Yours Verdict
Product: www.homedics.co.uk
Price: £249.99
Rating: ★★★★★ (5/5)
What they say it does:
What they say: The back stretching mat inspired by yoga, is the new way to bring yoga into your day. STRETCH guides you through a range of sequences, ‘Twist’, ‘Flow’, ‘Energise’ and ‘Stretch’ that deliver the benefits of calm and controlled stretching without leaving your mat. The mat mimics yoga-style stretches by inflating the air chambers to encourage your lumbar to stretch, release, and relax. Releases tension and improves flexibility. Feel immediate benefits in shoulders, hips and back
What our reviewer said:
Anyone who suffers from back pain all year round, knows the dread that comes from the onset of winter…. cold days bring more pain. What’s more, whilst you know you need to keep active during those winter months, winter days just make that motivation harder. This is certainly the case in my house and so when HoMedics approached us enthusiastically to test out STRETCH we jumped at the chance to see if this ‘on the pricey side’ machine could really help and what’s more, be worth the price the tag ….. in short, after a month of use, our 5/5 rating says it all!
The first thing we noted is how easy it is to use. It soon became apparent why there was no 50 page usage booklet because put quite simply, the machine just does all the stretching work for you. Enough said. You can choose between four programmes to experience the effects of a yoga session in just 10-15 minutes. Using the simple, handheld control, the four treatments can be customised to the intensity and suit your flexibility (we started off on the lower settings until we found one that suited our individual, particular needs). All we then had to decide is what we wanted the machine to do….. stretch the spine or relieve tension in your shoulders and neck (the latter being especially helpful if you are in a sitting position most of the day).
Once the session was done, the next step was to relax….no end of times, we found ourselves on the mat for a few minutes after the session had ended, completely absorbed in the sense of relief rather than getting back to any needed tasks thereafter. We found that with sustained, regular use, the STRETCH helped take the edge of the back pain and really did help make our back area less stiff (in turn helping with the pain relief).
So why the top rating despite the price tag? For anyone suffering back pain it is to put it simply; horrible, frustrating, debilitating. Anything that can help to not only relieve pain but improve flexibility, without adding to the list of medications, is worth investing in. Whilst loath to give anything a top rating (nothing is perfect after all, right?), we have to give it to HoMedics, STRETCH delivers what it says it does.
Retailers: Homedics, Amazon, Very.co.uk, and Argos.
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