I Felt Like an Astronaut Testing Therabody’s JetBoots for 1 Month. This Is How They Affected My Legs

CNET’s key takeaways

• The JetBoots Pro Plus are pricey at $1,150, but could be worth it if you spend a lot of time on your feet.
• They combine pneumatic compression, infrared LED light and vibration therapies to combat muscle soreness and fatigue. 
• Battery life can be confusing, and the boots are clunky to handle, but I’m not sure there’s a way around that. 

When I visited the first full-scale, AI-powered gym in Los Angeles, I ended my experience by using the Therabody JetBoots Pro Plus, which are offered to all members for recovery after their workouts. They’re inflatable boots that extend from your foot to your thigh, stimulating blood flow with compressive pulses, reducing inflammation with LED light therapy and decreasing muscle stiffness with vibration. I enjoyed my experience using them, but didn’t have enough time to develop a strong opinion. 

Now, Therabody loaned me the FDA-cleared JetBoots Pro Plus for at-home use, and I’ve spent the last month testing them to see if they benefit my recovery after working out. As a wellness editor who regularly tests health technology to see if it stands out on the market, I have to say that the JetBoots are one of the coolest devices I’ve tested. They made me feel like an astronaut, and look like a product straight from the future. I also enjoyed how they combine multiple therapies so that my legs don’t feel like they’re made of wood after an intense workout.

My experience with the JetBoots Pro Plus

My workouts of choice are Pilates, hiking and long walks to get my steps in, and often, I feel the effects in my legs. Following my exercise, I’ve been using the JetBoots, zipping them up my legs while relaxing on the couch, since you can’t use them while standing. There is no app, so you manage the device using the built-in control panel, which has a high-resolution LCD screen on the primary boot. The second boot has its own power button, but wirelessly connects to the primary boot. 

In addition to recovery, you can also use the JetBoots for warm-ups, sleep and targeting specific parts of your legs. There are seven preset treatments — quick start, recovery, warm-up, lower leg, upper leg, knee, joint therapy, pain relief and sleep prep — all of which have different durations (10 to 60 minutes), pressures (20 to 100 mmHg or millimeters of mercury, a unit of pressure) and cycle types. The latter refers to how the air chambers inflate along the legs: sequential, sequential (isolation), static and flow. Some use vibration (low, medium and high) and LED (on or off). All of these features, except cycle type, can be adjusted during your treatment.

I noted that some reviewers were disappointed they couldn’t use the Therabody app to control the device, but I personally loved that it didn’t have an app. I have too many apps. I also found it easy to use the built-in control panel to make adjustments. 

Other people lamented the size and bulk of the JetBoots, which range from 11.3 to 12.8 pounds. I don’t see a way around the bulkiness issue. Yes, they can be a lot to carry from their travel case to wherever you’re going to lie down to wear them, but that’s a lot better than having to lug around a separate air pump to inflate the boots. If you do plan to travel with the JetBoots, they are TSA-approved.

The JetBoots come in short, regular and long sizes based on leg length and inseam. I’m 5 foot, 4 inches tall and received the regular size, which was slightly too long and reached my upper thigh. The short size would likely have suited me better, but using the regular size wasn’t too much of an issue. They still worked as intended. 

I did notice a difference in leg soreness after my workouts

After a month of using the JetBoots, I did notice a decrease in the leg soreness and stiffness I typically experience after my workouts — especially the morning after. When I wake up the day after a particularly intense workout, it’s tough for me to move my legs and get out of bed. Then, throughout the day, I will have difficulty bending my legs. However, the JetBoots helped mitigate that, and I didn’t have one day where my legs were painfully rigid after exercise.

I also found the experience of using the boots to be both comfortable and relaxing, as the combination of compression and vibration felt like a pleasant massage. Since you have to lie down to use the JetBoots, you can make the most of this self-care time by practicing meditation, reading or wearing your favorite red light therapy mask for the ultimate wellness tech treatment. Before bed, I’d often use the 10-minute sleep prep treatment and found that it helped my body relax before dozing off.

Charging the boots wasn’t my favorite

To charge the JetBoots, you connect each boot to a splitter cable and then connect the splitter cable to a power adapter that gets plugged into an outlet. Though I appreciated that I didn’t need a USB adapter like I do for many of my other wellness devices, charging was the most cumbersome part of the JetBoots experience, as you have to roll up each boot so that the charging ports are easily accessible, which can make it tough to then maneuver them in their carrying pouch. Out of laziness, I just left the boots out of the pouch and semi-rolled them up on the floor.

I was at times confused about the battery life of the JetBoots, which are designed to last between 150 and 240 minutes. Once I received them, I plugged them in until I saw that the battery was almost full on the control panel. However, one boot had less battery life than the other, ultimately dying during my 45-minute recovery treatment. I figured I just hadn’t charged them both enough, so I continued doing so until I saw the green light on the power adapter. They lasted for all the following treatments, but sometimes one boot was more charged than the other, or they lost battery life faster than I expected. I ended up keeping them plugged in at all times to mitigate my confusion.

Cleaning the boots is easy, as they’re made of non-porous, medical-grade material that prevents bacteria buildup. You can lightly wipe them down on the inside with a 70% isopropyl alcohol cleaning solution, like this one from Walgreens. For the outside, wipe them with a soft cloth. Pat them dry and hang them using the built-in hanging loops.

The bottom line

Ultimately, I enjoyed using the JetBoots Pro Plus as someone who often deals with leg stiffness and muscle soreness after my workouts. However, they are pricey at $1,150, so I wouldn’t say they’re a must-have unless you’re on your feet all the time or focused on recovery in that area, such as when training for a marathon. 

To save but still get recovery relief, you might prefer one of the brand’s massage guns, starting at $160, which are some of CNET’s favorites. There are also the JetBoots Prime, which cost $550, but they only offer compression therapy without the LED, vibration or preset treatments. 

It’s also good to know that both the boots and massage guns are HSA- and FSA-accepted, and Therabody offers 30-day returns.

The specs

• Battery life: 150 to 240 minutes
• Sizes: short (for leg lengths 27 to 32 inches), regular (32 to 37 inches) and long (37+ inches)
• Price: $1,150
• Weight: 11.3 pounds (small), 12.4 pounds (regular) and 12.8 pounds (long)
• Warranty: 1 year, limited
• Number of ports: 2

CNET’s buying advice

• The JetBoots Pro Plus would be best for anyone who regularly deals with leg muscle soreness or stiffness, especially if you’re often on your feet.
• The product is pricey at $1,150. The JetBoots Prime are cheaper at $550, but don’t come with vibration, LED or treatment presets.
• You could also consider getting a Therabody massage gun to save even more, while still experiencing relief. They start at $160.