Abang Tech: Theragun review: Supercharge your post-workout massage

Tuesday, 24 November 2020

Theragun review: Supercharge your post-workout massage

Our Rating

Price when reviewed

The Theragun is the gold standard of massage guns, but is it worth its hefty price tag?

Pros

Well made

Easy to use

Terrific app

Cons

Expensive

Loud

Massage guns are the next big thing in lifestyle tech and the Theragun is widely considered to be the gold standard. This rechargeable handheld device repetitively pounds your body with a specific amount of force with the aim of quickly activating your muscles or easing tension within them.

Essentially, it’s intended to be a DIY alternative to a professional massage or a faster way to relieve post-workout muscle tightness, soreness and inflammation than a foam roller.

Theragun review: What do you get for your money?

There are four Theragun units in the range, but the one we’ve reviewed is the Theragun Elite. This costs £375 and is in the Goldilocks zone when it comes to price and features. In the box is the Theragun itself, a selection of attachments and a mains charger, plus a sleek carry case to store everything in. The Theragun Elite is available in a choice of three colours: black, white and red.

Where the majority of massage guns come with a simple, pistol-grip design where the massage head protrudes like a bulbous bullet from the gun’s “barrel”, Theragun massagers have a large triangular handle, with the barrel attached at an angle to one corner. The idea is that you can use this ergonomic handle in four different ways to reach awkward-to-reach places like your shoulders and back.

The device itself is relatively light, which also helps and, since it’s rechargeable, you don’t need to mess about with cables. Battery life is around two hours of usage, which is more than enough juice for several sessions.

The Theragun Elite comes with five easy-to-clean foam attachments: Dampener, Standard Ball, Wedge, Thumb and Cone that are each best suited to treating a specific part of your body. The Dampener comes attached to the device by default and it’s super-soft, so you can safely use it practically anywhere on your body – even on tender areas like your arms.

The massage gun has five different speed settings ranging from 1,750 to 2,400 PPM (Percussions Per Minute) – this indicates the number of times the device pulses – so you should be able to find a speed setting and attachment to suit any muscle area you want to treat.

Its other big feature is Bluetooth connectivity, which allows you to connect the Theragun to the free Therabody app on your smartphone. By doing this, you can run a range of preset routines and see if you’re applying the correct amount of pressure while using the gun.

Buy now from Theragun

Theragun review: How many different Theraguns are there?

There are four devices in the latest Theragun range: the Theragun Mini, Theragun Prime, Theragun Elite and Theragun Pro.

Theragun Mini: At £175, the Theragun Mini is the entry-level device. It’s also the most compact (5.4in x 4.3in x 1.6in) and, therefore, the easiest to take with you on your travels. Available in three colours (white, red and black), it pulses with a maximum force of 20lb and an “amplitude” of 12mm. Amplitude is, essentially, the distance the massage head moves up and down. It also has three different speed settings and comes with one Standard Ball attachment.

Theragun Prime: The Theragun Prime is a fairly significant upgrade over the Theragun Mini. It costs £275, has an LED display, and applies its pulses with a maximum force of 30lb and an amplitude of 16mm. There’s also Bluetooth connectivity, so you can take advantage of guided presets using the Theragun app, but the app doesn’t have a force-meter like the Elite and Pro models. In the box are four attachments (Dampener, Standard Ball, Thumb and Cone).

Theragun Elite: This is the model we were sent for testing. It applies its pulses with a maximum force of 40lbs and an amplitude of 16mm, and it comes with five different attachments and five adjustable speed settings. It has an OLED display and can be connected to your phone via Bluetooth for guided massage sessions, with a force-meter telling you how much pressure to apply.

Theragun Pro: This model is designed for professional use – in other words, the model that pro athletes and sports teams will use. It’s the most expensive at £550 and has a number of features the other Theragun models lack. For example, you can rotate its head (the part where the attachment sits) in four different directions to make it easier to access out-of-the-way muscles. It comes with two removable batteries – each capable of lasting 2.5 hours on a single charge – plus it can apply the strongest force of the four at up to 60lb of pressure, and it comes with six attachments.

Buy now from Theragun

Theragun review: How does it compare with other massage guns?

As we mentioned before, the Theragun is considered to be the gold standard of massage guns in the same way that the GoPro is the gold standard of action cameras. The main reason for this is because the company claims that it’s able to “reach 60% deeper into the muscle than average massage guns”.

We can’t verify Theragun’s claim but its quoted 16mm amplitude is better than cheaper rivals massage guns, including the top-rated TaoTronic Deep Professional Massage Gun, which has a quoted amplitude of just 12mm. That said, TaoTronic’s offering costs only £110 and it does have some great features, including ten adjustable speed settings that range from 1,400 to 3,200 PPM, six attachments and a claimed ten-hour battery life.