I’ve been hearing buzz about Healthy Back Bags (or HBB) for a few months now, and am glad to get my hands on one to try it out. What is a HBB? Essentially, it’s a cross-body sling bag, designed intelligently to save your back and posture. Does it deliver? For the most part, yes.
To decide whether an HBB is for you, you’ll definitely want to order one and try it on. While on the surface it seems like a simple enough concept, there’s actually a lot of minor adjustments the wearer can make that make a significant difference in usability and comfort. First, you’ll want to decide what size is best for you. I tried the Great Outdoors Healthy Back Bag in medium. While the official site doesn’t give a definitive sizing in volume, I estimate the medium to be about 18-20 liters. It’s smaller than your average 26 L day pack, but holds a great deal (more on that in a minute).
Sizing is important when it comes to picking a HBB because the bag is designed to follow the curve of your spine and rest at the small of your back when worn cross-body style. While the shoulder strap certainly adjusts, a small on a tall man might simply not work. With the medium, I tightened the strap quite a bit in order for the bag to sit properly on my 5’4″ frame.
After considering size, consider what you’ll use the bag for. The HBB wins at small pockets; it has a place for everything. If you will be traveling and need to be hyper organized, this is a huge plus. The downside: there’s less space in the main compartment of the bag as a result, so if you’re looking to stuff gym clothes in here and that’s about it, you’ll want a bag with fewer pockets and compartments.
Also consider how you like to wear a sling bag. I like it cross-body, so I’m hands-free and there’s no fear of the bag slipping. I also like the ability to slide the bag around to get at my phone or cash without taking it off, as I’d need to do with a backpack. If you prefer to wear it over one shoulder, that’s a possibility, but I found the bag slips off my arm.
Nuts and bolts: the HBB in medium is lightweight, quick-drying and weather resistant, and lined. The measurements are 19″x11″x7″. I love the many pockets, which include outside stash pockets on both side panels (which means I can easily wear the bag on either shoulder and still have access to stuff), a fairly deep water bottle pocket, interior angled pockets and an interior padded pocket for a tablet, pen slots and key hook/D ring, and even an interior pocket with magnetic closure and deeper zippered section. If that array sound dizzying, it’s because it is. You just need to explore the bag to see for yourself.
The idea behind so many pockets goes beyond organization. Distributing your stuff into so many spaces helps distribute weight, adding to the overall comfort of the bag when worn. What the HBB is lacking that I wish it had: more padding on the shoulder strap (it’s pretty bare bones) and space for a small laptop. I don’t carry a tablet, but my Macbook Air travels just about everywhere I go.
Check Ameribag.com for options: there are HBB in a variety of sizes and tons of colors. You can get leather, too, for a significant price hike. The medium bag I reviewed retails for $80 and comes in several shades with a subtle design on the side panel. Mine is in ‘caviar’, which is a shiny black. Multiple styles are also on offer at Amazon and eBags for a few cents less.