iRest my case

In department stores, home depots and major supermarkets today, it's getting common to be approached by teams of sales personnel egging you to sit in one of their massive massage chairs or prop your legs in something that looks like Terminator's knee-high boots that will massage your feet and calves. I have been intrigued by these contraptions but have repeatedly declined the "free trial" offers by the persistent sales people who seem to be stalking me everywhere I go.
But at Rustan's Department Store late this year while waiting for a table lamp I bought to be boxed, I was asked to take a moment to relax in one of their massagers. For the lack of something better to do, I relented. What happened next was total bliss.

I never thought those full-body massage chairs and the foot-and-calf massagers could be so heavenly. I don't like their girth and shape (storage problem comes to mind), but I've forgotten all about that as I sunk into one of those over-sized, leather-upholstered massagers. I felt like I don't want to get up already and would have fallen asleep if the massage chair I was using was not in full public display.


You see I experience calf pain every now and then. The right medical term, I think, is RLS for Restless Leg Syndrome (a.k.a tired legs syndrome) which attacks at night when the person is about to wind down to sleep. People who have this disorder experience unpleasant feelings such as creeping, crawling, pulling, itching, tingling, burning, aching, or electric shocks in their legs.


I, fortunately, don't feel any of those severe pains. My calves just feel tired and heavy -- a bit like cramps but not painful -- and propping them high up on a pillow helps relieve the unpleasant feeling. I usually know I might get the tired leg syndrome by bedtime if, during the day, I've been on my feet for a long stretch of time. It's perhaps a blood circulation issue or cramps, but what I know for sure is it goes away after stretching, heat application or a massage. This is why I keep a bottle of efficascent oil (extra strength) and a tube of L'Occitane Cream Gel for Tired Legs in my bedroom drawer.

Soon after the Rustan's episode I succumbed to buying one of those massage gizmos, but not the full chair or the feet and calf combo because had I bought one of those, no massage would relieve the pain in my credit card.

I downsized to a massage back cushion from iRest because I thought I could use it when my back aches from sleeping in the wrong way or from long drives. But, more importantly, I can use it as an alternative pillow where I'd prop my sore calves.

The iRest massage back cushion claims to relieve muscle sores, enhance blood circulation, improve metabolism and "rejuvenate". Inside the cushion is a twin kneading heads that serve as the massager. Your job is to simply plug it and situate whatever part of you is aching perfectly against the kneaders for an optimized massage.


Unlike the high-end full-body chair and the feet-and-calf models, the massage cushion is a one-trick pony with no buttons to be pressed for different types of massage settings. But that's okay...for now. At P2,999, I have something handy to massage my calves, not to mention it's portable and easy to store. So,with that iRest my case.