Product Review: Sweaty Bands

I finally tried a Sweaty Band after much deliberation. Either because of the physical size of my head or the amount of thick hair I have, I'd literally never found a headband that actually worked for me, until now. Either they aren't strong enough to tame my mane and slip all over the place, or they are too strong and give me headaches. I heard that Sweaty Bands fit well and don't slip, so after hesitation to purchase a headband that retails at around $17, I bit the bullet and decided to purchase one from the Running Room.

So far, I'm super impressed! It was a worthwhile investment in an accessory that seems to do the trick. I might have to buy a few more designs / colours soon. I see online that they have one that says "26.2" - will consider buying that as a treat after my marathon :)

So what do I like about my Sweaty Band (btw, I have just one of the thinner bands)?...

• They don't slip at all, nor do they pinch at all - their slogan "OMG...they don't slip!" is indeed true. It's backed with a velvety-textured fabric that doesn't budge on your hair. There's a small bit of elastic to hold it in your hair, but not so much that it'll pinch. This design is 1000x more effective than those headbands with plastic teeth that don't do anything in my hair to keep accessories in. This no-budge feature is perfect for a workout because it doesn't need to be adjusted, ever. Too often with old headbands, they would slip and slide as I was running and I'd have to re-do my hair mid-stride....I only really take walk breaks for water and food. I do NOT want another break to do my hair! With the Sweaty Band, I can put it on and forget about it.

• They seemingly keep the sweat out of my eyes.... This is yet to be proven, but it seems to work to keep sweat from my scalp from dripping down into my eyes - very uncomfortable for the contact lenses!  At first I was just using it for soccer, but as the games are shorter than my average run, it wasn't a true test of it's effectiveness. But it's warmed up outside somewhat recently so on Wednesday, I left my toque at home and wore my Sweaty Band for my 10km tempo run, ran it at a hard effort, and definitely was sweating lots (note, I share all kinds of details on this blog....). Not a drop of sweat entered my eyes! The Sweaty Band doesn't absorb sweat; my hair was soaking wet. But what it appears to do is redirect the sweat so it stays on your head, rather than drip down the face. Nice! Of course I am still testing this hypothesis and the true test will be when it's really warm out.

• They're cute....Mine has a black and white embroidered design. I chose it so it'd match my hair, my soccer team's colours, and any clothing I have really....but there are many designs to choose from. Seems like a great, functional, and cute accessory option indeed!