Review: Rehband Blue Knee Sleeves

[IWillLiveFreeOrDie]

I recently bought a pair of blue Rehband Knee Sleeves, and would like offer up my first impressions.

Sizing and Fit

I am exactly between a Medium and Large. I went with the advice from Jackal's and bought the larges. I feel my legs still have plenty of room to grow, and the primary use of the sleeves would be my personal workouts at home. They won't be used for competition purposes, and therefore I chose comfort over any potential performance edge of a tighter sleeve.

In my opinion the Large are very tight, and I am at the bottom of the scale for size Large. The Mediums would have been uncomfortable to wear for an entire workout. If you are in between sizes think of this when buying.

Construction and Craftsmanship

I am very impressed at how sturdy these sleeves are built. The neoprene is thick, and the seems are well stitched. The sleeves will stand up on their own as the following pictures illustrate.

First Workout

I honestly did not expect these to make as big of a difference as they did on my first workout! At 35 years old my knees like to do the snap, crackle, and pop while I squat. It can be quite disconcerting to hear sometimes.

The sleeves provide LOTS of support, and improved my confidence. I no longer have to think about what my knees are doing during the squat. Also, keeping my knees pushed out on both the way down, and the way back up was effortless.

Today's workset for the squat was 310 pounds, and I my last two workouts at 300 and 305 were getting very difficult. 310 pounds felt much easier today. It is hard to describe how good the ride down feels in these sleeves. I would compare it to upgrading the suspension on a car. It is like going from a Ford 150 to a Mercedes S-Class.

Closing Thoughts

I would like to thank all of the members here to suggested the Rehbands. This was absolutely the best $80 I have spent in a long time. I would not hesitate to buy more products from Rehband in the future. The build quality is phenomenal. These will last for many years.

If you haven't tried lifting in sleeves you owe it to yourself to give it a shot. Especially if you are over 30. The support and warmth they offer really make a difference in your workout. My goal is to hit 405 on my worksets with the squat in 2 months, and I was really beginning to think it wouldn't happen. However my experience with the sleeves after one workout has renewed my confidence that my legs have a lot more in them! I also have Rip's new shoes and an Elite FTS belt coming any day now that should help with that goal!

Thanks,
Sean

[Gary Gibson]

Excellent review. Glad you like them.

I firmly believe that after squat shoes, Rehband blue knee sleeves are the next most important accessory for a squatter to have, even more important than a belt. I train beltless below 80%, but after warm ups I am never without my squat shoes, Rehband blue knee sleeves and their neoprene compression shorts.

[IWillLiveFreeOrDie]

Thanks Gary! Your article really was the inspiration for me buying the sleeves, shoes, and belt. I might order the shorts this week.

[Cmanuel]

Great review! I am going to order these in a few weeks after pay day since my current apt sleeves are illegal for usapl competition in raw.

Also, what compression shorts are you guys ordering?

[misspelledgeoff]

Great review. I bought a pair of cheapies from the local sporting good store. The stretchy-ness is already starting to break down. May be time to invest in a pair of these.

[IWillLiveFreeOrDie]

I am going to order the old style Rehbands from Jackals. They are the same price as the new style at $65.

http://www.jackalsgym.com/store.aspx?prod_id=RH-WP

[Kincain]

nice review, but these blue ones are the 'old' ones? From where I can order them they only have the grey ones.

[IWillLiveFreeOrDie]

Kincain, www.jackalsgym.com has an exclusive on the old style.

[ChrisM]

Since there's an active discussion about knee sleeves I might aswell ask, although I'm doubtfull given the post above this, does anyone know of a place in the UK that sells the rehband blues? There's no chance I can afford the 100 usd to have a pair shipped from jackals.