Unlike many of its pocket-friendly competitors, it has five speed settings and five attachments for targeting different areas, plus it comes with a sleek carry case that has plenty of room for all the accessories (handy for travel). Our tester was a big fan of the more unusual ones, including the ‘thumb’, which mimics a human thumb to release tension, and the ‘damper’, which is ideal for gliding over joints.

Unlike the larger devices in this round-up, this one is lightweight and easy to hold during lengthy massage sessions. Hearst UK is the trading name of the National Magazine Company Ltd, 30 Panton Street, Leicester Square, London, SW1Y 4AJ.Though it’s not the lightest device we tested, we found it easy to hold the tilted matte handle without it slipping, even when we were using it on our back, and it’s not too noisy either.

Post-workout, Willum recommends using a massage gun on "a low rpm speed setting to help kick-start the crucial recovery process". Over to Vic Paterson, a soft tissue therapist and co-founder of State 11 Soft Tissue Therapy, to explain how massage guns work in simple terms. While working out and staying active is on the whole a good thing to do for your general health and wellbeing, muscles, particularly the glutes, quads and hamstrings, can feel stiff, tense and sore for a few days after trying a new activity or pushing yourself a bit harder than usual. It’s a little bulky and heavy, and the handle vibrates heavily at high speed, but it comes with a decent range of massage heads, a comprehensive user guide and a robust carry case.It also scored top marks for ease of use – there’s just one button for speed control and a handy manual that explains what each head is for and how to use it. You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice.

Packed with innovation, you can heat it up to 47C in under two minutes for a warm massage, or freeze the interchangeable cool gel head for four hours for the ultimate cool down. Use it for no more than 30 seconds to start with, to make sure it doesn’t cause soreness, and work up to using it for up to two minutes on each muscle group. There are four routines to choose from on the device, but they recommend connecting to the user-friendly Therabody app for myriad personalised options that target specific aches and pains.Testers also rated the bullet head for tackling trigger points and the spine head feels nice on sore neck and back muscles. We welcomed the compact carry case, which fits all the different attachments and charger neatly inside, and the device itself was easy to operate thanks to a conveniently placed control button and detailed instructions. They considered how easy each massage gun was to control, how smoothly it moved over the skin and whether the different massage head attachments were effective, as well as the practicality and intuitiveness of each massager's controls and overall design. Instead, concentrate on the big, meaty muscles such as the biceps, triceps, thighs and glutes, and don't use it for too long — it will only make things sorer!