We take a pounding with the Theragun Pro

While I’m not as active as I once was a few years ago, getting older isn’t fun as you’re prone to muscle aches and ‘twinges’ that occur when you don’t keep yourself stretched and limber. My main issue tends to be neck and lower-back ache, which comes from hours of sitting at my desk writing articles (like this). So when Leader Radio, the Singapore distributors of the Theragun percussive massage gun family asked if NXT was interested in reviewing products from the range, I choose the Theragun Pro, while the younger, more active NXT writers Clarissa and Zhi Min tried out the Theragun Mini.

Now the Theragun Pro, when delivered, is quite a substantial package, as it comes in a well-padded carry case that includes two removable batteries, a small case for the various massage heads, and the battery charger. With two fully charged batteries you get up to 300 minutes of use between charges, which is sufficient to last a week if you use the Theragun Pro daily with 10 4-minute sessions, so there’s no rush in recharging. The signature triangle shape is made of hard plastic and provides plenty of space for grip, and with the massage arm able to lock into 4 separate positions, you are able to reach hard-to-massage places, like your lower right shoulder, easily, and the soft rubber massage heads can be swapped quite easily if you require a wider or more precise impact.

While I’ve become rather slothy, I do have plenty of actively aging friends, who exercise up to 8 hours each week, and have used percussion massage devices like the Therargun for post-exercise treatment, where the percussive impact of the devices helps loosen up tired muscles, especially targeting specific muscles like calf muscles that are on the verge of cramping from peak exercise. In my case, once I synced the Theragun Pro to the Therabody App, I found that it accessed a host of routines that you could store to create specific works out for yourself. For example, for my sore neck, I simply selected the specific treatment routine on the app and turned on my device so that it synced with my smartphone, then pressed play and followed on-screen directions for a one-minute massage, thirty seconds on each side, sweeping the precision head from the tip of my shoulder to near the back of my ear, with the app monitoring the amount of force I used and the speed of my sweep. I did feel some pain at a specific spot just below my left ear, but that went away after treating that muscle for 5 seconds.The Therabody app also logs your treatments on the Apple Health app and/or Strava, so that you can monitor your post-workout routine.

Now I have heard feedback about the Theragun being noisy in comparison to other brands, but to be frank, the muted whirring noise has never bothered me, as each routine, if you follow the app, takes from 60 seconds to 8 minutes when you use one of the Activities routines, which ‘chains’ a number of massage patterns for a specific activity.S$899
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Rating 4.5 / 5

We say
The Theragun Pro is an excellent percussive massage gun with a great app, but if you don’t need such a comprehensive device then consider the more affordable Theragun Prime or Mini.

Technical Specifications
Massage Heads 6
App Therabody (iOS, Android)
Battery 150 min
Speed range 1750-2400 RPM
Force up to 27kg
Weight 1.3kg

First published in NXT Magazine November 2020. A digital edition can be purchased on Magzter.