Leggings Are In Fact Pants

After having our first week of games with lots of sunshine, we have our 2^nd week of WAKA fashion and the topic this week is leggings.  Yes people, leggings can be pants and are worn as such on several occasions, but the ones that stood out the most at the opening games were these worn by our very own Jeremy Smithey, who owns at least 20 other pairs.  Amazing!

Leggings not only provide comfort, but also create a tremendous fashion statement in the WAKA community. In fact, in February 2015 the Wall Street Journal quoted in the article, Leggings in Loud Prints Are a Hit and More Flattering than Most Women Expect, “The busier the print, the more flattering it is.”  

But let's not go overboard now...

And how does this relate to sports performance?  I’m glad you asked.  According to a study done by a postdoctoral researcher at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas named Abigail Stickford, after giving 16 endurance runners a pair of calf compression sleeves, she strapped on masks and monitors to measure the runners' gait and oxygen intake. The same routine was done without the calf sleeves as well, and Stickford stated there was no difference. "When we looked at the averages of our group of runners, all the measures of running gait were exactly the same with and without compression; the measures of efficiency were exactly the same. The two men who did show improvements while wearing the compression sleeves were the ones who believed the garments aided in training, racing and recovery. "The placebo effect is a real effect. It affects performance," Stick concluded.  

So overall our WAKA community has it right.  Whether we wear our leggings, compression sleeves,  or just our favorite lucky pants in general, we are more likely to perform or even party better if we are more comfortable and with support.