Are you looking for some way to relieve your back pain without surgery or drugs?
Does your back feel stiff after exercise or doing something active?
Then the Innova ITM4800 Inversion Table can help.
In the last couple of years, my back has started to stiffen after working my upper body at the gym.
It made me reluctant to exercise, and I quickly put on weight.
Using inversion therapy to stretch my back after exercise has helped keep me in the gym.
What You Need to Know Before Buying an Inversion Table
Inversion therapy has been around for a long time.
According to Mayo Clinic, the behind inversion therapy for back pain is that it relieves the pressure that gravity puts on your spinal column by reversing its pull.
By hanging upside down, you use gravity to increase the space between vertebrae.
Inversion therapy could help your back in four specific ways:.
- create more fluid around spinal disks
- removing waste from the spine
- reducing inflammation
- increasing blood circulation in muscles that support the spine
While clinical research has shown mixed results, many studies have shown that inversion can provide some benefit for people with back problems.
In 2012, a study performed at Newcastle University in England concluded that intermittent inversion therapy can help people with sciatica avoid surgery.
Another study from Hanseo University in South Korea found that a 60 degree inversion improved lumbar flexibility, trunk strength, and reduced pain after 8 weeks.
Inversion should be safe for most healthy people, but recommends that you keep the sessions short.
Experts advise that you limit your inversion sessions to no more than 5 minutes, twice a day.
They also recommend combining inversion with stretching.
However, be warned that inversion can slow your heartbeat, increase your blood pressure, and increase fluid pressure inside your eyeballs.
For this reason, people with high blood pressure, heart disease, any eye problem, a history of strokes, q hiatal hernia, or are pregnant should avoid inversion.
Ask your doctor before starting any inversion therapy.
Introducing The Innova ITM4800 Inversion Table
Now that we have the do’s and don’ts out of the way, let’s look at the Innova ITM4800 Inversion Table.
Basically, it’s a padded, table-like device with ankle restraints that allow you to hang upside-down at various angles.
It has both lumbar support and a heated massage system, which is nice for people looking for help with back pain.
Overall, the Innova ITM4800 Inversion Table is similar to the Teeter EP-950, which is a staple of late-night TV commercials.
Pros
- Cheaper than the Teeter
- 6 preset inversion positions
- Lumbar support
- Heated massage
Cons
- Can’t adjust length of ankle locking system
- Hard to store
- Assembly required
Innova ITM4800 Inversion Table Features & Benefits
The Innova is for users between 4’10” and 6’6″ and can support up to 300lbs of weight.
This inversion table weighs 55 lbs. and requires you to assemble it upon delivery.
Assembly
Assembly can be a pain, but not really that difficult.
Having another person to help hold some of the awkward-to-handle pieces would be nice to help keep the holes aligned as you insert screws.
But, it’s not really necessary.
You can build it yourself.
Took me about an hour, and I’m hardly the handy type of guy.
Inversion Angle Adjustment
The Innova ITM4800 Inversion Table uses a pin system much like gym weight machines use to select weight, except here the pin screws in for more security.
You can choose 15, 30, 45, 60, 85 degrees of inversion.
Removing the pin gets you to 100% inversion.
This system is simple and convenient, but isn’t great if you want a custom angle that falls between the table’s settings.
I found six positions adequate for my needs.
However, you might find this system restrictive if you’re using the table to recover from a back injury.
You might find certain angles uncomfortable and need to work your way up more gradually than the Innova system allows.
Some other inversion tables use straps to secure the table, which allows any inversion angle.
Height Adjustment
The height adjustment shaft runs along the back of the table and comes in one inch settings between 4’10” and 6’6.”
This is good for most users unless you’re a jockey, gymnast, or basketball player.
Since I fell well between either extreme, I can’t tell you if users a little bit taller or shorter can comfortably use the device.
The guide that comes with the table says that you should be able to move yourself into and out of inversion by moving your arms up or down.
I sometimes had a problem with this until I moved the height a bit off from my actual measurement.
Apparently, this has to do with your center of gravity.
Locking Your Ankles
You need to lock your ankles to the table to safely hang upside-down.
The Innova provides padding over the metal ankle supports for comfort.
Beneath these ankle restraints, you need to fit your feet into the t-shaped top of the table.
One problem with this table is you can’t adjust the length between your feet and the ankle supports.
While it wasn’t a problem for me, if you’re unusually tall or short the ankle supports might be awkward and uncomfortable.
The padding is thick enough that I didn’t have any problems with my lower legs while using the table.
Backrest
The biggest piece of the Innova ITM4800 Inversion Table is the padded backrest that you lay on to use the table.
The table is covered in vinyl and has a thick foam pad that makes the device comfortable.
The Innova ITM4800 Inversion Table includes both a lumbar support that hits you in your low spine and a remote-controlled heated massage system.
You can adjust both the heat and massage by pressing buttons.
Of course, this means that you need to put your inversion table near an electrical plug to use it.
Even so, this is a nice feature if you like heat therapy for your back.
I would have preferred a heating system that ran the entire length of the backrest, but this is a feature almost no other inversion table has, so I’m not complaining.
You can also adjust the headrest to three different positions.
Overall, Innova goes the extra mile to make you comfortable while laying on their inversion table.
This is a good thing when you’re looking to relieve back pain.
Storage
If you don’t want an exercise table sitting in the middle of your living room or home gym, it’s nice to be able to collapse the device.
The Innova Fitness ITM4800 Inversion Table does fold, but it’s a bulky machine.
Where do you put it?
You could stick it under a bed, but that means lifting up the box springs and moving the table.
The Innova Fitness ITM4800 Inversion Table doesn’t come with wheels to make it easy to move around.
This feature would have been nice to have on a device intended for people with back problems.
Moving around 55 lbs. inversion table isn’t fun if your back hurts.
Some users have complained that using the Innova while barefoot hurts their feet.
I had no problem with it, though I suppose the narrow metal bar that your feet rest on could hurt when you swing upright.
The table is clearly designed for you to wear shoes while using it.
What Others Think of the Innova ITM4800 Inversion Table
There’s over 2,300 reviews of the Innova Fitness ITM4800 Inversion Table on Amazon.
A solid 72% of them are five star reviews, which suggests it’s well-liked by users (unless the company has gone to extreme lengths to publish sock puppet reviews).
Review #1
Ken called it a “well built, good product.”
Review #2
Robin T. Bresett said the Innova ITM4800 was the “Best inversion Table Ever” and reports that she has seen a “huge difference” in her back pain after using it for 10 minutes twice per day.
Review #3
Vivian A. Collins uses the Innova to help her degenerative arthritis, disc disease, and spinal stenosis. After using a Yoga exercise DVD, she had back pain. She tried anti-inflammatory medication, but it didn’t help. Now she uses the Innova and says, “I should have bought this years ago.”
Other Inversion Tables
The Innova Fitness ITM4800 Inversion Table is far from the only inversion table on the market.
Here I’ll list some of its competitors and provide a short comparison list.
IRONMAN Gravity Highest Weight Capacity Inversion Table
If you want a sturdy inversion table, you can check out the IRONMAN Gravity Highest Weight Capacity Inversion Table.
The Ironman’s big advantage is that it supports up to 50lbs. more weight then the Innova inversion table.
The IRONMAN Gravity Highest Weight Capacity Inversion Table also comes with lumbar support and has a nice ankle fastening system with broader pedals rather than a simple metal bar.
How It Compares to the Innova ITM4800 Inversion Table
- Better ankle supports
- Can support up to 350lbs.
- 2.5 inch memory foam pad similar comfort to Innova
- No adjustable head rest
- No preset inversion angles
- Has lumbar support
EXERPEUTIC 225SL
If you’re a little shorter, weigh less than 250lbs. and want most of the same features as the Innova, you can consider the Exerpeutic 225SL.
The Exerpeutic 225SL is an inversion table that offers up to 165 degrees of movement.
It does have a nice ankle support system, but the backrest isn’t as adjustable or comfortable as the Innova.
However, the Exerpeutic 225SL does support a wider range of height. Lumbar support pad and heat massage are available but cost extra.
How It Compares to the Innova ITM4800 Inversion Table
- Adjusts from 4’9″ to 6’6″
- Supports up to 250lbs.
- Only 3 preset inversion angles
- No adjustable head rest
Health Gear ITM5500 Advanced Technology Inversion Table with Vibro Massage
If you want a more comfortable table with a larger heated massage pad, check out the Health Gear ITM5500.
This is another table that also includes heated massage therapy.
The memory foam backrest is four inches thick, which is even more plush than the Innova ITM4800 Inversion Table.
One big thing I like about the Health Gear ITM5500 is that the heat massage pad runs the length of the backrest.
One things I didn’t like was the small ankle supports, which were padded round pegs rather than ergonomic supports.
How It Compares to the Innova ITM4800 Inversion Table
- Thicker backrest
- Heat massage pad runs length of the back rest
- No lumbar support
- 4 preset inversion positions
- Supports up to 300lbs.
- Height varies from 5’1 to 6’6″
Final Thoughts
You don’t have to get surgery or use drugs to relieve back pain.
You can find temporary relief by using an inversion table.
The devices mentioned above are all good options to address muscle soreness, and even degenerative back conditions, without seeing a chiropractor.
Overall, the Innova ITM4800 Inversion Table is a great choice to help with back pain and muscle soreness due to its balance of features, adjustable fit, comfort, and the heat massage option.
