ThinkSport vs. Sigg – My thoughts on the perfect water bottle

Months ago my wife, Sarah, mentioned to me that I seemed too dehydrated.  It wasn’t due to being tired or sick, but actually from acute pain throughout my skin.  Ends up my fascia and the pain during a medical massage was a sure sign I wasn’t drinking enough water.

So, my wife’s findings put me into search mode, first for the answer how much water should we drink per day, and second for the best, quality water bottle available on the interwebz.

A close friend had recommended Sigg as the premier water bottle for daily use at work and at play.  At my local Whole Foods (which seems to have the best selection of water bottles in Co Springs) I was able to find a nice powder black 1 liter Sigg Steel Works bottle for $22.  I picked one up and began to put it thru the paces.  I tend to drink two to three bottles during a workout, and four to five bottles throughout the day, so this bottle was going to get a decent amount of use.  Almost immediately, I noticed that the cap had its threads on the outside, so you ended up screwing the cap into the bottle.  This didn’t seem to bother me at work, but while working out, or driving, basically any time I couldn’t directly see the cap and bottle, I had a hard time screwing the cap on properly.  I practiced over and over again, and found that unless I was extremely lucky, I couldn’t get this damn cap to line up with the bottle and completely close.   Not a problem if the bottle is standing on a table, big problem if the bottle knocks over in the car or on the treadmill.  Separately, this bottle isn’t lined, so it tends to sweat a lot when it’s warmer outside.

My qualms with the Sigg bottle seemed to go straight to the ears of the engineers at Thinksport, as their version of the perfect water bottle is just fantastic!  For $26, again at Whole Foods, I was able to find a 750 ml ThinkSport bottle, similar in price to the Sigg.  This bottle is curved to make for an easier grip, with dual openings to allow for a larger or smaller opening to drink from, depending on your thirst level, as well as your need to add ice cubes (with an included strainer to keep those cubes in the bottle and not on your face).  The caps screw on to the bottle, rather than in the bottle like the Sigg.  This allows for a MUCH easier close, even while driving or running full speed on the treadmill.  I wish they were the same material as the bottle itself, but plastic aside, it’s a vast improvement over the Sigg and still looks great.  The lining of the bottle reduces sweat amounts to zero, a definite plus.  The only downside, I have noticed, is the smaller 750 ml size of this bottle compared to the 1 liter in the Sigg.  For most this isn’t an issue, but as I tend to drink a lot of water, it makes for more trips to the water fountain.

I am still searching for the happy medium when it comes to daily water intake amounts.  I have read eight glasses per day, 1.5 gallons per day, only drink when you are thirsty… who knows.  What I do know is my fascia doesn’t scream in pain when I get a medicinal massage from my better half, and I feel 100 times better before, during, and after a run.   If you are shopping for a water bottle for work or play, I whole heartedly recommend the Thinksport 750ml.  It’s durable, it doesn’t sweat, and damnit, even an old man like me can close it while working out at the gym with a view!