Massage guns are often seen as a pre- and post-workout necessity. But did you know that using a massage gun can help you sleep better, too? the The best massage guns Use a quick, percussive motion through the foam attachments to penetrate deeply into muscle tissue, promote increased blood flow, relax overused muscle fibers, and improve joint range of motion—essential components of an effective, injury-free workout routine.
These ingredients are also essential for getting a good night’s rest. according to A recent study (Opens in a new tab) By Therabody that followed 73 active adults, using a massage gun before bed can reduce sleep latency (the time it takes to fall asleep) and increase sleep efficiency (staying asleep longer between disturbances). Study participants also noted improvements in vascular function, heart rate variability, and a reduction in pain and overall discomfort.
As a light sleeper who suffers from a lot of chronic aches and pains, I would be willing to try just about anything to improve my poor sleep patterns. Since meditation and melatonin failed me, I set out to see if Therabody’s “Sleep: Therabody x Ōura” program could significantly improve my sleep quality. Read on to find out what happened.
What is sleep: Therabody x Ōura?
It’s no secret that I’m a huge fan of the Therabody massage gun line, having reviewed Theragon MiniAnd the Theragon EliteAnd the Theragon Pro very positively in the past. With the exception of the Mini, all Theragun models can connect via Bluetooth to the Therabody app that features sport-specific warm-ups and cool-downs, remedies for common ailments, and general wellness routines. The Therabody app automatically sets your Theragun to the proper speed, indicates when you’ve applied the optimal amount of pressure, and displays a timed countdown for each treatment area. It takes all the guess work out of owning a massage gun.
“Sleep: Therabody x Ōura” is one of the latest in-app Therabody programs, developed in partnership with smart loop brand Oura. It’s a quick six-minute routine that should be performed half an hour before hitting the sack, focusing on those muscle groups that tend to be particularly tense by the end of the day. The program starts with treating the bottoms of the feet for 30 seconds, then moves to each calf for 15 seconds, each quadriceps muscle for 30 seconds, each muscle for 30 seconds, left and right side of the upper back for 15 seconds, all forearm extensors and flexors for 15 seconds, Then finish with the right and left upper trapezius for 30 seconds.
I used my Theragun Elite for the program, but any massage gun will work—even if it’s not a Theragun (it won’t be able to connect to the Therabody app). I do not have Aura ringso I relied on the Apple Watch Series 5 (see the The best Apple Watch On the market here) to measure my sleep metrics and heart rate variability (HRV). As recommended, I completed the routine about 30 minutes before tucking in for an entire week.
I Tried Using A Massage Gun At Bedtime – Here’s What Happened
To find out more, I committed to using my massage gun every evening for a week. Here’s what happened.
Fall asleep faster
As a fan of The Office (the American version, sorry Brits), I usually rely on the soft tones of Michael Scott to lull me to sleep. I’m often in the middle of a Jim and Pam story before I finally drift off to sleep.
After a few days of using the massage gun before bed, I started breaking out before the opening credits. This was the biggest and most drastic change I noticed, and one that was helpful enough to keep my massage gun routine as a nighttime habit. There were outliers, of course (one night I had to start a second episode), but overall, using the massage gun at bedtime helped me fall asleep faster than usual.
I spent more time on “light” sleep.
Sleep occurs in four stages: awake, light, deep, and REM (or rapid eye movement). At first I was expecting that using the massage gun at bedtime would increase the time spent in deep sleep, if anything — it’s in deep sleep where muscles are repaired and grown, and blood flow to muscle tissue increases.
And looking at my sleep data, I realized I got about 30 more minutes of light sleep each night (referred to as “baseline” sleep in the Apple Health app). Those extra 30 minutes seem to come mostly from my time awake, so I’m not complaining.
I woke up with less back pain
Thanks to my many slipped and bulging discs, getting up in the morning usually comes with its fair share of lower back pain. I’m relatively used to it at this point, so I naturally spend the first few hours of consciousness walking around very gingerly.
It took me until the end of the week to realize that my stiff, achy back felt unusually limber in the morning, and that picking things up off the floor resulted in much less stress than usual. I wouldn’t go so far as to say I am pain free, but my usual symptoms have definitely decreased.
My heart rate improved – but only slightly
HRV is the time discrepancy, measured in milliseconds, between your heartbeats. A higher heart rate compared to your baseline generally indicates a good balance between parasympathetic (“fight or flight”) and parasympathetic (“rest and digest”) nervous system responses, which equates to higher general fitness levels, better sleep quality, and efficient recovery.
My HRV numbers trended higher during my week of nightly massage gun use, but the difference wasn’t what I’d call amazing—I saw an increase of about 3-4 milliseconds per day. Still, any improvement in HRV is welcome.
Do you want to try the challenge yourself? scan the The best massage guns on the market here. Additionally, check out our website Theragun Pro vs Theragun Elite showdown here.
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