shorts w/ compression fitting / 8-pannel question ???!

I read in a advertisement (I forget what brand it was for.. Adidas, Castelli, etc) , anyways it raved how it had a certain level of compression fitting , and thus helped improve "recovery" after cycling. I've asked around, and I guess Skins has been making cycling apparel that helps aid muscles in recovering faster (by promoting increased blood flow into the area/region that has the piece of apparel around it/compressed).

Is this for real ?

Personally, I've found that firmer wearing(8-pannel shorts) tend to be good during colder weather(under 50 degrees) , in that it does keep me warmer. In the late spring/summer time where I live, it gets to 100- 110 degrees , and I use an older pair of Castelli Squadra bib shorts(but I cut off the leg grippers.. since they were cutting off my circulation ) , and they are very comfortable while riding (the short is like a 6-pannel.. but I have a great synthetic chamios system in there- Comfortemp. which is very comfortable). I personally find it favorable to give my booty a quality chamios , and at the same time let my legs be less constrained by having fabric compress them for extended periods of time.

Is comfort of cycling short more important, then potentially having the ability of a cycling short compress your muscles to possibly aid in slightly faster muscle recovery ?

__________________
*The energy efficiency of a bicycle is second only to a bird in flight ;-)
*Its NOT a mechine, its a tool. A human using a bicycle as a tool-as intended .. now thats one wicked Mechine (ex. legs = pistons, mouth/airway = air intake)
*"Good people try to help others with their knowledge rather than beating them on the head because they are ignorant." -Insight Driver

Comfort is king, but you can have both comfort and compression. Giordana Forma Red bibs offer both. Assos does. I'm sure others do, too.

__________________
Sex is horrid
Pain is Fun
I cut my fingers off
One by one

Aye, you can't beat a pair of comfy shorts. It always makes me laugh when I'm chatting with other cyclists and they're riding some uber-expensive bike and they're complaining about silly stuff like ill fitting shorts and butt chafing.

Between the good quality manufacturers there's probably not much difference - fit is the most important thing. If you dig Castelli's chamois but your leg grippers are too tight then try on a pair of the next size up.

None of the other stuff matters if the bit where backside meets saddle isn't 'happy'.

I totally agree you two.
Comfort is king.

In thinking about it more, and speaking to someone today about it(a machanic at my LBS) , I'm sure there are many who rave about the compression yielding faster muscle recovery times from one day to the next (I suppose this is mainly good if your doing long days 50+ mile days, back to back to back... etc).

However, is there harm in damaging your legs if you do an all out day(sprinting, hard efforts) without compression shorts (or even with out some kind of compression against your leg muscles post-ride/workout) ? Will the muscle rebuild itself differently (in an inferior way, in comparison to if compression shorts were used) ?

I always like to think of the real cycling gods like Merckx .. they didn't have any kind of high tech cycling shorts , just an internal burning flame to go as fast as they could on a road bike, no matter what the conditions were ... ate good, slept good , and trained properly.

__________________
*The energy efficiency of a bicycle is second only to a bird in flight ;-)
*Its NOT a mechine, its a tool. A human using a bicycle as a tool-as intended .. now thats one wicked Mechine (ex. legs = pistons, mouth/airway = air intake)
*"Good people try to help others with their knowledge rather than beating them on the head because they are ignorant." -Insight Driver

The likes of Merckx and Hinault didn't have access to todays fun stuff but you can be sure they were using the best available stuff of the day...

If compression garments were the "be all and end all" of clothing, then you'd never see the pro's riding in shorts - they'd be racing the tour in some uber cooling, compression fitting long legged lyrca number... The Tour de France is probably a prime candidate as the best are riding against the best and it's as much about recovery in the last two weeks as it is about ultimate albility.... When it's time to put up or shut up and earn your money, you can bet that if there's a legal way to get an advantage, someone would be on it as quick as a flash.

I've not been able to find any controlled test that proves that compression garments work, despite what the manufacturers say. If you dig Castelli, then go get their comfiest shorts in the correct size - one that it's too tight around the legs.

If you're handy on a bike then 50 miles aint a long day. It'd be somewhere between 2 and 2 1/2 hours.

Skins will tell you that their compression bits are what make the athletic world survivable. Of course, marketing guys are really good at saying just about anything, except for the unadulterated truth.

ProCycling did an article, in the last year or so, on favorite recovery methods of Pro Tour riders. Wearing compression garments after a day in the saddle was one of those favored methods. Even in the pro ranks, though, users of compression garments are in the minority.

__________________
Sex is horrid
Pain is Fun
I cut my fingers off
One by one

Comfort may be king, but durability is nice too. I can say from recent experience that Giordana bibs are more durable than old man flesh --- nice road rash under undamaged bibs

jim