The people at GoodSport reached out to me and asked me to try their manuka enhanced anti-chafing sports cream.  I run approximately 25 miles a week, and although I don’t experience chafing all the time, it does occasionally happen.  Here’s what I think about their product:

QUICK REVIEW:

Quality: B

Comfort: B+

Value: B-

Overall: B

First and foremost, GoodSport manuka enhanced anti-chafing sports cream works.  After applying it, I didn’t experience any chafing, and it alleviated pain from previously chafed areas.  Yes, for the sake of this review, I purposely caused myself discomfort (I don’t want to get into how) to see if this product actually works, and it does.

With a price tag of $25.90 for a 100 gram tin, GoodSport Anti-Chafe is seems expensive, but when you take into account that it ships world-wide for free and comes from New Zealand, the price isn’t that bad.  If you’re interested, you can buy some directly through their site HERE.

FULL REVIEW:

the manuka flower

Manuka is a native New Zealand plant characterised by its small spiky leaves and white or pink- flushed flowers

Traditionally, the Maori people in New Zealand used Manuka leaves to cure a wide number of ailments – a tea from the leaves was used to treat stomach ailments, while the leaves themselves were used to treat everything from joint pain and fevers to burns and skin disorders.

Despite it’s medicinal properties, Manuka is most widely recognised for the honey it produces. New Zealand Manuka honey has a solid reputation for its unique anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, and is now exported all over the world.

For more on Manuka see Leptospermum scoparium on Wikipedia (Manuka’s Botanical name)

The active ingredient in GoodSport Anti-Chafe comes from the manuka plant.  Before trying this product I’d never even heard of it, so I figured I’d drop some knowledge above that I pulled from the GoodSport site.  Billed as an all natural, petroleum-free anti-chafe product, GoodSport is designed to not only protect the skin from damage, but also effectively help it recover.

My Thoughts on the Product:

I found the odor of GoodSport Anti-Chafe to be a little odd.  It doesn’t smell bad, but it definitely doesn’t smell good, either.  After applying I immediately washed my hands but the scent lingered for a while.  The balm was also a little sticky.  It’s not as viscous as petroleum jelly/vaseline, and therefore doesn’t apply as easily.  I’m not the hairiest dude, but I definitely have hair in those target chafing areas which made applying GoodSport Anti-Chafe difficult to stay the least.

I was worried about the product ruining my underwear/shorts.  For my first go around I wore boxer briefs that didn’t have much life left in them so if GoodSport Anti-Chafe fucked them up I could just throw them in the trash.  They didn’t stain or ruin them (or any other underwear/shorts I wore while using the product), so that’s a plus.

Using GoodSport Anti-Chafe:

My first thoughts after applying the balm the first time was that I had been pranked by someone with a vendetta against me on the internet (Kirk Gimenez I know you’re coming for me when I least expect it), as how could a substance so sticky prevent chafing?  After the initial application woes, there was no discomfort whatsoever.  I ran 5 miles and felt perfectly fine.  Awesome.

After purposely chafing myself up (OK, if you must know, I wore boxer briefs with shorts that have netting in them and ran 6 miles. Gets me every time) the GoodSport Anti-Chafe soothed my pain.  My chafed areas weren’t completely jacked up (I’m not a sicko, I wasn’t going to cause myself more than a little discomfort), but the pain I did feel was alleviated and I was no longer chafed after 2 days.  So if you’ve tried other products to reduce/relieve chafing that haven’t worked, GoodSport Anti-Chafe is worth a look.

Final Thoughts:

For me, chafing isn’t a huge issue.  Running four to five miles a day isn’t going to cause too much discomfort if you’ve been doing it regularly and wear the appropriate clothes.  People that run marathons and newbies may need this product more than someone like me.

Personally, I wasn’t a fan of the lingering odor of the balm on my hands.  That’s the main drawback for me.  You can definitely smell the all-natural ingredients in GoodSport Anti-Chafe, that’s for sure, but as I said in my quick review, it works- bottom line.  If you need anti-chafing balm and want something that’s going to do the job, check them out.