As many of you have seen over the past few months, I’ve been adding a few new products to my endurance training arsenal. I was introduced to the SkinStrong brand by my mentor, a pro / elite level USAT coach. During a coaching weekend visit back in February, he gave me a tub of Slather to try – I’ve been hooked ever since.

Slather Cream

Slather does exactly what it’s supposed to: It creates a nice layer between you and the chamois in your bike shorts to keep friction down. It’s just the right consistency as well. Not too thin or too thick. It goes on easy. What’s better is that it lasts over the entire ride. I’ve been out on four-plus hour rides this summer and by the end of the ride it’s still there. It doesn’t wear off with sweat, heat, and use. The ingredients are great as well. A nice combination of cocoa butter, seed oils, and tea extracts. Feels great, doesn’t smell to “clinical” and makes all my rides very comfortable.

Slik Spray

When I made my first official purchase of Slather, I sent a note to the awesome folks over at Skin Strong about how much I liked their product. They were cool enough to send me a sample of Slik. After using it a few times on some training runs, I had to buy a full-size bottle. This stuff is my new anti-chafe solution and replaces the old product I used to use. A few sprays of the non-aerosol pump and a thin non-greasy layer of protection is formed. It almost seems to disappear and I stop thinking about it. But any areas prone to chafe (thighs, underarms, whatever) are totally protected.

What’s better was my experience with Slik during my last two triathlons this year. I sprayed my neck to protect against chafe from my wetsuit – worked like a champ. I also sprayed my knees, shins, elbows, and shoulders before putting my wetsuit on. A few sprays on the wetsuit itself from the knees down as well ensured that I was in and out of T1 in very little time. Haven’t had the wetsuit come off that easily for as long as I can remember. And again, the ingredients: Predominately seed oils and natural extracts. Very nice.

Slik Dust Powder

Kind of like Slik, but in powder form. I put some of this in my running shoes in T2. Getting into my racing flats is a breeze: Smooth entry, no fuss. On top of that, it helps keep the friction down on the heel of my shoes. The texture is great. It’s not like your normal powders that you might be used to. It looks “grainy” out of the bottle initially. But when you start to rub it between your hands or on your body it becomes a smooth, silky textured, product that goes on nicely and stays with you for a long time. And, since it is a powder it helps to keep you cool as well as dry.

Aside from the inside of my shoes – for ease of entry on race day or just to keep things as dry as possible – I’ve become a big fan of Slik Dust after I’m done working out. Post-shower, I use this product religiously. It’s been a hot summer, and this is a really nice moisture wicking layer to have. Feels cool and comfortable.

And have I mentioned the ingredients? Basil oil, Tee Tree Oil. This stuff feels good and it isn’t full of a bunch of ingredients that I can’t pronounce.

What makes me like this brand even more is that this is a relatively small operation making these products. They’re gaining in popularity and it’s very well deserved – recently becoming an official product of Ironman.

I'm honored to have recently been asked to become a Skin Strong product Ambassador. You can check out their products here: Skin Strong. They're a great group of folks.