Give yourself a not-so-sweaty hand.

I’ve made it a point that every time I go to a race expo I pick up one new item to give a try. I’m always looking for diamonds in the rough.

When I was at the San Diego Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Expo earlier this month, I was kind of rushed (we got their only about 40 minutes before they closed), so I didn’t get to spend my normal amount of time checking things out.

I was heading for the exit a little bummed that I was leaving empty-handed. Then one booth caught my eye and I stopped to see what was what.

Looking at what appeared to be oddly shaped lycra straps, my first inclination was this was yet another company trying to sell funky smartphone holders.

Nope.

As the nice lady at the booth explained, this was the “Handana,” a new take on the traditional wristband or sports headband.

It was a funky lycra sweatband that you wore on your hand sort of like a glove.

Seriously?

To quote Bruce Wayne: “Does it come in black?”

“Yes.”

Cha-ching. It was probably the easiest sale they made all day.

Click on the image below to check out the Handana website.

Click Here!

Or click here to see their Facebook page.

Let me explain. In case you didn’t know, I have a very intimate relationship with sweat. We go way way back.

You see, I sweat when I exercise. A lot. I mean a real lot.

Seriously, like a stupid amount.

I’m not kidding. If you see me at the end of a run you’d swear that I’d been doing laps in a pool wearing my running gear. Even girlfriends have been hesitant to give me hugs after races lest I go “squish.”

Of course, as my running friends have told me, I don’t really sweat… it’s fat crying… or liquid awesome.

It’s waging a war on sweatiness.

Yeah, I’m good with that.

But I digress. So, like I said, I get a bit “shiny” when I workout.

While I’m at the gym I always have a sports hand towel I carry around to sop up my rampaging dewiness.

But on a training run or during a race, I run “towel-less” so my sweat removal options are kind of limited.

And it doesn’t get in the way of the “thumbs up.”

I end up going with the old standbys: the shirt tail, the sleeve or the good ole forearm/back of the hand swipe.

Problem is my entire body and shirt are already sweaty, as my pores have all been erupting non-stop, like a whole pack of Mt. Vesuivuses… Vesuvii… hell, you get the point.

Sweat wiping typically does little good for me. The idea of having a cool looking sweatband that I could wear and not have to worry about getting in the way intrigued me.

So, I slipped on the Handana (a cute catchy name, by the way) and went out for a test run on Saturday. And I went out a little later than usual. I wanted make sure I was extra sweaty.

And guess what…

The Handana knocked 10 minutes off of my run, leading me to a PR. It fixed my overlapping toe issue so I could permanently ditch my orthotics. It also paid off my outstanding credit card bills and taught me how to speak Russian.

What did you expect?

No, the Handana did one thing… it wiped off my sweat. And it did that one thing well. I was able to use both the front and back side of the Handana to mop my glistening brow and face to keep sweat from getting into my eyes.*

Cool.

And the Handana didn’t get in the way (my biggest original concern). I hardly noticed I had the thing on and since it only goes across your palm, it leaves your fingers free to tie your shoes, check your GPS or flip some deserving person “the bird.”

Oh, and one extra cool thing, the Handana can be worn on either hand. Being a “Southpaw” (or “Left-handed American,” as I prefer to be called) I really appreciate something that can easily be worn on whatever hand I so choose.

Hey, I’m fashionable.

And for those of you with teeny or monster hands, the Handana comes in 6 sizes (I’ve never been a fan of “one size fits all” anyway) and a myriad of colors for those you who will burst into flames if you don’t color coordinate.

Finally, the Handana is made in the good ole US of A (so few things seem to be these days), so it’s also got the whole patriotism angle going for it too. USA! USA!

The Handana will not resurrect your favorite cancelled TV show, nor will it bring about world peace. But what it will do is make you a little more comfortable and a little less nasty when you run.

And that’s a good thing.

So check it out… and Run on!

*Note: Yes, it also works for snot rockets. Eww.