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WFH Ruined My Back, This Ogawa Massage Chair Helped Fix That

WFH Ruined My Back, This Ogawa Massage Chair Helped Fix That

After two weeks of testing out the OGAWA Master Drive AI 2.0, I’m a new believer in massage chairs.

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Like a number of Malaysians across the country, I suddenly found myself plunged into the whole new world of work from home. I assumed it was going to be a temporary situation back in March 2020, but it’s evident right now that I will continue to sit at home hunched over my computer for months to come.

While it has been pretty nice to wear comfy clothes and indulge in more than one cup of homemade chai, unfortunately, my back has been less than delighted by the sudden change. You see, all those hours spent sitting and typing furiously has resulted in acute pain in my lower back which wasn’t going away no matter how much stretching, breaks, or lumbar support cushions I got.

That is until the universe smiled on me and introduced the OGAWA Master Drive AI 2.0 into my life (temporarily, for review).

The OGAWA Master Drive AI 2.0 massage chair. Also, not my actual living room.
(Credit: Ogawa Malaysia)

Sure, I’ve seen massage chairs before in my life. I’ve had fond memories of messing around with my father’s as a child, giggling at the beeping contraption turning into the cat’s bed, but as a young adult in my late 20s, I assumed it was one of those “old people” purchases. I was wrong.

The OGAWA Master Drive AI 2.0 massage chair experience

Suddenly there was a Star Trek-esque massage chair in my living room and I was the significantly less physically impressive Captain Kirk. Gingerly getting into the seat, the chair sprung to life as I tapped commands into the Bluetooth-connected tab.

Credit: Ogawa Malaysia

Built with up to 5,184 massage combinations to provide vast health solutions, the OGAWA Master Drive AI 2.0 features advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI) including face recognition, Health Tracker and Scanner, and AI-Powered Automated Analyst that uses algorithms to gather and manage data to customise the massage chair with a programmed list of recommended solutions that it says precisely targets your problem area.

In “scanning” my body, the massage chair pretty quickly pointed out that my neck was particularly tight while the rest of my back wasn’t looking too great either. It also revealed some good to know information on my heart rate and oxygen saturation (thankfully normal).

The health scan identifies your problem areas, heart rate and oxygen saturation.

Each massage is roughly 15 minutes and you can choose from the preprogrammed systems like deep tissue massage, Balinese style, spinal stretching, text neck, or even customise your own massage – my personal favorite because I can choose to focus on my sore areas with a variety of kneading or tapping techniques. While the massage is ongoing, the tablet also shows exactly what’s going on along with information on its benefits.

During each massage, the screen provides detailed information on the massage along with the health benefits of the corresponding body part.

After two weeks of having my muscles kneaded into jelly, I’ll say that it works very well for anyone with back issues. I felt instant relief after the first 15-minute waist stretching massage program, a near miracle to me since I’ve been in agony for a good three months now. It was also less embarrassing than having human hands working on your glutes.

You can also customise the massage technique for specific problem areas.

The neck massage was less impressive, mostly because I couldn’t quite get my neck in the right position and the rollers felt too big so it wound up jostling my head around instead. I won’t commit to saying that’s a bad thing because that jostling was gentle enough to lull me into a blissful stupor.

In fact, after every massage, I usually wound up relaxed to the point of a glassy-eyed stare with a blank mind.

Pretty much what it’s like to be in the OGAWA Master Drive AI 2.0, though I’m nowhere near this well dressed during a massage.
(Credit: Ogawa Malaysia)

Why it works so well

This particular model is no ordinary massage tool, the OGAWA Master Drive AI 2.0 is shown to improve blood circulation and sleep quality according to a study conducted in collaboration with Universiti Malaya.

According to the research titled ‘Investigating the Effects of OGAWA Master Drive AI Automated Massage on Blood Circulation and Sleep Quality’, 100% of the participants showed a significant improvement in blood circulation: 81.32% by using the OGAWA Master Drive AI 2.0 M6 Deep Tissue program, while 100% of the participants recorded an increase in sleep quality, and up to 88.73% progressed in sleep efficiency through the Sweet Dream program.

Credit: Ogawa Malaysia

University Malaya’s Engineering Faculty Dean Prof Dr Saad Mekhilef expressed that this significant study may be useful for future studies and to aid in improving the overall wellness of the nation and potentially increase the life expectancies of Malaysians.

Well-being does not only incorporate healthy diets and consistent workouts, but regular massages can contribute much more to the human soul – from correcting postural stress to boosting immunity. Through this study, we want to convey the major health benefits attached to having regular massages and how it should be considered vital for our overall health – be it to relieve sore muscles, reduce stress, or even boost your immune system, massages will leave a positive impact on your everyday life.

Prof. Dr. Saad Mekhilef, CEng (UK), SMIEEE(USA), FIET(UK), Dean, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Malaya.

So if you’re ready for a good night’s sleep, check out the OGAWA Malaysia website (HERE).


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