I had a simple objective: I wanted a cheap gym bag that could fit a big laptop. It sounds like an easy enough proposition, yet it isn’t. Most gym bags are not really made to accommodate a laptop (and laptop bags are not really made to hold sweaty clothes and workout sneakers). After tireless Amazon searching, I found the unpronounceable FYXML duffel bag, which has an almost ungodly number of pockets for everything you might want to put in it.
It doesn’t look like much besides a simple canvas bag (it has a tag similar to a Herschel, but in real life it reads FYXMI — yes, with an I, not an L.), but it can store my workout clothes, water bottle, BlenderBottle, work computer, lunch Tupperware, and any tchotchkes I might pick up in the course of my day. Look at the pockets! It has a waterproof pocket for an entire vanity’s worth of hair products and colognes. There’s even an expandable compartment for gym or dress shoes, which technically takes up storage space in the body of the bag, but feels like extra space. The best part is that it’s convertible — my gym tote can be carried as a duffel or even turned into a backpack (you could technically also hold it with the strap on one end, but that’s a little cumbersome).
I’ll get compliments on its simple stylishness — it’s the rare gym bag that doesn’t look ridiculous even when I wear it as a backpack to work. It’s not the highest-quality bag I’ve ever used (the fabric and straps feel a little thin), but it does look much more expensive than it is. Due to some peculiarity with Chinese-manufactured products on Amazon, the same bag can be found under a few different names: there’s the $36 FYXML (or FYXMI) bag I bought, a Thomtery duffel for $42, and even a $59 TIANS bag. I’d go with the Keynew backpack, though, which in customer photos shows the bag I have but with yet another patch. It also costs $32, or about a buck per pocket.
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