You’ve seen and heard of these Power Balance Bands, a silicone rubber band with a cheap plastic hologram on it. The company claims that power balance is performance technology designed to work with your body’s natural energy field.
“Founded by athletes, Power Balance is a favorite among elite athletes for whom balance, strength and flexibility are important.”
It’s all about the hologram. The concept is based on the idea of optimizing the body’s natural energy flow by resonating with and responding to the natural energy field of the body.
And oh, by the way, it’s total crap.
I was reading an article over at NBCSports.com where the company, after being pressured, announced the following; “We admitted that there is no credible scientific evidence that supports our claims.” They’ve offered to give refunds to customers who believe they were cheated and feel like going through the hassle of sending back a cheap piece of rubber and contacting the company for their $$.
The power of advertising and product placement never ceases to amaze me… In it’s first year, the company sold $8,000 worth of merchandise and in 2010, it’s expected to do more than $35 million… for rubber wrist bands..
This company built it’s business primarily on testimonials from famous professional athletes testimonials, they’ve paid “for the right to use their images wearing the bracelets.”
Unfortunately, not even golf is immune to the hype. At the 2010 Ryder Cup, both Ian Poulter and Rickie Fowler were sporting the Power Balance Bands. It seems that it worked out REALLY well for one of the two PGA Professionals.. 🙂
It actually sparked a pretty good forum thread on one the big golf forums. It began with “what was that wrist band Ian was wearing” and ended with name calling and feces slinging from those who believed in the effects of the hologram and those with common sense.. 🙂
I suppose, however, that one cannot completely discount the beneficial effects of the Power Balance Bands. Although there is no scientific evidence to support their claims, it can certainly be argued that there could be a psychological benefits. If someone believe strongly enough in the product, it could boost their confidence in their game and as you know, in golf, feeling confident about your swing can easily shave off a couple strokes.
I’d love to hear from you guys on this one! Do you own a Power Balance Band, if so, have you noticed any enhanced performance in your game?
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