SPIbelt review

As many of you have signed up for my Virtual 5k know, I will be giving away two SPIbelt's for prizes as well as some other items.  This is being done through the generosity of SPIbelt in donating these two items.  I offered to do a review of the SPIbelt in exchange for them giving these items away as prizes which I think was very generous of them.

For those of you that don't know, SPIbelt stands for Small Personal Item belt.  You can look at their website here.  While I only agreed to do a review on the SPIbelt, I also own two other products that they sell so I will mention these items as well.

First, I think most of you will agree that having a belt to hold various things is essential in long distance(and even short distance) running.  Also, most people want something that is comfortable and does not bounce when you are running.  Plus, if you are like me and cheap, you want something that is really good quality that is going to last a long time.  SPIbelt is the ticket!  The concept of the SPIbelt is great.  The SPIbelt is made from a stretchy material that allows the user to put so much stuff in it even though the original size is very small.  I mean, this thing will hold tons of stuff.  Sorry, I'm not that great of a photographer but you can see better pictures on their website.

You can see how small this thing is from the photo but don't let that fool you.  This thing really stretches to hold what you want.  Here's a couple before and after pictures to show you how much this holds.

All this stuff fit in.  It does not look like much but that is a blackberry so it's big!

After and this would hold more if you wanted!

I have the basic black SPIbelt.  The belt is very comfortable to wear.  When you are running, you don't even know that it's there IF you put it on properly.  The website has directors to show you how to put it on.  The belt must reside below the waist.  This is essential in order for it to not bounce.  I personally like to wear mine a little on the tight side but you don't have to wear it that way.

For me, and for most of you, you will use this to run with.  It will hold your cell phone, keys, credit cards, cash, ID, gels, aspirin - really anything that you can think of that you will need for running.  It's not only for running though.  This is great for going out somewhere and you don't want to bring your purse(ladies) or if you need to carry insulin all the time, it's great for that as well.  There are many uses for it on a day to day basis.  I just happen to use my solely for running.  Also, you don't have to get just black.  They have so many colors there's almost too many choices!  Because the SPIbelt is so inexpensive($19.95), you can also afford to purchase more than one if you want to color coordinate it with your running outfit.  I'm a guy so black works just fine for me.

In addition to the belt, I also purchased two toggles.  The toggles go around the belt and are used to hold your race number in place.  At first, I thought, this is not going to work out well since you are only putting the toggles through the top two holes in the race number.  I figured the race number would be flying all over the place but I was wrong.  You attach the toggles and then lace through the race number and that's it.  It does not move and again, you do not realize it's there.  For me that is essential.  I don't want to have something around my waist that I can feel for the entire run.  Can you imagine running 26 miles with the thing bouncing all over the place?  It would drive you crazy.  Here's a picture of me after a race showing my number tied to the SPIbelt.

Another item I purchased was a water bottle with a smaller version of the SPIbelt built into the handle.  I always run with a water bottle so I thought what a great combination using the bottle and the SPIbelt together.  The bottle probably holds at least 20 oz. of water.  As far as the SPIbelt handle, it works the same way as the original SPIbelt but just a little smaller.  It will hold a cell phone and ID, cash, gel, etc. but really my cell phone is kind of a stretch(blackberry).  If you have a smaller cell phone, it will work great.  Or if you want to carry your phone and it's larger, I suggest the original SPIbelt as it holds that just fine.  I don't carry my cell phone on every run so the bottle works out great.  Another great thing about this is it's very comfortable to hold so you don't notice your holding it.  For those of you that don't carry a water bottle, once you get used to carrying one, you don't realize you are holding it but it does take some getting used to.  The only issue I have with the bottle is the plastic top.  The part where you put your mouth is really hard plastic instead of rubber.  It's not as comfortable as some of the other bottles out on the market.  Besides this issue, I love the bottle with the SPIbelt.  Here's a picture of mine.

There are also many other products that would fit your needs on their website as well so please check them out at www.spibelt.com or search for them on Facebook and like their page.  If you don't win one of the belts I give away for the virtual 5k, I hope you will consider purchasing a SPIbelt online or when they visit your next marathon expo.  You will not regret your purchase.

Have a great day and......Keep Running