Foot Circulation Machines

If your legs feel tired and heavy by the evening, or your feet never quite warm up, a circulation machine gives them something to do while you sit. Rest your feet on it, pick a setting, and carry on with your evening. It works away in the background.

Med-Fit makes two, and they go about it in different ways. The Medi-Boost uses electrical muscle stimulation to work the muscles in your feet and lower legs, roughly the way walking does. The Medi-X-Ciser uses heat and vibration to warm and loosen them off. Both are used sitting down, both come with a remote, and both are built for a few minutes a day. Which one suits you comes down to whether you want active stimulation or gentle warmth. Here is how to tell them apart.

Signs of poor circulation in the legs and feet

Most people know the feeling. Cold feet in a warm room. Legs that feel heavy after a day on them. A bit of puffiness round the ankles by the evening. Pins and needles when you have been sat still too long. None of it is unusual, especially if you stand all day, sit for work, or are not as active as you once were.

One thing to be straight about, though. A machine like this is a comfort aid for those everyday tired, heavy, cold feelings. It is not a treatment for a medical condition. Poor circulation can sometimes be a sign of something that needs looking at properly, so if the symptoms stick around, affect one leg more than the other, hurt, or come with skin changes or sores that are slow to heal, see your GP rather than a device. There is more on that below.

How can the foot circulation machines help?

Both machines are used the same way, sat down with your feet on the unit for a short session. What they do once you are there is different.

The Medi-Boost: muscle stimulation

The Medi-Boost sends light electrical pulses up through the soles of your feet. That is EMS, electrical muscle stimulation. The pulses make the muscles in your feet and lower legs tighten and let go in a steady rhythm, close to what they do when you walk. Those lower-leg muscles are the ones that help push blood back up your legs, so this is the machine designed to help stimulate circulation and take the heaviness out of tired legs. Of the two, it is the one that genuinely works the muscles, and the closer of the pair to the circulation boosters people will have seen advertised.

It is not only for feet, either. The Medi-Boost comes with pads you can put on your back, shoulders, thighs or arms, so it doubles as a TENS and EMS machine. Two channels, so you can treat two areas at once, each at its own strength.

The Medi-X-Ciser: heat and vibration

The Medi-X-Ciser is the gentler of the two. You rest your feet and lower legs on it, and it puts out warmth alongside vibration you can turn up or down. No pulses, nothing to brace for. Just heat and a steady hum that loosens off tired legs and takes the chill out of cold feet. For a lot of people that is the more appealing of the two, and it makes an easy habit of an evening. It runs off a wireless remote and switches itself off on a timer, so you can forget it is on.

Medi-Boost or Medi-X-Ciser: which one?

Both are drug-free, used sitting down, and worked by remote. What differs is how they feel and what you are after.

Short version: pick the Medi-Boost if you want it to actively work your muscles, and the option to use it on your back or shoulders too. Pick the Medi-X-Ciser if what you want is warmth and a bit of relaxation, especially for cold feet. Stuck between them? Ask our UK team and we will point you the right way.

What people actually use one for

Nobody buys one of these to fix something. They buy it for the everyday stuff:

• tired, heavy legs after a long day
• feet that will not warm up
• puffy ankles after hours sat or stood
• stiff or restless legs from a long drive, a flight, or a day at the desk
• keeping the legs moving when you are not as active as you were
• or ten minutes of something nice for tired feet before bed

A few minutes most days, in your own chair, while you get on with something else. That is the whole idea.

How to use it

Stand it on the floor in front of a chair, somewhere flat and steady. Sit down, rest your bare feet on the pads or plate, and line them up with the outlines. Switch it on low with the remote, then build up slowly to a level that feels good and no further. A short session most days beats one long one now and again. Keep to the times in the manual, and clean it the way it tells you to. With the Medi-Boost, you can also move the pads onto other parts of the body for TENS and EMS, following the placement notes in the box.

Using it safely

These are home wellbeing devices, and for most people they are simple and safe used as directed. A few sensible points:

• Start low. It should always feel comfortable, never sharp.
• Sit down to use it, on a steady surface, feet clean and dry. Never in the bath or shower.
• Stick to the session times in the manual, and rest your legs in between.

Have a word with your doctor first if you are pregnant, wear a pacemaker or another implanted electrical device (that applies to the EMS Medi-Boost in particular), have epilepsy, have had a blood clot or DVT, have diabetes or reduced feeling in your feet, or you have been diagnosed with a circulation condition such as peripheral arterial disease. And if your leg symptoms are persistent, painful, worse in one leg than the other, or you have skin changes or sores that will not heal, that is one for the GP, not a device. These machines are for easing the everyday tired, heavy and cold feeling in your legs. Nothing more than that.

Why buy from Med-Fit

• A UK medical company, and specialists in drug-free wellbeing and pain relief.
• Well over 100,000 customers across the UK.
• Bought direct from us, with a UK team on the end of the phone to help you choose between the two.
• VAT relief available on both machines for eligible customers, worth up to 20% off.
• Free UK mainland delivery over £25 (ex VAT), and you can pay in instalments.
• Well reviewed, with more than 230 reviews on the Medi-Boost alone.
  
  

Foot and leg circulation machine FAQs

Do foot circulation machines work?

For a lot of people, yes, as a drug-free way to take the edge off tired, heavy legs and warm up cold feet. The Medi-Boost works the muscles with EMS. The Medi-X-Ciser uses heat and vibration. How much you notice varies from person to person, and using it regularly matters more than the odd session. Keep in mind what it is, though: a comfort aid for everyday symptoms, not a cure for anything.

How can I improve circulation in my legs and feet at home?

The boring answers are the ones that work. Move often, avoid sitting still for hours, keep warm, drink enough, and put your feet up when you can. A circulation machine fits into that, giving your legs a bit of stimulation or warmth while you are sat down. If you are genuinely worried about your circulation, see your GP. You can also read more on whether a TENS machine can help improve blood circulation.

What is the difference between the Medi-Boost and the Medi-X-Ciser?

The Medi-Boost uses EMS to work the muscles, and its pads mean you can use it on other parts of the body too. The Medi-X-Ciser uses heat and vibration and sticks to the feet and legs. Medi-Boost for active stimulation, Medi-X-Ciser for warmth.

Are they safe?

For most people, yes, used as directed. Start low and keep it comfortable. Check with your doctor first if you are pregnant, use a pacemaker or implanted device, have epilepsy, have had a blood clot, have diabetes or reduced feeling in your feet, or have a diagnosed circulation condition.

How often should I use one?

A short session most days is the usual pattern. Follow the times in the manual, keep the setting comfortable, and give your legs a rest in between. Little and often suits most people better than one long go.

Can I use one if I have diabetes or a pacemaker?

Ask your doctor first. Diabetes can mean reduced feeling in the feet, and anyone with a pacemaker or other implanted electrical device needs medical advice before using EMS like the Medi-Boost. Your GP can tell you what is right for you.

Do they help with tired legs and cold feet?

That is what people use them for. Both are aimed at easing the heavy, tired feeling in the legs and warming cold feet, the Medi-Boost by working the muscles, the Medi-X-Ciser with heat and vibration.

Can I use the Medi-Boost anywhere other than my feet?

Yes. As well as the foot plate, it comes with pads for your back, shoulders, thighs or arms, so it works as a TENS and EMS machine as well. The Medi-X-Ciser is feet and legs only.

Which one is more like the circulation boosters I have seen advertised?

The Medi-Boost, because it uses EMS to actively work the leg and foot muscles. The Medi-X-Ciser is closer to a heated, passive foot massager.

Related reading

• Can a TENS machine help improve blood circulation?
• TENS machines for swollen ankles and legs
• TENS for restless leg syndrome
• How to treat leg and knee pain