FLOKY Gear Guide

"Better performance, injury prevention, and rapid recovery."

Arm sleeves have seen an increased prominence on tour over the last 10 years or so, especially as the risk of limb injury has seemingly gone up and up as the game continues to trend toward ever more speed and power from the baseline. One of the fastest-rising brands in the arm sleeve market is FLOKY, with strong tour presence already seen on the likes of players like Lorenzo Musetti, Matteo Berrettini, Zizou Bergs, Alejandro Tabilo, Sara Errani, Andrea Vavassori, and many more. Founded in Italy in 2018, FLOKY quickly established itself as the leading name in bio-mechanical support within the realm of padel, largely popularized by former world No. 1 player Fernando Belasteguín and now the current world No. 1, Agustín Tapia. It didn’t take long before tennis players started becoming curious about what makes FLOKY so unique within a relatively crowded and standard area of sports equipment. Eventually, FLOKY was seen on top Italian doubles players like Errani and Vavassori, before even signing Lorenzo Musetti to bring out player-exclusive editions of their signature “No-Strain Sleeve.”

So just how do FLOKY products work? Well, for starters, their designers know a thing or two about biomechanics in sport. One of FLOKY’s key product engineers, Dr. Mauro Testa, has been a staple of the Italian sporting world for over 30 years, particularly in soccer. Mauro Testa set out to create an active solution that allowed for players to simultaneously boost their performance and be proactive when it comes to injury prevention, hence, FLOKY.

Let’s start with examining their most popular product, and the one that tennis players and racquet sports enthusiasts will likely benefit the most from, the No Strain Arm Sleeve. The primary material composition is a weave made from “bioceramic” yarn, which packages in anti-inflammatory properties that make the sleeve suitable for wear before, during, and after activities. FLOKY’s strategically placed silicone structure strips add needed stability to areas experiencing higher levels of stress and vibration. For starters, to combat the ever-dreaded tennis elbow, FLOKY implements four of these silicone strips in a “semi-arch” shape around the elbow. These strips dampen vibrations to the elbow which helps protect against epicondylitis (tennis elbow), epitrochleitis (golfers elbow) and bursitis. The arm sleeve as a whole is rather compressed, which gives your arm more support. While the sleeve is definitely on the snug side, our product testers didn’t find their limb movements restricted in any sense. Furthermore, in the wrist area, there are four vertical silicone strips to reduce immediate impact and vibrations traveling from the hand to your wrist and arm. The combination of compression and support keeps your arm ready to go while also increasing comfort in real time, helping you to play your best.

But the story doesn’t end just at prevention and active play to boost performance. FLOKY’s signature bioceramic fabrics also are designed to reflect body heat back to the wearer, meaning they help sustain and boost the natural recovery processes your body undergoes when recovering from activity or injury. The result? Better blood circulation, and stronger cell regeneration during crucial windows of the recovery processes. FLOKY is a suitable option for before, during, or after your preferred form of exercise. But for us tennis players a little bit of relief on the body parts that are under the most stress during play, FLOKY is a welcome addition to the array of solutions we have to have in order to stay active on the court.

The other FLOKY product Tennis Warehouse currently has available is their S-MASH sock, which is designed for use in racquet sports, though its applications are certainly not just limited to court sports. The S-MASH socks have a built-in Achilles support band that keeps your Achilles more supported during intense movement. Additionally, most of the aforementioned tech for their No-Strain sleeve is also built into these socks, which again helps before, during, and after intense movements for us athletes on court. Additionally, FLOKY implements a plantar compressor that keeps this very sensitive area of your foot well prepared against harsher movements/stressors in an effort to protect against plantar fasciitis. On the bottom of the socks is an anti-slip silicone application that keeps your feet more secure and stable within your court shoes during extreme changes of direction.

We began actively testing the FLOKY sleeves earlier this year, using them primarily for tennis and padel, the two sports where you see the arm sleeves the most. Our team was impressed at how functional these sleeves proved to be, and particularly liked how well they stayed in place during play, especially compared to some other sleeve options they’ve tried. Also impressive was how relatively dry the sleeves remained, despite the wearer being relatively sweaty. Although the sleeves were definitely on the more snug side as far as compression goes, our team never felt like their movement was restricted, and they felt comfortable wearing them for longer hitting sessions on both courts. Perhaps the biggest surprise were the S-MASH socks, which proved both functional and helpful in court sports, but also highly viable in a variety of other applications like running and cycling. Overall, our team left the FLOKY testing sessions both impressed and satisfied with a new addition to their arsenal of active recovery solutions.

Floky sleeves are sized by bicep circumference — not by height, weight, or gender. Here's how to get your measurement:

1. Extend your arm straight and relaxed (do NOT flex)
2. Wrap a soft tape measure around the widest part of your upper arm (bicep)
3. Don't tighten the tape — just let it sit snug against your skin
4. Record the measurement in inches