Cupping for Athletes: What It Can and Can’t Do

By Dr. Ezara Greene | Perfect 10.0 Physical Therapy

You’ve probably seen athletes with circular marks on their shoulders, backs, or legs and wondered: What is cupping, and does it actually help?

For gymnasts, dancers, and cheerleaders, recovery treatments can sound especially appealing during demanding training weeks. Understanding the evidence can help athletes and families decide whether a treatment belongs in their care plan.

What is cupping?

Cupping uses suction to lift the skin into a cup. Dry cupping does not involve piercing the skin. It differs from wet cupping, which involves breaking the skin and drawing blood. This article focuses on dry cupping.¹

Does cupping work?

Some studies suggest cupping may help with pain or perceived tightness, but the evidence has important limitations.

A systematic review of cupping in athletes found some favorable results for pain, disability, and range of motion. However, most included studies had an unclear or high risk of bias. The authors concluded that the evidence was insufficient to recommend for or against cupping in athletes.²

More recently, a small randomized trial published in 2025 found that adding dry cupping to exercise, education, and spinal manipulation did not provide additional benefits for people with chronic nonspecific low back pain.³ That finding applies to the condition and treatment program studied; it does not answer every question about cupping.

The practical takeaway: some athletes may report feeling better after cupping, but reliable improvements in recovery or athletic performance have not been established.²

Feeling better is only one part of rehabilitation

When discussing any treatment, I encourage athletes and families to ask: What are we trying to improve, and how will we measure it?

For a gymnast with discomfort during landings, an assessment might consider strength, movement control, training volume, and the demands of specific skills. A temporary change in symptoms is useful information, but it should not be the only factor guiding a return to practice.

At Perfect 10.0 PT, the larger goal is to help athletes understand their symptoms and build a plan around the activities they need to perform. A recovery treatment should have a clear purpose within that plan.

What about the circular marks?

Cupping can leave temporary skin marks. These marks are a treatment effect—not a measure of progress or readiness to compete.¹

Cupping also carries risks, including persistent discoloration, skin injury, and infection. It may aggravate eczema or psoriasis. Equipment hygiene matters because contaminated equipment can transmit infection.¹

An athlete should feel comfortable asking about these risks and declining treatment. Visible marks are never a goal in themselves.

Questions to ask before trying cupping

Before agreeing to treatment, consider asking:

• What symptom or limitation are we addressing?

• What evidence supports cupping for my situation?

• What are the alternatives?

• How will we know whether it is helping?

• What risks apply to me?

• What exercise or training plan will accompany it?

For younger athletes, families should also ask how relevant the available research is to their child’s age, diagnosis, and sport. Findings from adults with chronic back pain should not automatically be applied to a young gymnast.

An individualized plan comes first

Athletes do not need to try every recovery treatment they see online or at competitions. The most useful choice is one made with a clear understanding of the goal, the evidence, and the alternatives.

If pain is affecting practice, start with an evaluation. At Perfect 10.0 PT, we can assess the problem and discuss an individualized plan for rehabilitation and return to sport.

References

1. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Cupping. Updated November 2018. Accessed October 20, 2026. https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/cupping

2. Bridgett R, Klose P, Duffield R, Mydock S, Lauche R. Effects of cupping therapy in amateur and professional athletes: systematic review of randomized controlled trials. J Altern Complement Med. 2018;24(3):208-219. doi:10.1089/acm.2017.0191

3. Xu R, Yang Y, Yan C, et al. Dry cupping therapy combined with conventional therapy does not provide additional benefits over conventional therapy alone in patients with non-specific chronic low back pain: a randomized trial. Chiropr Man Therap. 2025;33:26. doi:10.1186/s12998-025-00588-x