I came across the Incrediwear products during lockdown when I watched someone’s YouTube video which included a review. Previously to this I had been doing lots of research into ice and water boots to help with the recovery of Didi’s tendons after hard work or competing. My main problem was I never had a freezer at the yards I was at so I wouldn’t have been able to actually use boots with ice packs. I had heard lots of bad things about water boots too. I kind of put my research on hold and just made sure I cold hosed her legs.
When I came across Incrediwear, I was amazed. It looked like such a good idea and it didn’t involve a freezer. I immediately researched their products, looked at reviews etc. I then decided to bite the bullet and order some bandages. I decided to go for the bandages because I also needed something to exercise Didi in due to her boots making her legs heat up even when she just went for a walk. I didn’t want to favour her front legs over her back legs or vice versa so I bought two pairs of exercise bandages.
I bought mine from one of their UK suppliers called The Yard Equine and they came super quick.
I’m not one to usually use bandages and I found them quite tricky to put on the first time but I soon got the hang of it. When using these bandages for exercise I noticed a massive difference between the temperature of Didi’s legs after a session. They kept her legs cool even on warm, sunny days. I actually decided to properly put them to the test. I bandaged Didi’s front legs with the Incrediwear bandages and left her back legs bare. I then proceeded to ride her in the field, I did a good work out with her, lots of cantering and making her engage her back end. I rode her for about 45 minutes. It was also a fairly warm day in the middle of summer. Once I had finished I ran my hands down her front and back legs. Her front legs were a lot cooler than her back legs and if I went by what her front legs felt like I wouldn’t have thought she would have just been exercised. I also had someone else to feel the difference and they said exactly the same as me. Her back legs were warm like you would usually get after a hard work out. However because she had the bandages on her front legs, they were super cool and not at all heated. This is just using them for exercise and not ‘icing’.
As well as keeping the legs cool they also have more properties. The fabric which is used in all of their products is embedded with carbonised germanium, when the fabric touches the skin, negative ions are released. The negative ions vibrate the cells which increases lymphatic drainer and blood flow. This also brings more oxygen and nutrients to the area by pushing swelling into the lymphatic system. This makes the Incrediwear products stand out from all other bandages and boots. They have so many positive effects and haven’t got a single con about them. This is why I rate them so much and use them so often.
I now if I can will always try to use these bandages whenever I work my horses, I always use them on the front even when jumping at home I will use them. And I will use them on her back legs as much as possible but I tend to leave them off for jumping as well as flatwork as she has bad scabs on her hind legs which shouldn’t be covered all the time. So she has them on her back legs for lunging and icing.
Now onto the ‘icing’ effect. The bandages can be used to ‘ice’ the horses legs but they also have socks which do the same job. So all you have to do it wet them, either with warm/hot water or cold water. Both work although warm water does have a better effect. And then you just leave them on, they work for anything up to an hour although after an hour if you want to keep them on longer you just wet them again and the whole process starts again. And there you have it, one of the easiest ways to look after horses’ legs.
Now onto the science behind it, quoted from one of their studies.
“The combination of Germanium (Ge) with warm water (H2O) ostensibly results in an endothermic reaction leading to the absorption of heat from the water phantom or the subject. A similar, but more intense, response was documented in the live horse resulting in an immediate 23F (5C) drop in the surface temperature lasting for over an hour. These results seem to indicate that the live subject, by constantly producing body hear at the same temperature, continues to drive the endothermic reaction for as long as the fabric remained wet. “
For the whole study where I found this quote, check out the link below.
It all works with the horses body heat, it doesn’t involve having to freeze ice packs or dunk boots into water for ages. Either just hose them while they are on or put in water for as little as 2 minutes. I absolutely love my Incrediwear bandages and wouldn’t use anything else any more.
Another product of theirs that I have is their standing wraps. Didi’s legs swell quite badly when she has to stand in for a long time which in winter is quite common because she also gets awful mud fever and can’t go in the field over winter. I nearly always had normal bandages and Gamgee on her back legs every night but they seemed to work for a bit but they never completely stopped her legs from swelling. However I can truly say the Incrediwear standing wraps have saved Didi’s legs. Her legs have not been one bit swollen since wearing these every night. She also wears them when she travels instead of boots. We have recently travelled to and from Belgium for competing where she wore these wraps on the lorry. On the way home due to lots of problems with ferries etc stopping she ended up wearing them for over 24hrs and being stood around/ on a lorry/ small stable for all of that time and when we took them off we were shocked that there wasn’t any swelling. I honestly believe if she had normal bandage pads her legs would have ballooned with all that standing around.
The standing wraps are made out of the same fabric as al of their other products meaning they also have the carbonised germanium which boots lots of positive effects.
So overall, I can’t rate these products enough and whatever you do with your horses whether that be hacking or competing at a high level or any level, I really urge you to check out these products.
The website is full of information, studies, FAQ as well as all of their retailers.
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