Massage guns are all the craze of late. You've seen them on your facebook feed, you see your favourite instagram fitness model promoting them as if it was invented by Einstein himself, and if you've been in the market to buy one you would've been spammed with plenty of ads in just about every direction you look. 

So the question you're probably asking is do massage guns really work?

The simple answer is yes. However, it also depends on how you use your massage gun and which brand you decide to purchase.

Do Massage Guns Really Work?

This is not just a fad, they really do work. A recent study by Z. Vegar & S. Imtiyas (2014) found  that vibration therapy has shown effectiveness in improving flexibility and explosive power. The study also concludes that vibration therapy has been effective in improving muscular strength, power development, kinesthetic awareness, decreased muscle soreness, increased range of motion, and increased blood flow under the skin. By applying pressure to the muscles which are experiencing pain, massage guns can successfully reduce delayed onset muscle soreness and help to regain full range of motion.It also offers a nice deep tissue massage from the comfort of your own home.

Whether you should buy a massage gun depends on your own requirements. You need to work out the costs which you currently incur with looking after your body. If you participate in sport or regular exercise it's highly recommended to own one. The reason for this is that it's a simple replacement of a traditional massage and could save you time and money spent on injuries. Even if you don't work out, a device such as the mussage massage gun could save you money that you'd usually spend at a traditional massage and also work to effectively reduce pain from time spent sitting at your desk or doing household activities.

References:

Z. Vegar & S. Imtiyas, (2014), Vibration Therapy in Management of Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25121012