Compression Nation
Fighting a nasty plantar fasciitis and the typical aches and pains of a professional athlete logging in endless hours on the court and in the gym, I needed 2XU. 2XU not only helped me fight my tendonitis in my foot, but it aided my recovery from everyday strenuous activity. I love the product so much that it has become routine to throw on some sort of compression whenever I can. Whether it is my recovery tights right when I jump out of my shower, recovery leg sleeves midday, or the compression arm sleeves for the beginning of my practice, I am constantly thinking when and where I can apply compression.
I keep a full set of my compression gear in a pouch that I have and it is the first thing I throw into my suitcase when I packed for my first leg of 2014 tournaments on the road. I am certain that utilizing my recovery gear made a difference in my performance the following day after long matches. Having done this "tennis thing" for so long, I have a relatively accurate idea of what my body should feel like after a certain day's work. In my most recent events, I can honestly say that my body was feeling much better than I expected it to the day after very arduous matches, because I added 2XU to my warm up and recovery regiment.
My most relevant story though that I want to share is a day when I was scheduled to play two singles matches in a day. (Who does that anymore at the professional level?) At 5'3" 120 lbs, I am considered smaller built in comparison to the majority of my competitors. With my small frame, I myself get anxious when it comes to the physicality of the sport, because there is only so much abuse and pounding my smaller body can withstand. Nervous about how I would cope with the physical task of playing a second singles match (given I win the first one), I brought my compression leg sleeves along to put on right after my first match. I figured (other than God/supernatural powers) that was the only thing that had a chance of helping me get through the potentially rough day.
After winning my first match, I put on the leg sleeves as I had planned and proceeded to eat, hydrate, and relax before my next round. When it was go time, I slipped the sleeves off, took a couple deep breathes, and walked onto the court facing one of my toughest opponents (in my opinion), who has beaten me handily for the past 3 years. The first 6 games was the most physical tennis I have ever played, and I thought that for sure my legs would give out if I had to keep that intensity up for the rest of the match. To my surprise though they stayed afloat and I came out with the W. When I walked off the court, I at first could not believe I pulled off that win and was not quite sure how I did it mentally and physically. A few minutes passed and then it was all a little clearer to me how it all happened. I can go into how I mentally got through that match, but that will be left for another blog post. As for how my body got through it, I got my hard work, preparation, AND 2XU to thank for helping me snatch a win that I may not have, had I not found a way to give myself the extra edge.