BOB AND BRAD C2 MASSAGE GUN | GEAR REVIEW

The Bob and Brad massage gun (mine is the C2) has been a fantastic addition to my outdoor gear cupboard. Not for use outdoors itself, of course, but rather to aid recovery when I’m back home.

I’ve been using this thing more-or-less daily for just shy of a month (it arrived after I’d finished the Cotswold Way), and I would say that it has absolutely improved how I feel after hiking, jogging, and even after sitting all day.

It turns out I’m quite late to the massage gun party. When it arrived, I posted on my Instagram and it turns out you’ve all already got one – and have had it for months or even years! All this time I’ve been using my foam roller and little cork ball of pain!!! But while I’m far from an early adopter on this occasion, it’s been good to hear that people I know and respect think massage guns are a good and useful thing to own.

Massage Guns

I received the Bob and Brad C2 Massage Gun as a gift from the team at Bob and Brad to help improve my recovery after long days hiking. In all honesty, I have been looking at these longingly for a good while, but I’ve just never really known if they are good as the marketing blurb suggests. So hopefully, if you feel the same sceptical way as I did, this gear review will be useful.

Massage guns are designed to help muscles recover, reduce muscle pain, muscle fatigue and lactic acid build-up, encourage blood flow, improve range of motion and flexibility, and help with muscle stiffness.

These are all things you can successfully get from a combination of diligent stretching, bathing (hot and cold), and professional sports massages, of course. You don’t need a massage gun to properly recover from strenuous activity. But the benefit of the gun is the ease and speed of getting those paybacks. And the fact you can administer the pain-removing massage on yourself.

Given how much I rate that little cork ball I mentioned above, the first thing I did after charging the unit, was pummel the soles of my feet. I think the word is ‘hooked’.

Bob and Brad C2 Massage Gun

Bob and Brad, you may know, are YouTuber physical therapists, who make videos offering “get fit, stay healthy and pain-free” advice.

The short version of the specification list is that the Bob and Brad C2 massage gun has a quiet brushless motor, is lightweight while still feeling solid, is very easy to hold, has five massage speeds including one at a whopping 3200rpm, and comes with five massage heads suitable for different parts of the body.

Coming in a reasonably compact unit, the professional-looking and feeling gun comes complete with rather nice-looking case, and even a charging cable, which is a rare thing in the world of electronics these days. It appears well made, both durable and sturdy; the plastic coating makes it nice and reasonably soft to hold.

Bob and Brad refer to this as their mini gun, designed for personal use at home and away. I wouldn’t call this is travel-sized or anything like that, though, it’s a great size for at-home use, but a bit big to include in a suitcase.

In Practice

I have used the Bob and Brad massage gun almost daily since I got it, primarily to aid recovery in my legs and feet – and sometimes shoulders – after hiking, kayaking, and just being very busy. I stand at my desk when in the office, and like to be up and moving as much as possible, and so this is as much as a device to keep my muscles in check day-to-day as it is to look after myself following an intense hike or some other purposely energetic activity.

It’s been wonderful for keeping my feet happy and healthy, and has given me opportunity to start reducing some of the tightness in my calf muscles that has built up over the last decade (yes, that I really should have seen a sports therapist about).

Using the C2 Massage Gun

Turning the unit on and switching between the speeds is via a single button on the back of the handle. It’s impossible to switch on and off by accident as you need to long-press to either switch on or off, with a quick press once on changing the speed from the lowest 2,000rpm to highest 3,200rpm.

Given the nature of the kind of exercise I do, I have only really used the lowest two settings so far; I’ve just not needed the extreme pummelling the faster settings provide. In some ways I wish there was a slower-still setting, because that might help me build up a bit more on areas which are a bit more sensitive (thinking about those rather knotted calf muscles!).

The attachments are easily installed and removed – you just shove them in and pull them out as needed. Of the five provided heads, the ball head and bullet head are the two I’ve been getting most use of so far. The former for my legs (and this is apparently the head that most people will use 90% of the time), and the latter for the soles of my feet.

Powerful Enough

This massage gun is certainly powerful enough for me – and I would argue, for the vast majority of people. You know, normal people who want some help recovering from moderate exercise and exertion. It shows no sign of slowing down even when pressed super hard into the muscles; the stall pressure must be much harder than I can implement on myself!

Where it might come up short against other massage guns I’ve seen advertised, is the length of the massage action – how far in and out it goes, and therefore how deep it will get into your muscle tissue. At a bit less than 1cm (by my crude with-a-ruler measurement), it is plenty direct enough for my usage, but I imagine a professional athlete would want a bit more than that, and therefore a larger massage gun.

Apparently, a full charge will give you three to four hours of use – so at the recommended ten-minute intervals, that’s 24 massages per charge. Which really isn’t bad. Lights on the gun indicate how much battery is left, so you shouldn’t ever get half way through a massage and discover you’ve run out of power. I found the unit took around three hours to charge fully, which also isn’t bad.

Noise wise, I am impressed with how quiet this is, but it will still be heard – or felt – around the house when you’re using it. It’s not annoying to others in the house or anything, you can still have a conversation over it at normal volume, but it’s not silent.

My One-Month-In Verdict

The Bob and Brad C2 massage gun is well made and works well. Ideal for personal, at-home use, this is a massage gun for those always on the go who want a way to keep on top of the muscle recovery without paying for regular sports massages. It works well at getting rid of lactic acid build-up, soothing sore muscles, and easing tired feet (my favourite).

I have been enjoying reaping the benefits of almost-daily use over the last month or so, using it in combination with my usual post hike stretches and regular bubble baths to keep my muscles working and supple. I am sure this has resulted in much less stiffness after big hikes, a reduction in DOMS after kayaking, and is much nicer than taking my cork ball to my feet each evening before bed.

If you are one of the few people I know who doesn’t yet have a massage gun like this, or maybe you have a super cheap one that doesn’t have great power output or battery life, then I would highly recommend this.

The Bob and Brad C2 Massage Gun retails for £89.99. Make use of my 10% discount code to buy it from Amazon – use BobBrad401 at the checkout to get money off.

I received the Bob and Brad C2 massage gun for free in return for an honest review on Splodz Blogz. My gear reviews are always based on my own real-life use of a product. If you have any questions about this product I’ve not covered in this post, please do ask and I’ll do my best to help.