A while back I was offered a pair of Yurbuds to test and review. And then I got busy doing so many of my runs while coaching, that I never had the time to just chill out with headphones and do a run on my own! But I’ve taken a few opportunities lately to do a little solo running, thus I’ve had the chance to bust out some headphones.

First things first, Yurbuds are not headphones… they are “earbud enhancers”. They are a silicone cover that fits on top of most standard earbuds. You can actually buy the headphones from the Yurbuds site, but you also have the option of buying just the Yurbuds enhancers.

To buy them you need to take a photo of your ear, either with an existing earbud in place or with a quarter next to your ear for comparison. I’m an overachiever, so I did both!

You send your comparison photo to the company and they’ll give you feedback on what size would best fit you. You place your order, then wait for your Yurbuds to arrive (don’t worry, it was fast).

I was a little apprehensive when I first saw the Yurbuds. I’ve bought a different pair of earbuds that had some kind of rubbery part that was supposed to go in the ear that were horrible. And these were even weirder looking, with a longer funnely end. But the material felt soft and squishy, so in they went.

Another funny thing, they come with instructions on inserting them. I love it when seemingly common items require instructions. (See: pants) But to get them to “lock” into place, you have to put them in at an angle that isn’t the intuitive way to insert them, then do a little twist. It’s not like you’re screwing them into place… but it is. Just a small twist and you can feel it pop into place.

And then it stays there while you exercise. No wiggling out, no moving… it really was quite impressive at how solid it felt, but it also seemed non-existent in my ear. No irritation at all. Also the sound enhancing qualities weren’t so overwhelming that it drowned out the world around me, I could still hear things fine. (Granted, I only use one earbud when running outside.)

These are sweat-proof, designed by a marathoner and triathlete, so they’re made to withstand endurance training. Plus they could be slipped over the headphones for a phone (iPhone headphones anyone?) and you’ll still be able to have functionality of the built-in microphone/controls without as much risk of sweating in the earbud and shorting it out.

I’m pretty happy with these. This is an element that would be included in my dream running headphones. Thank you Yurbuds for giving me this opportunity!