When was the last time you could honestly say you were niggle free?
No aches, pains, or soreness. No tight hamstrings, sore lower back, or nagging calves.
If you engage in pretty much any form of regular exercise or sport, it’s been a while.
Chances are you’ve done plenty to try and alleviate the symptoms too. Stretching and foam rolling are two inexpensive ways of trying to combat things, but both can be time consuming, and a little awkward.
Go to the other end of the spectrum, and you’re looking at sport massage, which while excellent in terms of results can also be costly.
Enter the Hypervolt.
Hyperice’s vibration massage device that allows for powerful massage, administered by the user, wherever they want to be.
What the product promises:
Increases range of motion
Helps relieve muscle pain, stiffness and soreness
Increases circulation and blood flow
Easy-to-use for self-myofascial release and massage
We put it to the test
The first thing you notice with the Hypervolt is the sturdy nature of the product. There is a solid weight to it, but it is by no means heavy – this is something almost anyone could hold for a long period of time pretty comfortably.
Then we move on to the heads. For me, the larger ‘ball’ shaped head was like an introduction – it’s larger surface area providing a gentle massage, soothing in nature.
The ‘flat’ head is my go to. A firm punchy action that would target reasonably large areas of muscle, allowing for quick use and lots of area covered. You certainly get bang for your buck here.
The final two attachments – a two spoke prong, and a single bullet-like head are really for the down and dirty work – getting into those little knots that really won’t shift. This takes a little willpower, but the feeling of release once all is said and done is something to behold.
I have been used the Hypervolt in two ways – as part of a warm up routine, and as a post-session massage – and by post session, this can mean on the day, and for several days after.
During this period I was fortunate to play in the Dubai Sevens – the perfect testing ground. Playing over a couple of days, with plenty of time between matches, this is the perfect environment for muscles to become tight, and sore.
From a warm-up perspective the Hypervolt is a great addition to your regular routine. This is not a replacement to stretching and active warm-ups but it terms of getting some blood flow to the muscle and encouraging some extra movement and range of motion it is superb. The main targets for me are of the shoulders, lower back, quads and hamstrings and with the ‘flat’ attachment all can be targeted with ease. Around one minute on each body part was certainly enough to start feeling loose.
Something to keep in mind here is the three speed settings. I have only once or twice revved it up to full power, generally for both warming up, and post exercise I have been fine with the first setting. The device can offer up to 3200 percussions per minute, thankfully I’ve not had anything to require that as yet.
Post match and post gym session is more spot-fixing for me. Identifying those tight areas that just need a little help to loosen up after some tough activity. Again this mainly focuses around the legs – here I can spend up to 10-15 minutes just working away with the Hypervolt – with an immediate impact. Muscle soreness feels reduced, and mobility is certainly improved.
For this amount of use, a solid battery is key. The one in the Hypervolt is billed at last for around three hours, it is difficult to judge this as you are only using it in short bursts, but I would I am probably charging every couple of weeks – and even as the battery power diminishes you don’t notice a residual effect in performance.
Priced at around AED1600 this may seem a luxury product, but for the amount of use you’ll get from it, you could argue it becomes a vital part of your kit bag – certainly for someone who is active on a regular basis.
I am using it on a daily basis, and it is a staple of both pre and post session. A really great piece of kit.
You can get the Hypervolt and a range of other devices in the UAE at vibration.ae
