Brooks Essential Hoodie Review
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With cold weather running upon us, having the right running gear is more and more important. In the recent months, I’ve been testing out the Brooks Essential Hoodie which is made from a blend of 95% polyester and 5% spandex. This long sleeve running tech shirt is labeled as best for temperatures 45F+ on Brooks website which I have found to be true.
Brooks Essential Hoodie Performance
The Brooks Essential Hoodie is a semi fitted long sleeve tech tee which is good for leisurely runs from 3-15 miles. With the loose fit of this shirt, it’s not ideal for speed runs or workouts as the extra material gets in the way a little. When I first tried on the shirt, I thought that it would be best as a casual shirt, but after a mile into my first run in this shirt, I thought that it was really comfortable.
Essential Hoodie Fit
The fit of the Brooks Essential Hoodie is a key to its performance. I am 6’0 tall and 173lbs and I found this shirt to have plenty of extra room around the mid section in a size medium. If you’re an extra 10-15 pounds, you should still be good considering you have a similar height. The sleeves on the Essential Hoodie are proportionate to the rest of the shirt, so your wrist won’t be exposed and frozen on the colder days.
Features
The features of the Brooks Essential Hoodie aren’t abundant, but they have their function. First, the kangaroo pocket isn’t something that you’re going to stick a phone or any other important item, but it’s best to warm your hands if you forget your gloves on your run. The hood on this shirt is there in case you need to get a little extra warmth, but I haven’t found a need for it before if it’s that cold out( 35 and below) I’m typically wearing a beanie or running cap. I personally think the hood makes the shirt look more stylish than the function that it adds to the shirt, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
Final Thoughts
Overall, the Brooks Essential Hoodie is great for the runner that doesn’t take running really serious and wants a comfortable and stylish shirt to run in. The shirt also doubles as a casual shirt outside of running as it doesn’t look too technical and has a nice clean look.
For more information on the Essential Hoodie and other Brooks products, visit www.brooksrunning.com or www.amazon.com/brooksrunning.
