Video – Determining the Size of your UV Compression Arm Sleeves (1:16)
As a rule of thumb, an arm sleeve that is between .5 to 2 inches (1.25 to 5 cm) smaller than your bicep should fit you well. But despite this guidance, many people may experience difficulties selecting their UV arm sleeve size. And to complicate matters, size labels on their own such as small, medium or large are not that helpful to you in getting the arm sleeve size that is the best fit for what you want to do. But don’t get discouraged. In order to get the perfect UV arm sleeve size, there are three things you need to know about your arm and three things that you need to know about your arm sleeve.
Three Things You Need To Know About Your Arm
Before purchasing your UV Compression Arm Sleeve, there are three key things that you need to know about your arm. They are your bicep size, your arm density, and the desired fit and feel that you want to have as you wear your sleeve.
1. Bicep Size
It is very easy to determine your bicep size. Your bicep is the arm muscle that is below your shoulder and above your elbow. By flexing your arm, you can easily see your bicep muscle and spot the widest area of it. With your arm relaxed and hanging down from your shoulder, measure the size of your bicep. If you don’t have a tape measure, simple use a piece of string to wrap around your bicep. Then measure the the string. If you don’t have string, you can wrap a cord, rope, or wire around your arm. Just about anything will do.
2. Arm Density
After knowing the size of your bicep, the next thing you need to be aware of is the density of your arm. For example, the picture above shows three arms that each have the same bicep size, but different arm densities from normal to lean to muscular. Generally speaking, the density of your arm can affect the fit and feel of your arm sleeves. Hence, people with the same size arms but with different arm densities may prefer different arm sleeve sizes to achieve their desired fit and feel. This just means that the size chart is the starting point in determining the arm sleeve size that is best for you. If you find that the arm sleeve size that is recommended for the size of your arm feels too loose or too tight, that’s okay. Just select the next down or up in size arm sleeve to get the fit that you want.
3. Desired Fit And Feel
The next thing to consider is the desired fit and feel for the activity that you doing while wearing your UV compression arm sleeves. It can be helpful to think of fit and feel in terms of how snug or tight you want your arm sleeve to be such as light compression, average compression, or tight compression. A good example of that is Doug, a regular wearer of UV compression arm sleeves who has a 12.5 inch bicep.
Doug prefers light compression when running, cycling, or going on long drives in his car. In these use cases, Doug is mainly interested UPF 50+ protection from the sun and moisture-wicking and cooling so he wears an XL-sized arm sleeve. For golf, tennis, and outdoor lawn and gardening work, Doug prefers average compression and wants the full benefits that UV compression arm sleeves provides so he wears Large-sized arm sleeves. And when at the gym lifting weights, Doug prefers tight compression and his use of arm sleeves is entirely for muscle performance, support and recovery so he wears Medium-sized arm sleeves.
Like most people, Doug can actually wear many different sizes of UV compression arm sleeves. Based upon his 12.5 inch bicep, Doug would wear a Large-sized arm sleeve for an average level of compression in terms of fit and feel and for certain activities Doug goes up or drops a size to get the desired fit and feel for the activity at hand. Shown below, the Uvoider UV Compression Arm Sleeves Fitting Chart shows you the arm sleeve sizes that are likely to fit your arm for the compression level that you would like to have.
Uvoider UV Compression Arm Sleeves Fitting Chart
| Bicep Size |
Light Compression |
Average Compression |
Tight Compression |
| 7 in 17.8 cm |
YS | ||
| 8 in 20.3 cm |
YM | YS | |
| 9 in 22.3 cm |
YL | YL | YM |
| 10 in 25.4 cm |
XS | XXS | XXS |
| 11 in 27.9 cm |
M | S | XS |
| 12 in 30.5 cm |
L | L | M |
| 13 in 33.0 cm |
XL | XL | L |
| 14 in 35.6 cm |
2XL | XL | L |
| 15 in 38.1 cm |
3XL | 2XL | 2XL |
| 16 in 40.6 cm |
3XL | 3XL | 2XL |
| 17 in 43.2 cm |
4XL | 3XL | 3XL |
| 18 in 45.6 cm |
4XL | 3XL | |
| 19 in 48.3 cm |
4XL | 3XL | |
| 20 in 50.8 cm |
4XL |
Three Things You Need To Know About Your Arm Sleeve
In addition to knowing about your arm, there are three key things that you need to know about your arm sleeve. They are quality, UPF, and available sizes.
1. Quality
Quality is a very important consideration when selecting UV compression arm sleeves. There are many characteristics that determine the overall quality of a UV compression arm sleeve. Some of the top characteristics include:
- Extreme UPF 50+ sun protection. Many arm sleeves only provide UPF 25 sun protection and many provide no UPF protection. Be sure to get UPF 50+ sun protection. This will keep your skin protected from the harmful UV rays of the sun.
- Quality of fabric and stitching. Arm sleeves that are made with poor quality material and poor stitching fall apart after a few wears. Be sure to look for quality fabric and stitching.
- Quality of the non-slip gripping strip. Many arm sleeves have a thin and weak gripping strip and some even have no gripping strip at all resulting in arm sleeves that become loose and slip down from the top of your arms after only a few wears. When UV compression arm sleeves fail to stay compressed and hold, they are no longer performing for you. This is also very uncomfortable and unsightly. Always look for UV compression arm sleeves that have high quality non-slip gripping strips.
- Moisture-wicking and cooling. The moisture-wicking and cooling properties of quality UV compression arm sleeves wicks away moisture keeping your arms fresh and dry making them feel as if they are in air conditioning. If your arm sleeves make your arms feel hot and sweaty, then they do not have moisture-wicking. For outdoor sports and activities, always look for UV compression arm sleeves that provide moisture-wicking and cooling.
- Colors and designs. Many arm sleeves only come in two colors, white and black, and that’s okay. However, once you start to wear arm sleeves you quickly realize that color and style can be very important. For running and cycling, many people like to wear safety colors such as neon yellow as well as sleeves that have reflective strips for safety. For competitive events and outings, many people like to wear beautiful eye-catching designs that help their friends to spot them out of the crowd. And then there are folks that like to wear arm sleeves in the color or design of the cause they are advocating, the team that they are supporting or national holiday that they are celebrating. Always look for quality UV compression arm sleeves that come in a wide variety of colors.
2. UPF
Many arm sleeves have no UPF protection from the sun. Other arm sleeves only provide sun protection in the UPF 30+ range or less. When choosing UV compression arm sleeves, look for extreme UPF 50+ sun protection. UV compression arm sleeves that have UPF 50+ sun protection will protect you from the harmful UV rays of the sun. Be mindful that sunblock only lasts for 2 hours and sunblock that works in the water only last for 60-90 minutes. As an alternative to sunblock, UV compression arm sleeves that have UPF 50+ will keep you protected as long as you are wearing them. And unlike sunblock, there is no mess that leaves your arms feeling greasy and that gets on your clothing, car seats and furniture.
3. Available Sizes
In addition to quality and UPF protection, size will be one of the most important factors to consider when purchasing and wearing UV compression arm sleeves. Arm sleeves should never fall off your arm nor should they feel too tight for the activity for which you plan to wear them. Many UV compression arm sleeves only come in a limited number of sizes such as Small, Medium, Large and XL. Others even combine sizes and only offer two size options such as S/M and L/XL. This results in wide sizing gaps making it very difficult to get the size that fits you best. Look for UV compression arm sleeves that have very granular sizing and come in sizes from Youth Small to Adult 4XL. Granular sizing will ensure that you will be able to get the exact size that you need. Uvoider UV Compression Arm Sleeves are the most granular in size and come in 12 different sizes from Youth Small to 4XL.
Summary
To determine your UV compression arm sleeves size, start with the rule of thumb guidance that an arm sleeve that is between .5 to 2 inches (1.25 to 5 cm) smaller than your bicep should fit you well. If that guidance does not work for you, then remember the three things that is helpful to know about your arm (bicep size, arm density, desired fit and feel) and the three things that is helpful to know about your arm sleeves (quality, UPF, sizes). As always, if in doubt or if you have any questions, you should call or email customer service before you make a purchase.
Uvoider UV Compression Arm Sleeves – Print Designs
UV Arm Sleeves 206 Checkerboard
UV Arm Sleeves 207 Army Camouflage
UV Arm Sleeves 212 Black/White
UV Arm Sleeves 213 Safety Yellow/Orange
UV Arm Sleeves 227 Stars and Strips
UV Arm Sleeves 230 Blue Gingham
UV Arm Sleeves 233 Black and White Chevrons
UV Arm Sleeves 238 Red/White/Green
Uvoider UV Compression Arm Sleeves – Solid Colors
UV Arm Sleeves 220 Admiral Blue
UV Arm Sleeves 225 Neon Yellow
UV Arm Sleeves 239 Skin Tone 1
UV Arm Sleeves 240 Skin Tone 2
Uvoider UV Compression Arm Sleeves – Product Details
- One pair (2 sleeves)
- Price: $14.99
- Fabric: 80% polyester/20% spandex
- Machine wash and cool dry
Uvoider UV Compression Arm Sleeves – Features
- Made of high quality polyester/spandex and utilize flat-lock stitching for comfort, fit and durability
- Extreme UPF 50+ protection against UV rays
- Blocks 99% of harmful UV radiation
- Reduce muscle soreness and enable muscles to recover more quickly after sports or activities
- Assist in blood circulation
- Breathable, moisture wicking and quick-drying, keeping your arms cool
- Anti-bacterial and odor resistant
- Improve performance in endurance sports
- Suitable for many sports, outdoor work, and activities
- Protect your arms from scratches, abrasions, bugs and poison ivy when out on the trail or when gardening
- Easily slipped on and off
- Handy to have around and wear when needed
- Convenient for traveling
- Can be worn every time you are exposed to the sun
- Provides sun protection as long as you have them on
- Better than sunscreen which lasts only for 2 hours
- Can be worn with your existing wardrobe
- An alternative to long-sleeves clothing which can be expensive
- Stylish and available in many colors and designs
More Information
Uvoider UV Compression Arm Sleeves
Uvoider UV Compression Arm Sleeves Size Chart