How Joe Umphenour uses Zensah Compression Arm Sleeves

By Joe Umphenour, Elite Triathlete 

Being a triathlete for over thirty years, I have seen many pieces of clothing come and go because their usefulness and functionality were limited.  Doing three sports kept me searching for clothing that had multiple uses.  With my Zensah Compression Arm Sleeves, I have found an indispensable part of my training wardrobe.

Originally, I used it for the compression so it would aid in my post-swim recovery.  It did a great job doing that but I also noticed it was nice to have on as an extra layer on my arms during slightly cooler days.  Soon it found itself being used as light arm warmers on bike rides and also on runs as running arm sleeves.  Since most of these occur after my morning swim, I was getting double-duty out of them by getting compression while I was doing another workout.

Sunblock is also a major part of my outdoor workout regime since I am rather fair skinned.  It works fine unless it is washed or sweated off and it tends to pick-up dirt and bugs so I was keeping my eye open for another solution.  I found that the compression arm sleeves block the sun very well without the worry of it wearing off or collecting gunk.  Just when I thought I knew every use for them, there was an accident during my group bike ride and someone needed a bandage and direct pressure on a laceration.  My compression arm sleeves became an excellent bandage to create pressure on the wound and stop the bleeding.  I realized that I was wearing a multi-use tool on my arms every time I worked out!

It gets me thinking of all the other sports that can benefit from these arm compression sleeves. Athletes in sports like basketball, football or baseball that are arm-use intensive can get recovered from hard workouts faster to make the next workout that much more productive.  Or even on cooler days they can act like a second layer so light that you won’t even know they’re there.  Zensah’s compression arm sleeves are the one piece of athletic wear that every athlete needs.