I have no idea if a massage gun will do any good or not, but I did own a set of normatecs. Aside from being somewhat of a pain in the ass to use, I never felt I got any benefit from them.

One thing I have used that I think helped a little bit, was a compex. I found that after long workouts where my legs would feel like bricks, if I put the compex on and ran the recovery program on my quads, they felt much less sore, flushed out. I don't think it helped so much that I would pay full retail for one though. I bought one of the mid-level units used here on ST

They are different use-cases but I can tell you this, I still use boots far more than a massage gun. A massage gun is far better for targeting specific areas and deeper, but it requires your attention. Boots are a passive experience, that target the whole body more consistently and provide a general flush. I think both are good tools but I would probably get the boots first. There are some really affordable massage guns. I reviewed the Bivi, here, it is $145 to your door with free same-day shipping if you live in a qualifying zone. It is a nice, and powerful device, albeit like all of the devices, pretty loud.

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I'll second what Thomas said, we started with the boots, bought the Hypervolt and also have the pain pod/tens unit. The boots are great for both recovery and warm up, I'll use them sometimes the morning before a long run or ride and after a long run or ride sitting in front of the tv. We grab the gun and use is more specific to areas of pain or stiffness, ie. quads, calves. Same for the pain pod, which is great for the neck and delts or shoulder pain. If you ever get migraines, the pain pod really relieves the tension.

I have used boots extensively in the past and currently have a Hyperice.
I have an issue with soft-tissue soreness. (e.g.) Massages, while helpful, are often excruciatingly painful. I see this as a limiting factor as I'm often "sore" during hard efforts.

Given my limitations, I feel the Hyperice has been very beneficial. It was hard to use due to soreness initially. I would also have a DOMS situation where I'd be more sore the day after I used it. However, now that I've had it for a month, I can use more pressure and do not get sore the next day. I've also noted that my legs have been feeling better: Less sore, more power during hard efforts. I use the percussion massage in addition to the (triggerpoint) roller, and both have been beneficial in different ways.

Boots, on the other hand, were nice to lounge around in. They were *Potentially* useful after a big day or a big training block. Really hard to say if there were benefits. They helped me "feel" more recovered; a bit "lighter on my feet" but did not address leg soreness etc.

Your mileage may vary.

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In regards to your general soreness and as objectively as you can, would say you are an overly tight / rigid body, or more of a loose / supple body, and in comparison to other people you know. TIA.

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I vote for boots because you can take a nap while they are doing their thing. Whether or not their “thing” is helpful, I can’t answer. But they feel good.

I think it is hard to argue with napping as being good ;)

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I have reviewed the science on the various pneumatic compression garments (Normatec, Reboot etc) as well as the cold water garments on my TriDoc podcast. Both have some merit but not nearly as much as has been claimed and likely not in the way you think.

Can't comment on the massage guns as those are fairly new and have not been studied. Personally they are not for me but I confess that is entirely a personal opinion.

If you are interested:

Pneumatic compression boot discussion: https://podcasts.apple.com/...8682?i=1000428272017

Cold therapy garments discussion: https://podcasts.apple.com/...8682?i=1000451821512

Cheers

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Jeffrey Sankoff, MD
TriDoc Coaching/TriDoc Podcast
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FWIW, I have NormaTec boots and a Theragun. I think I’ve only used the boots twice all year. I have used the TheraGun 2-3 times/week throughout the year. Don’t feel like I get much benefit from the boots beyond general relaxation and help drifting off for a nap. The TheraGun helps me reach some trigger points that are difficult to get to with a lacrosse ball.

I have both products and would second this recommendation. I probably have a deep tissue massage 2x per month. Having the Theragun allows massage every day.

I am not sold on recovery aids.

Hear me out. A while a go there was a study done in Japan (I can't pull it up) testing the effectiveness of ice bath for recovery on physiological adaptations. From what I recall the group that did not take ice baths had the bigger performance gain over the group that took them.

The conclusions lead to a different hypothesis. The recovery aid actually took away some of the training stress (ex: making you less sore). But the entire point of the training is to hammer your body somewhat and then rebuild the body into something physiologically superior. If you take away training stress through the recovery aid, then its almost like having done less training (example taking away a bunch of intervals or taking away intensity from intervals). So according to this hypothesis what the recovery aids allow you to do is be less sore, meaning its almost as if you did less training and had less trauma to your body.

The recovery aids according to this hypothesis actually effectively reduce the overall training load by taking away training induced microtrauma (which is what we want from training), thus resulting in lesser physiological adaptations....during a stage race, or between back to back weekends of racing during a peak period when you're not trying to gain physiological capacity, but you're just trying to keep your peak and gain rest to race again, by all means, go nuts on recovery aids....or at least that is what I read into that study (I wish I could find it).

Since then I have experimented on myself and used zero recovery aids and let my body do it on its own no matter how hard the training. I think long term training my body to self recover is going to help anti aging because the first thing that goes for older athletes is the ability to recover and absorb large training loads. I'm 54 and I can train as hard as when I was 34 at least on the swim and bike. Running is a different story due to connective tissue and the fact that I could not run for several years, but as i get back to it, i am finding that I can sustain decent running workload too. At least more than a lot of my 54 year old peers.

Don’t agree which Dev very much, but this time I definitely do

Just to be clear, I am unsure if that study was on the right track or wrong track, but it made "sense" to me, but it felt like there was not enough data for things to be conclusive. So I decided on a multi year test on myself as I figured there would not be a massive downside unless I was on a multi day training camp with buddies and I had to keep up or get dropped.

Well this is why we need large long-term studies to figure this out. But doing a study on a few training days is no good for a device that I really see the benefits happening over longer periods of time. However, let's take this to the extreme. Would you say that after a lot of hard racing and training, that walking would be detrimental to your fitness. I mean walking is the same concept, keep the blood circulating, thus reducing the training effect...

In addition, flip it around the other direction. Would you do dynamic stretches before say going for a walk, or let's steepen the example even further. Let's say you were doing 800s on the track. If we let you sleep on the track, would you spring out of bed and immediately start the first 800 in maximum sprint mode? Why not? Because the body needs to be warmed up and primed.Some people literally use boots because they are just relaxing and it feels good, just like I am listening to 528 hz tranquility music right now. Those same people may also use boots to prime the muscles, ie. warm them up for exercise.

Granted, tangentially being in the boots business, and I get a lot of random questions from people who are not athletes at all, but many people really do just like getting into boots and using them after a long day at work and on their feet. Would it be better to get rid of the lazy-boy and just sit cross-legged on the ground. Maybe so, but people also have to find enjoyment in life. Now, believe me, I foam roll, and I probably will always foam roll certain parts of my body, but never have I never said, geez, I am looking forward to foam rolling. In fact, I should probably do some stretching and foam rolling right now and watch an Episode of Monk. But the bed and boots seems so much more enjoyable.

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Independent natural restoration, as for me, is not always appropriate, because what is needed for healing? A condition of rest and stability.
But this is rarely available for us, because we have a personal life, work and much more. For example, there is a chance to catch a cold or sitting at work in an office chair and have a constricted blood circulation, which will increase the recovery period.
So personally, my opinion is, if there is an opportunity to speed up the restoration, then why not

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leg massager compare

The TrainerRoad podcast from I think around last August all about recovery. I can't remember if studies were sited or not but I don't Chad would have talked about had there not been. Anyways he went on to talk about anti inflamatories like tylonal/ advil and how they would stunt adaptations because one of the results from training is inflammation and the body uses that as a trigger to adapt. If you are taking anti inflamaroties then you stunt that trigger. That brings me to the question on how CBD would affect the same thing. I'd imagine the same concept applies to massge aids as well.

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I have boots, gun and compex.

I use boots almost every night while watching TV. Easiest and most convenient to use.
I use gun every so often when i feel a specific spot needs help. Easy to use but not really enjoyable.
I used to use Compex all the time. Very much a pain with all the cords and pads that got worn out.

I also use the foam roller every night.

I think boots and foam roller is perfect combination.

I have all of these as well (Normatec, Theragun, Compex and foam roller). I use them for somewhat different purposes.

My hamstrings, glutes and hip flexors tend ot tighten up sometimes after a hard ride or run, and that often brings on lower back pain if I don't catch it in a timely manner. I'll use the Theragun or foam roller on glutes, hamstrings hip flexors, IT band and lower back to loosen things up. I also use the Theragun on spots on my back and shoulders.

The Normatec boots get used several times a week before bed to get rid of an residual edema after hard workouts, and get rid of that "restless leg" feeling (DOMS) that sometimes can keep me up at night. 30 minutes in the boots with some good music and I sleep like a baby and the legs feel much more refreshed the next day. But the boots will not get rid of specific tight spots like the Theragun will.

The Compex is just a PITA so it mostly just sits in the drawer now.