When we were approached to do a review for Wodable Headbands, I wondered how on earth I was going to do a full review on them. It’s a great piece of kit but I could do the review in one sentence really.
“Prevents hair and sweat from getting in your eyes”.
But there is more to a review than just confirming a piece of kit does the job.
Features:
- Polyester and Super Stretchy Spandex – varying % of each depending on style and design
- Unisex
- 510mm minimum – No max stretch applicable to head circumference
- British Made
- Breathable / Wicking Fabric
- Tapered Design
- Prices from £9.99
Wodable started out as a Crossfit brand, selling sportswear aimed for the gyms and designed to spill out onto the streets, tracks and trails. Created by Jay Bright in 2013, his gear was caught on by runners too and their variety of headbands has really appealed to customers.
I can honestly say the numbers of colours and patterned headbands on their website is huge and the cost is modest which allows you to splash out a bit and build your own variety of colours and patterns.
Forgive the lockdown hair!
I wear something around my head regularly and up until I tried these headbands I’ve always used a buff (sorry, neck gaiter) folded or scrunched up into a broad headband. Either it’s keeping my ears warm or it’s keeping the sweat out. My problem with a neck gaiter is that it is so large to wrap around my head that it inevitably ends up halfway down my neck and it feels somehow wasteful, in these days of watching our carbon footprint, to put it through the wash after every wear. A neat headband somehow feels much less indulgent.
According to Wikipedia (so don’t quote me), the humble headband has its origins way back to 475-330BC when the Ancient Greeks wore hair wreaths and more recently they have come in and out of fashion on the high street. However, for us runners, they are an indispensable piece of our daily kit, whether we are male or female, with long or short hair.
Which brings me neatly to their men’s headband selection. I’m seeing much more of these around now and you don’t need to be a 70s inspired John McEnroe or Karate Kid to wear one. Think about it – all my male running friends wear them, just under the neck gaiter guise and I’m sure a headband would be more useful if pressed into service as a tourniquet* than a neck gaiter.
*not officially sanctioned, just an idea.
Back to Wodable and I was gratified to see that the headbands are designed and produced in-house. Jay Bright became frustrated when the initial quality of the headbands wasn’t as good as he wanted, so he set up his own factory in Southend on Sea. Being British designed and produced makes such a difference, I think, and knowing the modest piece of fabric you are wearing hasn’t been shipped 1,000s of miles or made by someone underage or underpaid makes a big difference to my decision making process.
On the technical side, the headbands are hardwearing and have lost none of their elasticity since they were sent to me, a while back now. They’ve been through the wash loads of times. They are made with moisture-wicking fabrics and a new line called the Defiance Range has recently been launched which are developed from predominantly recycled fabrics and the packaging for all their products is sourced locally in the UK.
So there, in a nutshell, are Wodable Headbands. Nice bands, huge selection of colours, made for men or women and made in the UK. They get my vote!
| Score | |
| Design | 10/10 |
| Features | 9/10 |
| Performance | 10/10 |
| Value | 10/10 |
| Overall | 9.75/10 |
About the author: Kate is the Web Administor and Content Manager for RunUltra and in her spare time she can be found running in the hills of the Peak and Lake District.
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