Do Massage Guns Work?
Massage guns have been a popular recovery tool over the past couple of years, endorsed and approved by doctors, trainers, professional athletes, and fitness enthusiasts. These handheld massagers are meant to make your muscles feel better — by increasing blood flow, breaking up tension, decreasing soreness, and improving range of motion. These benefits of massage guns all lead to better performance and speedier recoveries.
Massage guns work by sending direct percussive and vibrating pulses through your muscle. Percussion therapy from massage guns is effective at reducing delayed onset muscle soreness, alleviating pain in the process. Percussion therapy also proves helpful in decreasing the levels of lactic acid in your body post-workout for a faster recovery.
Recommended Ways to Use a Massage Gun
Start small and start slow. Muscles should not be over-stimulated as they can drive fluid into the muscle without allowing it to flow out again causing pain. Use a lower-level setting when you get started. Use it on large muscle groups such as the quads and glutes and avoid bony structures.
Precautions
When owning a massage gun, it’s the responsibility of the user to protect their health by taking certain precautions. Medical advice should be sought whenever there’s pain or discomfort in using.
No matter what, the massage gun should never cause pain. The muscles will not relax whenever there’s pain. If the muscles are tensed, it resists the vibration therapy. If it’s painful, stop right away because you might be pressing too hard. Pain may be a sign that it is causing more damage than good. If you experience a pins-and-needles sensation or your pain has an electrical quality, you might have touched a nerve and you should immediately stop using the gun.
Massage guns, although powerful handy tools for fitness, are not a one-stop solution to all your physical problems. It should be used in conjunction with other tools like foam rollers for tight muscles, as part of a more holistic recovery plan.
