You’re dying to know. Does iRenew, CPrime, and similarly advertised bracelets work?

We got a lot of views of my initial posting, so much so that we decided to try it out, with a twist. A few things you should know before I get into. First, I didn’t pay for the iRenew bacelets, nor did I get one for free from the company for review. Instead, I’m lucky enough to have a brother that jumped into it after seeing a commercial on TV. Seth, is the runt of the Jones’ litter, but somehow manages to be the fastest, biggest, toughest, high-school linebacker around. No dreams of NFL here, Seth is going to pursue a career in the military and we’re proud to continue our family’s service. (If not just a little bit worried).

Still, I got loaned a well used pair of bracelets and we gave it whirl.

Here’s the other things you should know. We did our test using two groups. One group of two Editors was forced to watch the infomercial (available on YouTube) several times, before trying out iRenew. I wanted to know if there really was the “power of suggestion” going on. The second group of Editors neither saw the review or were told anything about the bracelet before going through my little obstacle course.

Oh and my obstacle course? Just a middle-schooler’s playground with a few monkey bars, jungle-gym, balance beams, nothing too difficult. The idea here was to find out if there were truly any improvements in balance, strength, and energy.

Our two brave Editors (Joanne and Shawn), sat through 30 minutes of watching the informercial and testimonials. The other two Editors, who were told nothing (MJ and Sara), just slapped on the bracelets and ran through my course gladiator style…naked and sweaty…some of us wish, but no, they were neither naked nor sweaty. Just regular normal folk.

Each person ran through the course twice. Once with bracelet and one without. Everyone did 5 pull-ups, 5 rungs on the monkey bars, back and forth across a 6 foot long balance beam, and up and down the other side of a cargo net. Nothing hectic, just a regular normal jaunt in the playground, but going as fast as you can to get the lowest

Accordingly, everyone also ran without bracelet first, followed by 45 minutes of just hanging around.

Our results?

Joanne who sat through the videos, claimed that she definitely felt like she had better balance and a bit more pep going with the bracelet on versus without. However, Shawn, who also sat through the videos reported no difference, but added the bracelets do look cool.

Our control group folks, who were told nothing, both reported no difference running through the course with bracelet or without.

Based on that, I’m not really sure which side to go with. I tried it myself after everyone else went, but consider that I did my research and I had a preconception that this would work for me. So, even I’m skeptical that I found myself feeling more energy and with better balance. At least, I didn’t fall off the balance beam with the bracelet on.

The interesting thing here is that almost everyone running with bracelets on, improved their times enough to take notice. Shawn did the course with an almost 5 minute improvement and MJ ripped through with a full 10 minutes lopped off. Granted, he’s a rock climbing, mountain biking phenom, so take that for what you will.

The athletes of the group all said one thing. They all felt that the second time through with the bracelets on, that it was familiarity with the obstacles from watching everyone go through it and picking up tricks to improve that made the difference and not the bracelets themselves.

So, does iRenew really work? From our little test, it’s based on your point of view. Only one person claimed to “feel” a difference compared to 3 others who felt nothing. (Same bracelet by the way). I definitely think that power of suggestion is more powerful than any bracelet you slap on and telling you what it’s going to do while you do it probably influenced the outcome.

Still, it’s like this year’s “Live Strong” bracelet. It’s friggin’ fashion now and I kinda want one. So I’m keeping brother Seth’s spare and sending the other back to him.

Luckily, I paid nothing for mine. Can I justify spending the $36+ for a pair of two? I guess it depends on how badly you want to improve balance, strength, and energy in your life. If buying something like this is supposed to improve you and you truly believe it, then who am I cheat someone out of that paid-for-belief?

Of course, you could just suck down a sugar-free Red-Bull every morning like I do and get instant pep in a can. Take our results for what it is and make your own decision. Feel free to leave a comment with your own opinion.

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