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Giving the Gift of a Massage Chair to a Retiree

Relaxation & Wellness is an Incredible Present

Is one of your relatives or friends retiring this year? A high-quality massage chair makes for an excellent retirement gift and can provide a wealth of benefits for the retiring person in your life who enjoys massage.

Everyone appreciates a massage after a long day. But going to the spa or a therapist on a regular basis isn’t possible for most of us because of price, scheduling, transportation, and of course the current pandemic. In these situations, giving the gift of a massage chair can be an incredible way to tell someone you love them and provide them with relief from consistent aches and pains.

Whether the person you’re gifting the chair too simply enjoys massage, deals with chronic pain, or wants a better, more enjoyable way to keep their muscles active, a massage chair is a great gift. There are some things you should consider prior to gifting a chair though. Let’s go over those now.

Before You Buy

On certain occasions, getting a massage or using a massage chair can do more harm than good. If you are concerned that the person you want to get the chair is a good candidate, ask yourself the following questions. Do they have any underlying health conditions that would make getting a massage harmful such as hypertension or heart disease, low blood pressure, blood clots, cancer, osteoporosis? If they do, you may want to ask them if their doctor approves of massage for them. If not, a massage chair is unlikely to be harmful.

Additionally, do you feel the person will understand a more complex massage chair or do you think they would be better off with a simpler design? There are plenty of both on the site, so you’re sure to be able to find something that will suit the retiree in your life.

What Will it Cost?

The cost of a massage chair can range from anywhere between $2,500 up to as much as $15,000, depending on the complexity, type, and size of the chair. However, you’ll certainly find several wonderful chairs anywhere within that range. Though those price tags may have you wondering if they are truly worth it.

The best way to answer that question is to weigh the cost versus the benefits the person you’re giving it to would receive. Overall wellness, reduce pain, and many additional benefits await anyone who uses a massage chair.

You may also be wondering if the cost is comparable to going to a massage therapist. Well, let’s take a look. The cost of massage therapy is roughly $75 to $100 per hour. When you add up the total cost of multiple massage sessions, travel costs, scheduling adjustments, and limited availability, you may end up paying much more and sacrificing much more than you might think.

A massage chair can be used whenever the person desires, as often as they want, and you can enjoy sessions for just 10 minutes that can be as effective as an hour on a massage table, all in the comfort of your own home. It can also be better for older adults because there’s no commute entailed and they don’t have to worry about physically getting on to and off on a massage table.

Best of all, MassageChairPlanet.Com offers financing and there are always several promotions going on that can make the initial startup cost of a massage chair much more manageable.

What are the Health Benefits?

Regular use of a massage chair is wonderful for many people, especially the elderly. It holds several benefits, including better sleep, improved blood circulation, a stronger immune system, better flexibility, and pain relief.

Details about each of the benefits and more are below:

  • Better sleep- massage can help improve sleep patterns and insomnia by promoting relaxation and stimulating the release of certain neurotransmitters such as melatonin and serotonin.
  • Improved circulation- as you age circulation can get worse, but with regular massage you can improve the blood flow to the essential parts of the body, as well as the extremities.
  • Stronger immune system- massage helps to release toxins from the body, supporting immune function and even aiding those with autoimmune disorders.
  • Better flexibility- tension is released from the muscles, reducing pain and stiffness, which can promote overall flexibility.
  • Stimulates the nervous system- this helps the both to release beneficial hormones, endorphins, and neurotransmitters to improve overall function that can lead to even greater physical and emotional benefits.
  • Mental health benefits- endorphins and neurotransmitters, induced by regular massage, has shown to aid depression, improve memory, and improve abnormal symptoms in dementia patients such as anxiety or violent behaviors.
  • Pain Relief- chronic pain, arthritis, and fibromyalgia have all shown improvement with regular massage.
  • Weight gain improvement- through the correction of chemical imbalances, massage helps people to maintain a healthy weight.

You’ll also be able to see these benefit rather quickly. Improvement of mental and cognitive functions as well as some pain relief has been seen in as little as twenty minutes after your first session in the chair.

What is the effect of massage chairs on your posture?

Using a massage chair can also help to improve posture. 

Static muscle activity, poor workstation design, neck flexion, unnatural static postures, or compressive or shearing forces to the spine on an extended timeframe can all cause poor posture. Essentially, when we’re rough on our spines because of sitting at a desk, carrying heavy loads, and so much more, we can cause our posture to suffer. 

Your body starts to accept those new distorted positions as normal, which can lead to neck and lower back pain.

A massage chair can help to relax the posterior muscles and relieve tension from around the spine, providing temporary relief. When you use massage chairs regularly to help the short, tense, and contracted muscles causing poor posture, it allows those muscles relax and lengthen over time, which can help your muscles and spine find proper alignment vertically and horizontally. 

Quite a few people who have even or poor posture because of these issues have seen dramatic improvement in stance and spine alignment thanks to regular massage.

Massage Chair Considerations

When you’re looking for a massage chair to give as a gift, you’ll want to keep the following things in mind.

Room/Space

Think about the person’s home your retiring family member or friend lives in and where they will put their new chair. Is there plenty of room available, or is the floor space rather cramped?

Some massage chairs are much larger than others, and you don’t want to choose a chair that won’t fit in their house. Fortunately, with today’s space-saving technology, you can find a number of high-quality massage chairs that will fit into tight quarters and recline without eating up too much floor space.

Chair Appearance

Genuine leather, synthetic leather, and fabric upholstery in any number of colors are available for massage chairs. There are even chairs with hideaway ottomans, wooden accents, and sleek, modern designs.

How the chair looks may be a big deal when it comes to a retirement gift massage chair. After all, it’ll be sitting in the home of your relative or friend for years to come, so understanding your friend’s style and feelings about form over function will be crucial to ensuring they truly appreciate the gift.

What Features Should You Look For?

Buying a massage chair can seem overwhelming when there are so many options available to you. There are a plethora of different sizes, pressures, heating choices, and even zero-gravity or inversion recline. To help make your decision a bit easier for your loved one, here’s a few things to look at as you’re shopping.

Most standard massage chairs use three basic settings- heating, vibrations, and massage rollers. A massage chair with a heated setting is especially nice for relaxing the muscle and is great when it is cold outside. Consider whether the person you’re shopping for like heat or would prefer to forgo that option.

When looking at the massage tracks and rollers, consider how much pressure that person is likely to enjoy. For older adults and seniors, a high-pressure massage chair could very well be too much. However most massage chairs have adjustable intensity settings. Additionally, would they prefer something that can reach down past the glutes or a massage that stops at the lower back?

You’ll also want to consider the size in relation to the cost. Some of the most feature-heavy, and most costly, chairs are quite large. After all, a lot of room is needed for all those internal motors and components. Do you think they would want something that bulky? Would they enjoy all the bells and whistles of a high-tech chair or prefer something a bit less tricked out?

You’ll also find a number of chairs that mention airbag massage, zero-gravity, and stretch functions. Airbag massage is found in nearly all chairs and provides a compression massage to areas of the body that can’t be reached by the rollers. This compression massage can vary in intensity, so if you’re looking for a more gentle chair you’ll want to keep that in mind as well.

Many chairs have a reclining ability and the best in that arean is the zero-gravity setting. With zero-gravity, your full body weight is entirely supported by the chair and the massage rollers can really get deep into your tense muscles. When you’re enjoying a relaxation massage, it can feel like you are floating, and it’s a great way to achieve spinal decompression. This feature does add to the price tag, though.

Muscle or spinal stretch features are the other very popular option. More and more chairs are coming with a stretch program because so many people enjoy it. Simple muscle stretch can help improve overall flexibility and the spinal stretch is a great feature that can reduce back or spinal pain as it help to lengthen the muscles and joint spaces in your spine.

As you shop for your retiring relative or friend, consider whether they’d appreciate all these extra features. Zero-gravity positioning is a popular option, and many people love the body-scan technology and full-body heating. But perhaps, the person you’re shopping for would never use them. Think about the person first, and then find a chair that matches their needs and style.

Shop With Confidence

A high-quality massage chair can be a pricey present, but the good news is that you’re shopping with a company who cares. We will do everything we can to ensure your retiree loves their new chair.

As careful as you may be in making a selection for your retiring family member or friend, the chair you purchase may not be a good fit for them. If this is the case, we can work with you on an exchange. And don’t forget about the helpful financing and price-match guarantee we offer.


Conclusion

Massage chairs can be a good investment for the elderly and a retiree looking to enjoy their life after work. They can help keep your body relaxed and flexible. Please do thorough research and consult a doctor before buying a massage chair. But with that done, you can be sure that this gift will be one of the most incredible things your retiree will have ever received.

Finished With Your Research?

You can look into the chairs, techniques, and other benefits of massage in the Learning Center on our website, and you’ll be able to see the physical benefits each of the styles offered and what to be prepared for from them. 

If you have any questions or are interested in purchasing your first massage chair, check out our Massage Chair Buying Guide or give us a call. You can even reach out through email at info@massagechairplanet.com.

With all this in mind, don’t forget about our financing options. We understand that investing in a massage chair is a big decision, and we want to help make that process as simple and stress-free as possible. Our sales representatives are ready and excited to get you into the perfect chair!

 

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