Have you ever wished you could bring the spa to your own home? Especially after a long run when your feet are aching and tired or even after a hard day in the office.
Well, now you can! Bob and Brad cleverly came up with a simple and relatively compact device that allows you to have a foot massage with spa-like comfort right from your couch.
In a day and age where self-care is a growing trend and self-care products are plenty, it can be difficult to know which product to choose. We’re here to tell you that when it comes to foot care, Bob and Brad’s 721 Foot Massager is definitely up there with the best.
This new, updated Bob and Brad Foot massager offers heat therapy, kneading massage, air compression, and more. Your feet will fall in love with this device!
Additionally, this massager is specifically designed to help with plantar fasciitis pain and injury prevention and helps with other common injuries like Achilles tendonitis.
So let’s see what this device is all about…
| Pros | Cons |
| Injury prevention and relief for plantar fasciitis | Intensity settings |
| Simple to use | |
| Great price | |
| Many settings for individualized comfort | |
| Fantastic pressure and levels of massage |
What is the purpose of Feet massaging?
Many of us have likely experienced a massage of some kind at least once in our lifetime (and if you haven’t then we highly recommend you get your hands on some of Bob and Brad’s products! Check out our reviews of their range here).
However, fewer people have experienced a personal foot massager at home – something Bob and Brad want to change.
So what is the purpose of a foot massager and why is it beneficial?
Well, like other popular massage tools like the Bob and Brad massage guns, this device helps relieve muscle and tendon pain with passive massage (meaning the device releases the muscles for you) while you sit back and relax.
Massage has been proven time and time again to help relieve and relax the body both physiologically and psychologically.
This is because there is an increase in blood flow to the area which helps flush out unwanted tissue toxins and bring healthy nutrients to the area for tissue healing and rejuvenation.
Massage also helps release and relax the muscle or tendon sheaths which makes the body feel less guarded and able to reduce tension from the area.
Additionally, massage can temporarily change how the nervous system pathways relate to the brain concerning pain and inhibits them. This allows your body to focus on something other than the original pain or ache and “reset” in a sense through the act of simply slowing down and being still.
As you can imagine, the benefits of using a foot massager are the same for the aforementioned reasons.
More specifically, using the science of reflexology, foot massage can hit certain pressure points which send specific signals to the brain to help relax areas around the entire body.
Plus, we use our feet a lot on a day-to-day basis, so it makes sense that these muscles, tendons, and attaching fascia can become achy.
Our footwear also plays a large role in this too, as most of us are not always wearing high-quality trainers all day.
As physical therapists, Bob and Brad regularly come across various foot injuries – which is why they specifically designed a foot massager to target common foot and ankle injuries such as plantar fasciitis.
This foot massager is great for runners in need of some foot love to everyday individuals who want to relax, unwind, and take care of their feet, alike.
The Specs of the 721 Foot Massager
Bob and Brad’s updated 721 Foot Massager made some vast improvements from their original design. Primarily in the size and weight of the product, which makes this option more accessible and convenient to have in the home.
The previous model was twice as heavy and the device now weighs only 7.7 lbs (~3.5kg) and measures right at about 18 in (72 cm) in diameter.
While being compact, the major perks of this product are not its portable size, but what lies on the inside – the massage device itself.
This model offers three levels of heat ranging from 113°F to 131°F (45-55°C), three levels of massage intensity, four levels of air compression pressure, plus three massage settings (A,B,C).
Okay so let’s break all that down a little further.
Double-Layer Heat:
The double-layer heat setting is designed to help with circulation and blood flow.
This is key for healing and can also help those with nerve pain, like neuropathy (please be advised to limit the amount of time to avoid burning if you have impaired sensation in the feet – always consult your doctor before use!)**
There are three settings available starting at 113°F up to 131°F (45-55°C) and a remote can be used to control the temperature.
Shiatsu Therapeutic Massage:
The massage settings and intensity are the most advanced on this particular model.
It offers, rolling, scraping, gliding, kneading and squeezing types of massage with various combinations that can also be controlled by a remote.
The rolling is the most gentle it moves in a wave-like motion under the arch of the foot.
Then the rollers stop and can do a pressure point ‘spot’ massage that targets one specific area of the foot.
Squeezing massage pushes down with firm pressure and the shiatsu element is added for a circular type motion that stretches the fascia gently.
Then, kneading pressure is a more vigorous option that works to loosen the tissue and finally, percussion offers a rhythmic pressure that is a deeper form of massage.
Phew, that was a lot! But it works and the combinations really set this product on center stage for an at-home device.
Being in the physical therapist game for decades, both Bob and Brad take pride in backing up their products with the knowledge they have both researched and experienced as clinicians.
Their goal in this design was to specifically target areas in the foot that struggle with plantar fasciitis or fatigue in general.
So they designed all the settings to produce a comprehensive reflexology massage system that digs in and backs off at the right time to allow for the best tissue healing possible.
Some other fun facts about the 721 foot massager are that it can fit all shapes and sizes up to a men’s size 12. There’s also an easy remote control to maximize settings, a 15-minute auto timer, and my personal favorite – washable footies!
A Runner’s Review:
As a runner and a student physical therapist, I am always looking for new opportunities and researching products that will help me in my sport and my future practice.
And, Bob and Brad’s products have definitely met the mark for doing just that.
Being in grad school, I’m limited on how many massages I can get, but these products have allowed me to make a one-time investment in my health that can be used over and over again.
Essentially, the 721 foot massager has allowed me to bring the spa to my home, which makes recovering both convenient and beneficial to my performance and health.
I have luckily never struggled with plantar fasciitis, but my Achilles gives me trouble on and off throughout the year, and this product was specifically designed to help with such running injuries.
After finishing a long run, I decided to give this product a try and see if it would relieve any of my fatigue and help with my recovery.
It unsuprisingly did! I am thrilled with how it felt underneath my feet. It truly felt like I was at a spa.
The product gently heats up and you can change the various settings and intensities.
There are rollers under the feet that gently yet firmly press into the arches and help relieve those pesky tender spots.
Bob and Brad use a technique known as Shiatsu Kneading Massage so the rollers change angles and positions to optimize tissue deformation for healing.
I also really appreciated that it comes up a little around the ankle almost like a snowboot, and compresses the Achilles area as well.
The product is also relatively small which allows it to be stored easily, out of sight.
Despite all the amazing things about Bob and Brad’s foot massager, there are some improvements that could be made.
For example, the pressure settings could be stronger and it would be nice to be able to choose the intensity at the beginning of the 15 min auto timer.
The pressure begins mildly and builds into high-intensity massage. This is great, however personally the initial level of massage feels too weak for me.
Although saying this, there is strong evidence to suggest that you should, in fact, start with low pressure and gradually build into strong pressure.
“Strong” pressure can be different from person to person, so it’s hard to judge this setting on the machine.
For me, I needed it to be stronger at a baseline point to really feel like I was getting a benefit.
For others, though, this may be a non-issue and the pressure may be perfect from start to finish. So, ultimately it is the user’s perspective.
Overall, I think this product is another fantastic option for runners and people who are on their feet for hours on end, like nurses, retail workers, and any other profession that requires a lot of standing.
By targeting the pressure points on your feet, the 721 foot massager helps relax your body from head to toe and can really change the pace of your lifestyle while also helping with injuries or injury prevention.
There is nothing quite like knowing you can go home to your own personal spa time to relax and unwind.
Wrap Up on Bob and Brad Foot Massager
Bob and Brad have made self-care even easier with their newly improved foot massager.
From the comfort of your home, you can have this device heat and massage your feet while comfortably enjoying your favorite movie or sipping your morning coffee.
It has many innovative and useful features ranging from heat to massage to pressure point Shiatsu kneading to help relieve your foot’s aches and pains.
And, if you’re struggling with plantar fasciitis or other injuries, this massager was designed for you – helping to promote tissue healing and prevent any further tissue breakdown.
So, that’s a wrap on the new Bob and Brad 721 foot massager! If you would like to check out this product or more from Bob and Brad click here. And remember, sometimes you have to slow down to run fast!
