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As an avid, life-long fitness enthusiast, living (and promoting) a healthy lifestyle is of the utmost importance to me. In kind, I’m passionate about sourcing gear and gadget innovations that make participating in sports and fitness endeavors more efficient, effective and enjoyable. So, before you suit up, lace up, ball up or load up for the next tailgate, check out this month’s assortment of game-changing (or just plain cool) sports and fitness finds.

Bedgear Performance Pillows (www.BedGear.com) – $162
It’s well established that sleep is key to a healthy lifestyle and performance recovery from playing sports or exertion at the gym. Quite often people don’t associate quality sleep and the importance the right pillow can have on one’s everyday performance and recovery. Did you know your pillow impacts up to 30% of your overall comfort while you sleep? Using the right pillow—one that is fitted to your body measurements and sleep profile (i.e., back, side or stomach)—helps promote deeper sleep and even ensures better spinal alignment. This is why Bedgear products are so beneficial. This company’s line of pillows feature cutting-edge technologies similar to what is used in the leading athletic brands for performance and recovery. It’s no wonder Bedgear is the official performance bedding partner of the San Diego Padres!  The company’s twilight, dawn, dusk and night series are the exact pillows these high-level athletes sleep on. Now you can sleep like a Major League pro, too!

Prep Sportswear (www.PrepSportswear.com) – Starting at $21.95

Courtesy Prep Sportswear

Whether participating in sports or fitness on the field or from the sideline, you need to wear the right threads. Enter Prep Sportswear—a company that offers the largest array of customized fan apparel and sports gear. Choose from endless logo possibilities for apparel items like t-shirts, sweatshirts, and pants to tech and accessory items like iPad and cell phone skins, backpacks, blankets and more. Simply search to select your high school or college location, and then choose your gear or garment item. Customize it with your favorite sport or activity and even add a name, number or year. From start to finish, you’re guaranteed a look made just for you! Add a little bling to the look with Prep Sportswear’s Sparkle Twill, a heated appliqué design. Surprisingly, the sparkles don’t ever come off in the wash. Prep Sportswear continues to expand and has appeared on the Inc. 500|5000 list of fastest-growing private U.S. companies five straight years from 2009- 2013 and was recognized by Apparel magazine with a 2010 Top Innovator Award.

Silky Touch Dry Shampoo (www.MyHairDance.com) – $8.99
Let’s face it. Sometimes after leaving the gym or the field there’s just no time to wash and blow dry hair before having to head to the next location. So here’s a nifty item to keep on hand: Hair Dance Dry Shampoo. This 100% natural and organic dry shampoo, made with olive leaf, vitamin B-5 and aloe vera, comes in a very convenient-to-carry bottle that fits nicely into any gym bag, backpack, purse or glove compartment, and is very easy to use. Only a very small amount is needed, so the small bottle of powdered shampoo will last an extremely long time—particularly as compared to the spray bottle dry shampoo options. While other dry shampoos will leave hair feeling too dry, stiff or sticky, Hair Dance leaves hair feeling soft and clean to the touch while adding volume and absorbing excess oils. You can shake it straight from the bottle to the hair roots (just twist the top open) or you can apply with your fingers for quick touch ups. Hair Dance Dry Shampoo also blends in very well with any hair color so no worries there.

Quest Water Filter by GRAYL (www.TheGrayl.com) – Starting at $49.95
Water hydration is among the most important and fundamental needs for anyone participating in sports or fitness activities. And, the purer the water, the better. Here’s a great gadget that’ll give you an eco-friendly, money-saving way to drink water on the go. The Quest Water Filter by GRAYL filters toxins from water in seconds—no sucking, squeezing, pumping or use of chemicals required. The Quest works like a French Press: simply fill the outer cup, press down with the inner cup, and drink. GRAYL’s interchangeable filter system provides safe water for any adventure. Use the product’s Tap Filter at the gym and around town to filter chemicals and heavy metals for great tasting water from fountains and taps while out and about. For hiking, biking and outdoor activities, the Trail Filter is designed to protect against bacteria and protozoa like Giardia and E coli. For that international adventure of a lifetime, use the Travel Purifier for the ultimate protection against viruses. Also stylish and portable, the multi-award-winning Quest Water Filter is made of stainless steel and is BPA-free. GRAYL will also help you save money over time versus bottled water as each filter cartridge lasts an average of 300 uses (at 16 ounces per press) virtually replacing 300 bottles of water.

Rove ‘Diamond Collection’ Beverage Bottles (www.TTUStore.com) – $14.99 – $19.99
Rove is a new mobile lifestyle brand with products that make life easier for today’s on-the-move generation. They now offer a premier Diamond Collection—a coordinating, thoughtfully created line of chic and portable beverage bottles. The line includes a variety of handy designs, including a 22-ounce single-wall Tritan sports bottle with a one-touch lock lid and a built in infuser; an 18-ounce double-wall Tritan bottle with one-touch lock lid; a 24-ounce stainless steel cup with a click lid; and an 18-ounce vacuum-sealed stainless steel bottle a with a one-touch lock lid. All of the bottles come in red or metallic-hued titanium. All of Rove’s high quality reusable hydration products give you trendsetting style, ease of use, high functionality, and eco-friendliness in line with modern sensibilities.

Clean Energy Patch (www.CleanEnergyPatch.com) – $2.99/patch
Hate to rely on those chemical-laden energy boosters? Try Clean Energy Patch—an all-natural patch on kinesiology tape (KT) type material. These patches are easy to use, and provide a long-lasting energy boost that can be sustained for up to 8 hours. Simply peel the backing off the patch, stick it on clean skin almost anywhere, even hidden areas like a hip, and feel the results. With Clean Energy Patch, individuals do not have to drink their energy with products that are high in sugar and caffeine, also adding unwanted calories. Since the stomach is not designed to process caffeine while engaged in endurance activities, the Clean Energy Patch allows for its caffeine to be processed without cramps, nausea or jitters.

FLUWAR (www.FluWar.com) – Starting at $1.99
There’s nothing more an athlete hates more than being sidelined by a sickness, so keeping germs at bay is a key way to stay at the top of your game. FLUWAR is an alcohol-free hand sanitizer that uses antimicrobial Benzalkonium Chloride, or “BZK,” that provides long-lasting protection from germs. As an additional bonus, BZK also acts a moisturizing agent when in contact with skin rather than leaving hands feel sticky and dried out. FluWar Antibacterial Wipes kill bacteria year round–even when it’s not peak flu season. Application is simple and just a dime-size squirt will kill 99.99% of germs found on surfaces or found on your body. The convenient packages fit in your pocket, purse, gym bag, briefcase, diaper bag and pretty much anywhere else.

***Some or all of the accommodations(s), experience(s), item(s) and/or service(s) detailed above may have been provided at no cost and/or arranged to accommodate this review, but all opinions expressed are entirely those of Merilee Kern and have not been influenced in any way as per the disclosure policy on our “Legal” page***