In our house, we have a tussle for bags. I use them for travel (international, domestic, to the beach), whilst my husband, a CBS Sports Radio show host, is always grabbing them for his workouts (and complaining about sand). And we have our favorite bags - one of which has had a lot of tussle lately. 

Enter Fitmark Bags - made for fitness (more on that in a minute), but creatively adapted for travel by yours truly.

Fitmark bags are both smart and useful. We were sent the Transporter Backpack to review (thank you!) - and it is pure genius, in both design and function. The unassuming red backpack has plenty of room, and an outside pocket for a water bottle. But it is what's inside - and what there is space for - that makes it stand out. Unzip the bottom front, and you'll find a compartment that holds a removable cooler bag - with two snap tight containers, perfect for a snack at the gym, or for sustenance during travel. Inside the bag, there is also a separate bag for shoes or laundry (or sandy towels). Here's another piece of genius - the bag is padded, and can hold a 17 inch laptop. ZING! In my books, travel wins - or the pool. However, my husband is currently at the gym with it, so you see how this smart backpack fits into our family - and maybe into yours? Suggestion: get several. 

Not into a backpack? Check the site - Fitmark makes many types of bags, with a variety of features.

What do you want to do with your Fitmark bag? 

I was so impressed with our Fitmark backpack, for both fitness and travel, that I wanted to find out more. To that end, I was lucky to catch up with Fitmark founder and CEO Mark Samuel, who is the epitome of a true entrepreneur. Mark is a serial entrepreneur with a great track record. He founded his first company at age 23. The company had annual revenues of $10M within 2 years. Now, years later, he's onto his ninth and biggest venture with Fitmark. Fitmark bags are now being sold in 35+ countries and have raised $1M in funding to date. The bags are used and loved by some of the most successful athletes all over the world: Flex Lewis, Mr. Olympia; Camille Leblanc-Bazinet, winner of the 2014 Reebok CrossFit Games and also named the fittest woman on earth; and Jim Miller, UFC Lightwight Contender, among others. I'd add Wandering Educators to his list of people who love Fitmark - perhaps starting off a travel fitness category? 

Please tell us what makes your backpacks so special...

What makes Fitmark so special is not so much about what we do, it’s about what we don’t do. We don’t make shoes, we don’t make hats, we don’t make the latest, most advanced workout apparel. We make bags. High quality, functional, stylish and performance based backpacks, tote bags, gym bags, meal management bags, and are now focusing on more and more sport specific bags. We focus on one thing, bags, and we do it well. 

What inspired you to create these special Fitness bags?

As a lifelong fitness enthusiast, I have gone through and wore out many uninspired gym bags. I wanted to create a product that reflected my desire for success. My drive. My inspiration. You wouldn’t wear an ill-fitting suit or shapeless dress so why carry a bag that doesn’t represent you and your desires for quality? 

What might people be surprised to learn about Fitmark bags?

Besides our mission to put a Fitmark bag in the hands of every fitness enthusiast around the world, we have big dreams with our philanthropy projects, and serving under privileged children. From the beginning we made it a commitment to work hard and grow our company so that we not only achieved our growth projections, but to also give back through our 1 for 100 program where we donate a bag to a child in need for every $100 we earn through our site. We anticipate to donate close to 5,000 bags this year alone. 

How can travelers best utilize Fitmark bags? 

Fitmark bags are incredibly versatile. Obviously we make great sport and fitness bags, however a lot of our customers, including me, use them for travel. I just took 2 bags on a trip to Europe. Both a backpack and a duffel were used to transport more than a week’s worth of clothing and accessories. Not only are the bags durable, they’re comfortable to carry. 

Additionally, The Box and The Shield Meal Management bags are perfect for travel. Whether you carry the bag to work or you’re traveling across the country, staying on a meal plan is tough if you aren’t prepared. The bags come outfitted with seal tight containers, of course come with ice packs to keep food fresh, one of the packs is TSA approved as well. With the skyrocketing cost of an airport meal, and the often disappointing airline food, The Shield and Box and a few other meal management bags we offer, are essentially your healthy fridge on the go. 

Tell us more about your give back/1 for 100 program!

We’re all about giving back. It’s a big part of who we are and what we stand for. We created the 1 for 100 program where we donate a bag to a child in need for every $100 we earn through our site. We started out providing bags to a few local Boys and Girls Clubs with the ultimate goal of providing bags to all of the locations within a few years. We hope our bags reach the kids in need and encourage them to do well in school, participate in after school programs like sports and go after their dreams. Our next round of bags even have that message inscribed within each. 

To-date we have donated 3000 bags to underprivileged children and we hope to get that number to 7000 by the end of the year.

WOW! What's up next for you?

More of our 2015 bags will be coming out over the next couple months. It’s an exciting time as we’ve been anticipating unveiling these bags for some time, and these are our best designs to date.  Some new backpacks, tote bags and even some sport specific designs geared towards triathletes, skiers and mma enthusiasts. We are even unveiling a diaper bag geared towards the fit mom and dad! It’s all very exciting times for us and we can’t wait to continue our growth as a leader in all things bags when it comes to sport and fitness. 

Highly recommended!

Learn more about Fitmark: http://fitmarkbags.com/

Note: while taking these photos at our clubhouse, many people asked about the bag. Yes, it's a star!