Many of us have heard our grandparents talk about their copper bracelet and how it helps with their ailments. I know I always passed it off as an old wives tale; leave it for Grandpa. But what if Grandpa was right? What if there are beneficial properties? Many brands have slowly started to introduce copper into workout gear and compression garments, so we thought we would give it a try. Maybe copper does help you step up your workout, or at least your recovery time?
Benefits of copper:
The benefits have been well documented in many scientific studies around the world. Most importantly, copper assists with the transportation of oxygen through the blood stream. Moreover, it aids in the relief of muscle pain, soreness, and rehabilitation. Copper also possesses significant antibacterial and antimicrobial qualities. That’s right, your gym clothes will smell better.
But we quickly discovered that not all of these garments are made equal. While some garments are made by embedding actual copper within the fibers, others simply coat the outside of the yarn with copper. The advantage to embedded fibers is that it will last longer through all those washes and wears. Further, it maintains the integrity of not only the fabric but also the copper – so you reap the health benefits as long as you own the garment.
Our test:
For our test, we tried one of the men’s compression t-shirts and a pair of compression shorts from Canadian brand Copper 88. The shirt has amazing wicking power compared to other compression shirts I have used before. Often you will notice a lot of moisture build up under the fabric; peeling the overly wet shirt off your body post workout. That did not happen here, sure it got damp but it kept us drier and cooler than we expected. Even after a few days at the gym, the garments didn’t smell like ‘gym’ clothes. And that nasty smell that sometimes lingers even after you do laundry wasn’t there at all. The shorts gave the right amount of compression with their 88% copper nylon/ 12% spandex fabric.
Now I won’t claim that it made my gym routine better, but post workout my muscles did feel less sore even when I went hard. And they seemed to recover a bit faster. I would easily make these garments a part of my daily gym routine.
