Disclaimer: I received items from CEP Compression, Incrediwear, Nuun Hydration, Addaday Massage, and Arcanum Edge from The Running Event as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews! No further compensation was given and as always, all opinions are my own.
Oh the irony of this blog post.
A few weeks ago, I received some recovery based items from TRE Influencer Day. I was super excited to try them all out because I was running a marathon the following weekend and knew my body would be in desperate need of recovery. So post-marathon, I rested and took some time off from running. Then, I got sick. LOL. Isn’t that how it goes? You put your body under an immense amount of stress and once that stress has been lifted, your body breaks down? LOL I always got sick post-finals in school so of course I’d get sick post-marathon.
Despite getting sick, I was able to try out a few new recovery items right before getting sick and I am happy to report back on the following items.
- CEP – Compression socks for Recovery and Trail Merino Socks
- IncrediWear – Performance Capri, Sport Thin No Show Socks, Active Low Cut Socks, and Sport Thin Quarter Socks
- Nuun Hydration – ALL OF THE FLAVORS
- Addaday Massage – Type C roller and Runner’s Tea
- Arcanum Edge – Sarco Freeze, The Quill, and Sarco Breeze
Feel free to skip to the items you want to read about. 🙂
History: CEP Compression is probably one of the most well known brands of compression socks. The company is actually owned by Medi, a global leader in medical compression manufacturing so you know that CEP Compression is not fooling around.
Technology: In the body, we have arteries and veins that transport blood towards and away from the heart. Veins transport de-oxygenated blood back to heart while fighting gravity and arteries use the heart to deliver oxygenated blood to every cell of your body. CEP is able to improve the blood flow back towards the heart by utilizing graduated compression technology. Their socks start with a 24 mm Hg in the ankle and gradually loosens to a consistent 18 mm Hg in the calf. The socks, due to the decrease in pressure, is essentially pushing the blood back towards your heart to get re-oxygenated.
My experience: I was given the Compression Socks for Recovery and Trail Merino Socks to test out. When I first received them, I was a bit hesistant about trying them out. I haven’t had the best luck with compression socks as they’re a bit constricting when I run in them, but after some assurance from the CEP representative that not all compression socks were created equal, I decided to give them a shot.
The Compression Socks for Recovery are meant for post-work out activity so after running the Honolulu marathon, I put these babies on. Walking around in them felt really nice and my calves didn’t feel as sore as I thought they would post-marathon. Hooray. I also tested them out on 4-5 hour flights and found them to be much more comfortable than other compression socks I’ve worn on flights.
Medical grade compression socks, like these, are shown to decrease the risk of deep vein thrombosis while traveling. Apparently, 4.5% of travelers on long-distance flights, suffer from thrombosis due to a slower resting blood flow and by wearing these, it will decrease your risk for them. I found that my feet felt a bit restricted over the course of the flight, but it wasn’t significant enough to offset the refreshed feeling of my calves after I got off the flight.
As for the Trail Merino Socks, they are super soft and comfy to wear while walking around or running around. I ran in these socks for 4-6 miles and they felt great. J Highly recommend.
History: IncrediWear started out the founder Jackson Corley went through a near fatal cycling accident. The accident threatened to paralyze for life so he looked to alternatives that would heal his body. As a result, IncrediWear was born.
Technology: These products are not based on compression technology, but rather use fabrics containing semiconductor elements. When these elements are stimulated by body heat, they release negative ions and the negative ions activate molecular vibrations, which increases blood flow and speed. The increase in circulation will bring more oxygen to the target area, which helps improve the healing process and accelerate recovery.
My experience: Their Performance Capris are some of the softest pants I own. I swear. Something about it made me not want to take them off. LOL. Post-marathon, I threw these on and wore them like no other for the next few days. I wore them during the workday as well as during runs and they move really well. It was difficult to determine whether these improved my performance or my recovery time as I only wrecked myself once prior to wearing these so it is possible that over time, I will see more of an improvement in my performance. The capris will most definitely be kept in my rotation.
I was also given three pairs of socks and the material of the sock is like no other. It’s very smooth. I know. I sound like a broken record, but it’s true. They’re light and my several runs with them have worked out really well.
Product Lines: Electrolytes, Immunity, Vitamins, and Performance
My experience: I’ve tested Nuun out on different occasions and you can read my blog on the Nuun Immunity line here. I was given all of the flavors this time around and boy, some of those flavors are addicting. Also, did you know that you can drink HOT NUUN? A fellow BibRave Pro mentioned that she dissolves some of the flavors into hot water and drink it like hot tea. It is a complete game changer if you haven’t done it before and I honestly believe some of the flavors are better when hot. The immunity line is actually much more tasty to me with hot water, but my newest favorite is hands down hot ginger lemonade (caffeine included) from their vitamin line. It taste like a refreshing cup of hot lemonade tea and I swear, it’s delicious and great to wake you up in the morning. Their mango orange from their electrolyte is also a really yummy one. J
History: Addaday Massage started out as a blog with the purpose of writing about tips and tricks on how to add a day to your life. Cool, right?
Product Lines: Foam rollers, electronic massagers, and runner’s tea
My experience: Prior to receiving the Type C foam roller, I had used the Addaday Type D+ roller and another foam roller from a different brand. Between the three, I like the Type C foam roller the best. Addaday has different patented rollers that target different muscle groups and the Type C foam roller has a medium muscle roller that helps flush out lactic acid and muscle fatigue. There is also a little red pin point muscle roller for shin splints, Achilles, and other heard to reach areas. With this roller, I felt my muscles getting a really good knead and it felt like it was hitting the right spots. You know the phrase, “it hurts so good?” Yeah, that’s how it felt using this. LOL.
History: Arcanum Edge was founded by people who suffered from different types of pain and were looking for a more natural way to treat it.
Technology: Arcanum Edge uses activated hemp in their prodcuts. When hemp is heated at high temperatures, its able to enter circulation into the body more effectively and have an active effect. It would take way too long to explain here and I don’t want to bore you, so if you’d like to learn more, click here.
Product line: Sarco Breeze, Sarco Freeze, the Quill, and Arcana-lyte (Hemp based electrolyte)
My experience: I was pretty impressed with their activated hemp product line. Sarco Breeze is a sports massage oil that is designed to facilitate muscle recovery, soothe aches, and also hydrate your skin. Sarco Freeze is for a topical cooling hemp extract. If you’ve ever heard of Tiger balm or icy hot, this is essentially the same thing (cooling effect wise), but with the added benefit of relieving soreness and increasing healing. Last week, I had this ACHING ear infection and I tried to biohack myself and use Sarco Freeze on my jaw line that was in intense pain and it really did alleviate the pain so that it was more bearable. The Quill is essentially a pen that you can turn a dial on and with each turn, you get a 2 mg dose of activated hemp. This particular product is meant to be taken like a vitamin, daily, to see the effects. I found that it improved my sleep over the course of a few days, which was great since I desperately needed it.
Whew. That was a lot of information. Please feel free to ask me any questions you have regarding any of these products and stay tuned for my apparel/shoes review coming up in the next few days.
Question for you: What are some of your favorite recovery products?
A Girl on a Search for Adventure 