Massage guns vs. foam rollers is a fierce competition. Cutting-edge technology in these devices restores muscles and boosts blood flow. What is the most efficient way to reduce the soreness in the muscles and speed up the healing process?
Do you sometimes find that your shoulders are stiff? Are your glutes sore all the time? Do you typically get tightness in your lower back? A relaxing session of foam rolling or percussive massage is just what you need.
Which of these two choices provides faster pain relief and has a more significant impact on reducing stiffness? Both percussive massagers and foam rollers have advantages. You might even combine the two types of therapy in your treatment. Suppose you only have a few minutes to assess potential treatments for your aching muscles. In that case, you need to determine which choice is superior—a massage gun or a foam roller.
Massage gun
When we speak about percussive massage guns, we are not referring to average handheld vibrating massagers. Percussive massage guns penetrate deeper into the muscle. The massage head activates local nerves upon impact.
Massage guns transmit pain-relieving signals to the brain and stimulate the Golgi tendons, which increase the range of motion and relieve muscle tension. They boost blood circulation, increasing the supply of nutrients and oxygen to tissues.
Read more about: How to use HSA/FSA
MASSAGE GUN FOR SHIN SPLINTS (HSA/FSA Eligible)
Colors: Red & Black Weight: 2.2 lbs Amplitude: 16 mm
Speed Setting: 20 presets Battery Life: 300 min
Warranty: 3 years Attachment Heads: 8
Read more about how to use a massage gun.
Foam roller
Foam rollers stretch out tight muscles and fascia. It feels like a rolling pin beneath you, unraveling the tissue and releasing knots. On the other hand, it is not precisely what is going on in the real world.
Similar to percussive therapy, this recovery technique helps reduce stress. Your nerve receptors get a signal from the foam roller, which causes them to transmit a message to your brain that relaxes your muscles and connective tissues. The result is maximum tension reduction.
How effective are massage guns compared to foam rollers?
More data is still needed to back up massage guns and foam rollers. Most massage and physical therapy techniques lack supporting data, but they are still effective. In terms of empirical evidence, no current, in-depth study compares the foam roller's efficacy to that of the massage gun.
The following are some aspects we can analyze to compare the two:
Accuracy
Massage guns excel in accuracy. Even though a foam roller can cover a greater surface area of the body, the massage gun attachment heads can better target particular body parts experiencing stress and discomfort.
If you've ever used a lacrosse ball to massage a specific location in your shoulder or back, you know that there can be more than one sweet spot. You can move the ball around to hit these tender spots. The same principles underlie the practice of percussion-based treatment. However, it would be best if you carried out the therapy longer to get the desired results. A standard percussive massage treatment may take up to fifteen minutes.
Concentration and efficiency
A foam roller cannot access one particular area of the body. However, by relaxing a larger region of muscle tissue and tendons, a foam roller may assist in naturally untying knots.
A massage gun takes one to two minutes to work its magic. It is an efficient strategy for targeting soreness and pain in the middle of the day. Moreover, massage guns tackle several issues concurrently, making them more efficient than other approaches.
Both massage guns and foam rollers require a certain amount of expertise. Start slow and follow your device's instructions for the best results.
Price
The best choice, if you're on a limited budget, is a foam roller. The most affordable variants start at $50. Budget foam rollers are usually smoother rather than textured. The cheapest massagers cost around $300. These typically have replaceable heads and can rotate up to 3,000 revolutions per minute. With increased spending, technology rapidly becomes top-of-the-line. We recommend doing some research to find out the best value for your money.
Performance
The primary foam roller activity involves rubbing your muscles against the tube-like roller. Raised knobs or trigger points target specific muscles to release tension. If you've ever tried foam rolling, you know it can initially feel awkward or painful. The practice has even been known to bring grown people to tears. If you've never tried foam rolling, you should know that it can feel awkward as your tired and stiff muscles start to relax.
Fascia is the delicate tissue that covers internal organs, muscles, and joints. Fascia also protects other tissues, such as blood vessels. If the layers of your fascia bind together and become "tangled," you may experience a loss of flexibility or an increased risk of injury. A good strategy for overcoming this issue is to use SMR, which will release the fascia and relax your muscles.
In the meantime, massage guns are a different kind of SMR that is more technologically advanced. The massage gun exerts pressure on the muscle by repeatedly hitting it with percussion thousands of times per minute.
Additionally, "the rapidly repeated vibration of the muscle improves blood flow and helps it to relax, resulting in a better workout and speedier recovery," claims Parren, a personal coach and running instructor for Sundried. This quick "percussion" warms the muscles, resulting in increased flexibility and a decreased risk of injury.
Benefits
A 2019 study by Frontiers in Physiology revealed that foam rolling before a workout might enhance the range of motion in joints, speed up the healing process after exercise, and lessen the symptoms of delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS).
"Foam rolling may be uncomfortable for many reasons, but the aim is not to hurt at all," explains one researcher. "One crucial thing to remember is that most individuals foam roll in the incorrect locations, which might be one reason you find it so unpleasant," he says. Foam rolling in the wrong region may create inflammation and irritation. A typical mistake is trying to foam roll over their IT band.
Experts perceive the automatic reaction of massage guns as an advantage. The movement is significantly faster than anything you would obtain by utilizing a foam roller. One might argue that they give more focused relief.
Judgment
Foam rollers and massage guns minimize the risk of injury, increase flexibility before an exercise, and speed up recovery after a workout. Foam rollers also enhance pre-workout flexibility. In addition to offering a massage, foam rollers are a good option for those looking to keep their costs down. However, they are somewhat cumbersome to transport. Using a smaller roller might take quite some time to roll all of your pain away.
In contrast, there has been a rise in massage guns in recent years.
The most effective massage guns may reduce soreness, increase mobility, and speed up the healing process after exercise. The more focused pounding massage guns allow you to treat certain regions more thoroughly, easing away knots and massaging trigger points. They are a helpful answer if you are rehabilitating after an injury or conduct numerous intense exercises per week but don't go for sports massages very frequently.
New era, new choices
The initial foam rollers were simple, smooth tubes on which you rolled your leg and back muscles. The most excellent foam rollers have come a long way from those early versions. Today, you may get devices that vibrate, have knobbles of varying sizes and shapes, and consist of various materials and degrees of rigidity.
However, in the last few years, the sports massage industry has witnessed the rise of the most incredible massage guns; as a result, the topic of how to aid in recovery in the most efficient way has become even more challenging. Traditional foam rollers do not match the accuracy and control provided by sophisticated percussion devices such as the Massage Gun, which is now the most popular option. The reason for this is that, compared to other foam rollers, the Massage Gun enables users to concentrate their attention on specific sore muscles and trouble spots with a degree of precision and control that is unmatched in the industry.
What situations call for a massage gun?
Opposed to the foam roller, which necessitates getting on the floor and rolling about, you can use massage guns while sitting at your computer or on the sofa. For this reason, Hughes, strength training coach and founder of Max Effort Training, recommends using a massage gun. All you have to do to experience the results is hold the tip against the area of discomfort.
If you suffer from chronic muscular discomfort or soreness that limits your range of motion, give one a try. Hughes claims that massage guns can effectively target sore muscles at their source. As a result, Hughes explains, this apparatus is ideal for post-exercise rehabilitation, certain pain conditions, those with restricted mobility, and so on.
"Like foam rollers, massage guns may be used before a workout to loosen up your muscles," stated Dr. Starrett, physical therapist and founder of The Ready State. He recommends using percussion to "raise awareness to a region," "remove stiffness in a movement," or "make something feel better" before training.
Is it worth it to buy a massage gun?
The most effective massage guns often cost anywhere from one hundred to six hundred dollars. That is not to imply that you can't get satisfactory outcomes with solutions that cost less money—doing your research before purchasing is essential to know what you're getting.
In response to your inquiry, it should go without saying that we are severe massage gun enthusiasts. Purchasing a massage gun is money well spent. Using a massage gun may be pleasant, even though becoming familiar with its many attachments may require some effort. The gun is already magically charged, so all you have to do is hold it steady and let it do its enchantment.
Recent research has shown that using massage guns may reduce the severity of delayed-onset muscular soreness (DOMS), shorten the time it takes for painful muscles to heal, and even help recover after an accident. The less flashy foam roller is designed to deliver many of the same benefits as massage guns. Global sports stars such as Grand Slam tennis champion Naomi Osaka and four-time major-winning golfer Rory McIlroy have praised the benefits of massage guns. So, which of these recuperation tools will help you get the most out of your next workout?
According to McKinnon, the manager of Massage Services at London's Ten Health & Fitness, "in principle, this repetitive percussive action boosts blood flow to the region, forcing the muscles to relax." Handheld massage guns are more convenient than foam rollers, which need you to stretch out on top of them to isolate the target region. At-home massage providers have adopted high-powered, professional-grade devices like the Health Plus Massage Gun or Z-Smart Massage Gun. Travel-size massage guns, like the Mini Massage Gun, are convenient to use at your workplace or in your vehicle.
Zarifa USA's massage guns are as effective as foam rolling but take far less time to do the same task. In particular, the Californian firm cites a 2021 study that showed the percussive treatment to be more effective than foam rolling and capable of providing the benefits of 15 minutes of manual therapy massage in only two minutes. As a friendly reminder, try to avoid using your Massage Guns to treat an injury before consulting with a healthcare expert.
In conclusion
Which of these two methods—a massage gun or a foam roller—will enable you to get the most alleviation from your muscular aches and pains.? Both of these are excellent post-workout recovery options. Both help relieves muscular tension and the daily pain that comes with it, and both can relax the muscles. Although we strongly prefer massage guns, the honest answer is that it depends on what you feel is most beneficial for you.
All Zarifa USA products are HSA and FSA-eligible. You can contribute your health savings funds towards purchasing any of our products!
