A Towel That Doubles Up As a Wristband?

Thanks to the pandemic, there are more people exercising outdoors and going to the gym but we are now a lot more conscious about personal hygiene. Pre-pandemic, it is estimated that the world’s population spends an average of 3 hours a week on some sort of exercise or sport, be it from a simple brisk walk to elite athlete training, and experts believe that a larger population of people will be out there burning the extra pounds piled on once the pandemic ends. But if you’re working out in the gym, you probably are putting your towels on surfaces that may be carriers of germs and this is counterproductive in this environment that we’re living in.

Clothes Hangers, Medicine Balls, Bench Press, Pull Up and Horizontal Bars, Treadmill Rails, are potential areas of bacterial presence. How does bacterial presence in gyms compare with other public settings? “I would say these rates are potentially higher or on par with most surface contamination,” says Mark Dalman of Kent State University, the lead researcher on the Ohio 2019 study.

Microbiologist  Jason Tetro, author of The Germ Files says that gym towels are no different from dish towels in your home. “Everything is being wiped indiscriminately, and as a result, germs from all surfaces are going to end up on that towel,” he says. “Unless you’ve soaked it in very hot water or a disinfectant for three minutes, you’ll spread that bacteria to other surfaces, including the skin.”

So how do you carry a towel, avoid such contamination ‘zones’ while exercising? A local company has come up with a solution – Wristband Towel. Where you can wrap a towel around your wrist and use it while you exercise and not worry about needing an extra pocket or bag to place your towel in. We put the wrist towel to the test with a triathlete, a regular runner and an average user (yours truly). Here’s our unbiased review on what we liked and what we think could be improved with the wristband towel.

Putting the Wristband Towel to the test

Generally, all three of us liked the microfibre material (80% Polyester 20% polyamide) and its absorbency, although our triathlete is notorious for perspiring like a waterfall and the Wristband Towel was not enough for him (he needs two towels per jog). But one was definitely enough for the rest of us.

The runner loved it for her daily jogs where she “sweats buckets but refused to stick a towel somewhere”. Apparently, she has ever tried stuffing towels into her shorts or tying one around her neck but those didn’t work, so this Wristband Towel is a dream come true for her. As such, she is planning to get more and it helps that the Wristband Towel is very affordable at S$7 each while coming in multiple colours so that you can match your wristband towel to your workout outfit!

It does work a lot better than a regular wristband but one minor point that I personally was not too fond of was the thickness of it. The main towel is converted into a wristband in 3 folds, which was a bit too thick for my liking. My wrist felt extra warm while working out and I eventually took it off because it felt almost like I’m wearing long sleeves on one arm.

As the runner remarked, a suggestion would be to have a small pocket on the wristband towel to stuff house keys as not all running shorts come with a small pocket to do so. Currently, she stuffs her keys into the fold of the towel.

Where to get it

If you’re the active sort who doesn’t like stuffing a towel in your shorts or around your neck, then you might want to get yourself a Wristband Towel at https://wristbandtowel.com/shop/. If the “Buy” button does not work, please write to them via email or contact them through the numbers available on the website.

Psst…use THE WELLNESS INSIDER as a reference when making your order to enjoy FREE shipping (offer valid till end of 2021)!

Enjoy and stay safe!


Images: Wristband Towel

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