Issue 01 · May 2026

We rank the gear.
We tell you what to skip.

Independent consumer reviews of physical therapy and recovery gear. No medical claims, no inflated rankings, no “Top 10 You NEED” headlines. Every roundup picks #1. Every roundup calls out at least one product as Skip.

See our picks About this page
Black textured foam roller, burgundy resistance bands, and a percussion massage gun on a light oak floor by a window — the home recovery starter kit
Foam roller, resistance bands, massage gun. The recovery starter kit, ranked.

The catalog

Twelve categories. Hundreds of reviews. Each one ranked.

  1. 01 Foam rollers Dense, textured, vibrating. The handful we’d buy. The dozens we wouldn’t.
  2. 02 Massage guns Percussion under $100 vs. premium Theragun-class. Where “quiet” is a real spec.
  3. 03 TENS units Pads that stay stuck, batteries that last. Which channels actually deliver.
  4. 04 Compression socks Travel-friendly 15–20 mmHg vs. nurse-grade 20–30. Heel slippage matters.
  5. 05 Resistance bands Loop, tube, fabric. Which sets break after a month and which last for years.
  6. 06 Knee braces Sport vs. osteoarthritis vs. post-op. Bauerfeind tier or budget — there’s a clear answer.
  7. 07 Heating pads Auto-shutoff, washable, moist heat. The size that actually covers your back.
  8. 08 Ice & cold packs Gel wraps, ice machines, instant chemical packs. What works for which injury.
  9. 09 Kinesiology tape Pre-cut convenience tax vs. rolls. Which brands hold through three showers.
  10. 10 Posture correctors Most are theatre. The two that actually train, and what to do instead.
  11. 11 Acupressure mats Spike density, fabric quality, the case for and against. Worth the hype or not.
  12. 12 Lumbar cushions Office chair, car seat, travel. The one shape that fits most lower backs.

Editor’s note

The internet is full of affiliate sites that re-skin the Amazon listing into a 4,000-word “review” you can’t trust. We don’t do that. We pick fewer products, write shorter and clearer pieces, and tell you what to skip as often as what to buy.

Every category page leads with a comparison table. Every product page tells you who it’s not for. Every recommendation is held to the same question: would we tell a friend to buy this?

— Sergii Samoilenko, editor

Not medical advice. We publish consumer product reviews; consult a licensed PT before changing your routine. We earn commissions on qualifying Amazon purchases.

In progress

What we’re publishing now.

The first batch of reviews lands the week of May 19, 2026: foam rollers, massage guns, TENS units, compression socks, resistance bands. After that we’re working through the rest at roughly 15 published pieces a week through August.

Want the email when the first roundup is live?