Why we should wear sport socks
Why we should invest in sport socks?
Some people might think that normal socks are just an accessory that can be used for any occasion, even when we play sports. This is totally wrong! If you play sports, you should wear proper sport socks.
Protecting your feet
Socks undeniably have been a vital accessory for modern clothing. Everyone has their own reasons to wear socks and there are different kinds of socks to match their preference. Besides the aesthetic benefits of wearing socks, there are health benefits that can come from socks too. Those include keeping feet protected from dust, keeping feet warm, absorbing sweat from feet, preventing feet fungi, and many more.
There are various styles and materials used for different kinds of socks. Each style and material might serve either aesthetic or functional purposes or both. Sport socks, or athletic socks are the kind of socks that can serve both. However, the obvious benefits of sport socks are more functional because they are believed to help enhance athletic performance and prevent sport injuries more effectively.
Proper athletic socks matter to foot health
When it comes to sport gear and accessories, socks are sometimes given the lowest priority compared to shoes, sport clothing or other sport accessories. Some sports use plain socks or socks that they already have, as a default choice whether they are playing football, running, hiking, going to the gym and so on. However, different sports require different kinds of feet protection. This might be due to the nature of the sporting field (e.g. indoor/outdoor, wooden/synthetic floor surface), types of sport shoes, intensity of pressure on foot or pattern of feet / body movement. These factors stimulate the need to use proper athletic socks for the sports you play. The importance of using a proper sport socks is more paramount for professional athletes or frequent sport players. Thus, their requirements for specific sport socks go beyond foot protection.
When expectation goes beyond foot protection
As mentioned in the blog of American Academy of Podiatric Sport Medicine: the subject of ‘socks’ has been included in some reports relative to podiatric sports medicine. There is also some research pieces criticising about the functional differentiation of socks to specific sports, that those are merely marketing efforts to sell different product lines.
However, it is also evident to consumers that some sports need specific socks, not because of the sport itself but because of the aforementioned factors. Thus, it is not fair to say that the same pair of socks that you use for daily walking can be used effectively to play football, badminton, cycling, or skiing. Yet, there are some sock sellers that differentiate this kind of sock product by using different packaging and marketing campaigns without thorough research & development process.