on them. 

Why are they awesome? Let me tell you, first of all, you get to look like a superhero in these things! Friggin’ amazing! I could totally go out and fight crime daily in them and not worry about any muscle fatigue whatsoever. But seriously, I’ve done a couple of long 18-19 mile runs and put the Zoot CompressRx Recovery Tights on after, worn them for the day, and have felt like I was ready to rumble by the next morning. 

It’s like Mr. Miyagi is working on my legs for the entire day, preparing me to kick the crap out of the Cobra Kai dojo single handedly … wow, rereading that just sounds a bit creepy, but you get what I mean.  These recovery tights are simply phenomenal for recharging your legs and breathing life back into them.  One thing to note about them, even more so than regular running tights, is the amount of time it takes to get these bad boys on.  It can be a bit of a process that is nowhere near to superhero phone booth efficient, but once you finally get them completely on you will be so happy!  Furthermore, they can be a little difficult to keep up depending on your size.  I found that I struggled keeping the waist portion up and was a little self conscious about squatting down to pick things up, like the stereotypical plumber.  In terms of cost, I have seen these tights run between $110-$150, which is pretty consistent with the likes of CW-X and others.

Despite these minor inconveniences, which seem to accompany almost any type of tight – ladies, I don’t know how you do it daily – I highly recommend Zoot CompressRx Recovery Tights.  I have tried a lot of different recovery products and this one is by far the best one that I have used.  These bad boys will be going on after every long training run and marathon from here on out.  Seriously … you feel and look like a SUPERHERO … that should be reason enough.