Saturday, November 17, 2012

Gear review: Mizuno Breath Thermo

The running store near me (aptly named The Running Store) had a Mizuno event today demoing the breath thermo running clothes that generate heat while wicking moisture.

Dave, from Mizuno, had little packets of lint-looking material. He explained that the material is the breath thermo material they weave into the clothing. The theory behind the material is that not only do you get cold because of the air temperature, but then when you sweat, you get more cold. He then put the material in my hand and squeeze some water on top of it. The material immediate soaked up the water and seemed to expand slightly. Most surprisingly, it was warm! (And no, the water itself was not warm.) Dave explained that the material reacts to water (sweat) and actually generates heat, in the neighborhood of one to two degrees.

Dave then showed me some products. I chose the Breath Thermo Layered Tights and the Breath Thermo Stretch Crew. I also got a hat, headband, and gloves. The gave me a free gift with purchase of a lovely bright orange vest with reflective striping.

This evening I went for a run with my new gear. I wore the tights, the crew shirt, and the headband, along with the bright orange goober vest (which still some ningcumpoop in an SUV decided not to see). The vest has a nylon solid, but thin, front and mesh back. The air temperature was in the low 40s. Yesterday in similar temperature, I wore Under Armor tights, short sleeve base layer, long sleeve half-zip, and a cheap jacket and was just a tad bit too warm.

Tonight, I was actually very comfortable. The first five minutes (walking) was a little chilly, but a quickly started warming up once I started running, and I stayed warm for the rest of my run. I think I would be warm in just the pants and shirt down to the high 30s.

The clothing is soft and comfortable, although I will probably remove the tag in the pants because it started itching. The sizes do seem to run small. I generally wear a small or medium in tops and medium or large in pants. I got the medium top and large pants, but they are probably still a bit too small. They are snug when on, but I though ok from the inactive dressing room try on. Once I was running the pants rode down a bit and the top rode up a bit. That meant the one part of my body that was cold was my midriff area.

Overall, I am very happy with the Mizuno breath thermo clothing. Hopefully losing a few pounds will solve the issue with the pants riding down and the shirt up.

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