Massage Chairs for Bigger Bodies!

August 21, 2019
 By Dr. Alan Weidner
August 21, 2019
 By Dr. Alan Weidner

Massage Chairs for Bigger Bodies!

It can be a challenge to find a chair that has the right fit for a bigger body. However, “bigger body” can mean a few different things. First of all, weight can matter. Some folks are above the recommended threshold of maximum weight for a particular chair model. Even though their height may be just right, the weight may be too much. The body that is over the recommended weight limit will put undue stress on the chair’s components, primarily those of the roller track system, which will lead to higher rates of chair failure…and we don’t want that!

Secondly, a corollary to weight can be width. Some folks are large but their size projects forward, i.e. a large belly (the bane of the aging male’s existence!) so they can fit into a chair just fine, but their weight is over the weight limit threshold. Some others are below the weight threshold, but are too wide, i.e. broad shoulders or wide hips. It doesn’t matter if your weight is under a chair’s limits if your body shape won’t allow you to fit into a chair without the use of a very large shoe horn (do young folks even know what that is anymore?).

Lastly, height can be tough to accommodate. Not just the overall height, but the height proportions of the user’s body, i.e. legs and torso. Some people who are 6’5″ tall can fit into a chair with no problem, and get their neck massaged by the rollers, but their legs can never fully extend. On the other hand someone who is 6’1″ tall with a very long torso and shorter legs can also fit into a chair with no problem, with their legs can fully extended, but the chair’s rollers may never reach their neck on some models. So, height can be a challenge.

I am going to list the recommended chairs for height and weight with a two-pronged approach:

  1. Chairs that fit taller and bigger bodies, according to the massage chair companies literature/specifications.
  2. Chairs that fit taller and bigger bodies, based on our experience in the Massage Chair Relief showrooms.

The reason I am doing this is because our experience has shown that just because a massage chair company says that their chairs fit someone who is 6’4″, DOES NOT mean that, as mentioned above, that the legs will be able to fully extend or that the rollers will be able to massage the entire neck of someone that tall. Of course, if you are willing to slide down a chair to get the rollers to hit your neck, then you can make almost any chair work for you…but who wants to have to do that? Not many of our showroom visitors do! We have real life experience in our showrooms of taller folks and in what chairs they actually fit AND get a full neck massage….without having to change body position to do so.

Most chairs will allow you to over ride the body scan if you want to see if a chair’s rollers will go higher. Or, you can go into the manual mode and move the rollers as high up as they will go. If you do either of those and the rollers still don’t hit the top of your neck, the chair will not fit you even if the specs say the chair can fit your height.

When a chair is fully reclined, the rollers will go relatively higher up the neck because the body slides down relative to the top of the chair in a reclined position.

Here is a list of all the chairs that we carry on our website that can accommodate folks over 6′ tall (according to the massage chair company literature/specs), with the published maximum height and weight numbers. Next to those number are my abbreviated comments about what these chairs really do allow for a full neck massage for taller bodies (based on actual experience in our showrooms), along with any other size comments. My comments DO NOT take into account torso/legs ratios, which can affect the fit. If there are no comments, then we do not have experience with that chair in our showrooms.

  1. OHCO M.8 – 6’5″/260 lbs; fits that tall, but headpiece needs to be raised to allow for someone that tall to get a neck massage.
  2. DreamWave Classic – 6’4″/285; fits that tall, but headpiece needs to be raised to allow for someone that tall to get a neck massage. The break-away arm rests allow for very wide bodies to fit in this model.
  3. Inada Flex 3S – 6’2″/240 lbs; rollers do not reach thetop of the neck for that height. Better for under 6′ tall.
  4. Inada Nest – 6’2″/220 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for under 6′ tall. Notice how low the weight limit is.
  5. Panasonic MAJ7 – 6’2″/264 lbs; fits as it reads.
  6. Panasonic MA73 – 6’4″/264 lbs; fits as it reads.
  7. Panasonic MA70 – 6’2″/264 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for under 6′ tall.
  8. Osaki Japan Premium 4.0 – 6’3″/250 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for under 6′ tall.
  9. Osaki OS-4D Pro JP Premium – 6’1″/285; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for under 6′ tall.
  10. Osaki JP Premium 4S Japan – 6’4″/250 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for under 6′ tall
  11. Osaki Pro Maxim & Pro Alpina – 6’4″/240 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for under 6′ tall.
  12. Osaki Pro Cyber – 6’4″/265 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for folks 6′ tall and under.
  13. Osaki Pro Dreamer – 6’5″/265 lbs; fits as it reads.
  14. Osaki TP 8500 – 6’4″/265 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck. Better for folks under 6′ tall.
  15. Osaki 7200H – 6’5″/265 lbs; fits as it reads.
  16. Osaki 4000T – 6’4″/265 lbs; pretty close to how it reads. Maybe 6’2″ or less.
  17. Osaki 4000LS – 6’4″/265 lbs
  18. Osaki Pro Summit – 6’4″/240 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for under 6’2″ tall.
  19. Osaki Pro Maestro – 6’4″/250 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for under 6’2″ tall.
  20. Osaki Pro Ekon – 6’6″/250 lbs; fits as it reads for a shorter torso.
  21. Osaki Pro First Class – 6’5″/245 lbs; fits as it reads.
  22. Titan Jupiter XL – 6’6″/270 lbs; fits as it reads for a shorter torso.
  23. Titan Pro Executive – 6’3″/285 lbs; fits as it reads.
  24. Infinity Presidential – 6’4″/325 lbs; fits as it reads. Notice the higher weight allowance for most Infinity models.
  25. Infinity Overture – 6’6″/285 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for under 6’4″ tall.
  26. Infinity Genesis – 6’5″/300 lbs; fits as reads for as shorter torso.
  27. Infinity Riage x3 – 6’5″/300 lbs; fits as reads for as shorter torso.
  28. Infinity Smart Chair x3 – 6’5″/300 lbs; fits as it reads.
  29. Infinity IT-8500 – 6’5″/285 lbs; fits as it reads.
  30. Infinity IT-9800 – 6’7″/350 lbs; fits as reads, mostly because their are not any foot massagers into which you place your feet, so you can slide down the chair comfortably and get your neck massaged at almost any height.
  31. Human Touch Novo XT2 – 6’9″/300 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for under 6’4″ tall. You can set your own height on this chair, so select setting #9 and see if the rollers go all the way up your neck.
  32. Human Touch ZeroG 5.0 – 6’/285 lbs; better fit for under 6′ tall.
  33. Human Touch WholeBody 7.1 – 6’3″/285 lbs; fits better for smaller bodies.
  34. Cozzia 16027 & 16028 – 6’2″/300 lbs.
  35. Ogawa Touch 3D – 6’6″/300 lbs; fits as it reads.
  36. Ogawa Active L – 6’2″/300 lbs; fits as it reads.
  37. Ogawa Refresh Plus – 6’3″/300 lbs; fits as it reads.
  38. Luraco iRobotics 7 Plus – 6’7″/300 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for under 6’5″ tall.
  39. Luraco Legend Plus – 6’5″/250 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for 6’2″ tall and under, depending on torso length.
  40. uKnead Lohas – 6’3″/285 lbs; fits as it reads.
  41. Johnson Wellness J6800, J5800, J5600 – 6’5″/300 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for 6’3″ tall and under.
  42. Synca Kagra – 6’5″/300 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for 6’3″ tall and under.
  43. Synca JP1100 – 6’4″/300 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for under 6′ tall.
  44. Inner Balance Jin – 6’5″/300 lbs; fits as it reads.
  45. Health Mate HM-5200 – 6’4″/300 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for under 6′ tall.
  46. Fujimedic Kumo – 6’4″/265 lbs; rollers do not reach the top of the neck for that height. Better for 6’2″ tall and under.

As you can tell from these numbers, the specs from the massage chair companies are a bit misleading. I wouldn’t say deceptive because folks who are as tall as the recommended heights for each of these chairs will usually fit in these chairs. It really just boils down to whether your neck will get fully massaged, if at all with some models, or whether you can fully extend your legs when sitting in a chair.

Our “My Chair Finder” software uses the massage chair companies published specs/literature for the height section. This article should help you understand why those numbers are bit misleading. If you have a tall body (or a wide body, for that matter), you really won’t know what chairs fit you properly until you try them out.

Dr. Alan Weidner

P.S. Give us a “Like”, “Share”, or “+1” and leave me a comment or question below to share what you learned or ask any questions, so other folks can benefit from this material.

11 Things You Absolutely Need

DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY! GET MY FREE REPORT.

11 Things You Absolutely Need to Know Before You Even Consider Investing in a High Quality, Robotic Massage Chair
DOWNLOAD NOW
Massage Chair Relief BBB Business Review
Shopper Award
Since 2005, Massage Chair Relief has been selling the highest quality massage chairs for home and business use. We offer a wide selection of chairs and information to help you choose the brand and model that is right for you
© 2023 Massage Chair Relief. All Rights Reserved
magnifiercross