Review: PETREL Heated Shoulder Brace Wrap
Up until recently experiencing a left shoulder issue, I’ve been pretty lucky with avoiding notable injuries in more than 35 years of weight training. I’ve been using a good compression shoulder brace for the past month or so when working out, but there’s not much point in using it outside of exercise support. That’s where something like this PETREL Heated Shoulder Brace Wrap comes in. This is more for the post-workout period, where you’re trying to both heal and soothe the shoulder area.
The big gimmick with this shoulder brace is that it has a built-in, USB-powered heating element. There’s also a slot to insert a cold pack, should that be your preferred method of rehab. Unfortunately, there’s no battery pack, so to use the heating element, you need to be by a USB port or power source or supply your own power bank.
Figuring out the strap system is a bit of a pain. I have a broad chest, so I really stretch the limit of the single, longer strap. There’s an extension strap in the package, but because it works with a Velcro-like system, it’s not as secure as using the single strap.
What’s also a bit disappointing is that the USB power cable is just under four feet long. That sounds reasonable, but in practice, it’s on the shorter side, so you’ll likely want some type of USB extension cable. In the package you get a shorter USB cable for use with a power bank, as well as a USB AC adapter, should you need one of those for some reason.
There are three levels of heat, but even at the highest heat level (red), you really don’t feel too much. I would have liked considerably more heat at the highest setting.
If you have a broader chest, it’s probably not something you want to use as a regular shoulder brace, nor does the heat necessarily get hot enough to do as much good as something like a regular heating pad. The cold pack slot is also a nice touch, but you might have trouble comfortably fitting it in and closing the arm straps. If you’re aware of its limitations, overall, it’s not a bad product.
