Compression and recovery boots are the must-have technology of the moment. Combining compression and heat to help beat muscle soreness and aid recovery, they are intended to massage and squeeze away the tension, helping athletes stay in peak condition.
Pro-level athletes have used them. Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has been pictured lying on the football pitch using a set to recover. Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James is also a fan.
But what about the less elite-level athletes among us? Could they have an impact on a fortysomething amateur? When the Urevo AI-Powered Wireless Recovery Boots landed for review, I decided to find out.
Urevo is, the app tells me, the choice of World Cup champions. The boots pitch themselves as the perfect sports companion for athletes, from elite-level to everyday sports enthusiasts. Using air and a variety of chambers in the boots, they apply targeted compression to specific parts of your legs, massaging them in the process.
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There are 32 different intelligent recovery modes, along with what the company ominously describes as “pro-level pneumatic compression”, that can target different areas of your legs.
The green boots come in single or dual options, with a control module that clicks on to the side of each boot, an app to control the programmes and a convenient carry bag to store the boots after use. The control module is also the power source for each boot, so you don’t need to plug into a wall or tie yourself up with power cords.
The boots are designed as one size fits most, catering for people between 160cm to 210cm tall. The snag? I’m 5ft, which is a little over 152cm. Let’s just say the boots ride a little high.
But the sizing is flexible. There is a small zip in the back that helps take them down a notch, and with years of experience in sizing things down – I’m an expert in rolling clothes at the waist – I eventually get a comfortable fit.
The first try was with the AI massage mode. It is an odd sensation. Think of it like having a blood-pressure cuff on your arm, except it is covering your entire leg – that level of pressure where you feel like you can’t take it any more, before it deflates and pressure is suddenly relieved.
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The initial run is to calibrate the boots; if you feel the pressure is too much, you can dial it down a bit. As the boots inflated and heated up, there was more than one occasion when I thought I might have to hit the stop button. When it is done, it provides you with a full analysis of what state your muscles are in (sore), guidance on what it plans to do to solve it (pummel them into submission) and recommendations on what you should do to help yourself (drink more water).
There a few other modes to choose from. Massage mode covers warm-up, relax, recovery and relieve programmes, with targeted programmes for specific sports such as marathons, skiing and football.
You can also set the boots to relax mode for too much standing up, too much sitting down, overly long meetings that cause your legs to stiffen and a pre-bedtime session to help you sleep better.
A couple of dos and don’ts. Do find a comfortable spot. The sessions can last between 10 and 30 minutes, and once the boots start working you can’t exactly walk around, answer the door or do much of anything except relax.
Don’t fall asleep wearing them. The boots are on a timer, so they will shut off when the programme is done, but it is disconcerting to doze off, forget what you’ve been doing and wake up to feel like your legs are trapped.
Do fully charge the units before using them the first time; they should last a few sessions before needing a top-up. Don’t use them if you have deep vein thrombosis or similar health conditions. Best to check in with your doctor before using them if you have any concerns.
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But what about the big question: do they actually work? Opinion on the value of recovery boots in general is divided. Some people swear by them as a miracle cure for delayed onset muscle soreness, while others say a bit of massage, adequate hydration and some stretching will do the job just as well.
After a few weeks of use, including a prolonged period with a leg injury, I come down firmly in the pro-boots camp. After a few tough kickboxing sessions, I would expect significant leg muscle soreness to match the screaming pain that was kicking in above the waist. While the boots weren’t a miracle cure, they did eliminate the need to shuffle backwards down the stairs (if you know, you know) or make audible noises when picking something up that I’d dropped on the floor.
In contrast, I did a short run and skipped the boots afterwards; despite being a less strenuous workout, recovery took longer.
Good
There may well be cheaper ways of helping your recovery, but the Urevo AI Massage Boots can give you a helping hand. The various programmes mean there is something for everyone, and they are an easy way to ease leg tension before you sleep. Just don’t doze off while wearing them, unless you want to be woken in a disconcerting manner.
Bad
They aren’t the cheapest at a recommended price of €780. If you wait for a sale, it will knock €100 or so off the price.
Everything else
Battery life is decent, although you will need to charge both units separately.
They look comical when fully inflated. You too can resemble the Green Goblin with a water retention issue.
Verdict
Not quite the lazy way to recovery, but certainly one way to speed things up. If they made one of these for my whole body, I’d invest.
