Best Mattress for Athletes

If you are physically active, then you understand the importance of a good night’s rest. Whether you run, bike, swim, or lift weights, a mattress that reduces pressure in your most sensitive areas and helps your body recover overnight can be an invaluable investment. And if your bed does not share these qualities, you might wake up feeling stiffer and more strained than before you turned off the light.

Some mattresses are designed specifically with athletes and other physically active people in mind. They are constructed with pressure-relieving comfort layers, support materials that won’t sag too much, and innovative covers engineered to alleviate aches and pains even after your toughest days at the gym.

We’ve outlined the mattress features that are beneficial for athletes, along with a few strategies for choosing a new bed based on your body and how you are active. First, let’s take a look at our picks for the best mattresses for athletes among models sold today. We’ve chosen each bed based on a combination of feedback from mattress owners and hands-on product testing.

Dive Deeper – In-Depth Mattress Guides

If you’re not certain any of these choices are the right one for your needs, you can read through our recommendations categorized by sleep styles.

What You Should Look for in a Mattress

Which Mattress Thickness is Best for Athletes?

The term “athlete” is fairly broad when we talk about beds. The best mattress for weightlifters, for instance, may have a completely different design and materials than the best mattress for long-distance runners. However, the most important factor for choosing a mattress profile, or thickness, is you, the sleeper. The ideal thickness depends entirely on your body type and normal sleep position, as well as your personal preferences.

Mattresses sold today fall into three general categories based on their thickness, or profile.

Low-profile mattresses measure less than 10 inches thick. These beds may not provide enough support for heavier people, as many have shorter base layers that tend to sink beneath the shoulders and hips, but a low-profile mattress may be ideal for a lighter person. One thing to keep in mind: low-profile models tend to be a bit firmer because they lack the extra padding layers of their thicker counterparts.

High-profile mattresses, which measure more than 12 inches thick, tend to feel softer and conform closer due to these cushioning layers. However, this is not always the case – and many brands offer high-profile mattresses with medium firm or firm feels. These beds are also easier to get on and off for some larger people, whereas low-profile beds may sink a bit too much when sitting on the edges.

Many people consider medium-profile mattresses – which measure 10 to 12 inches thick – to be a good compromise of body-cushioning and ease of movement. Our recommendation: test out a few different mattress profiles either in a brick-and-mortar store or using online mattress brand sleep trials. These experiences can help you decide which profile range will be most suitable for your needs and active lifestyle.

What Mattress Firmness is Best for Athletes?

As with thickness, firmness is an entirely subjective preference. We can make firmness recommendations based on feedback from people with different body types and sleep positions, but ultimately, you should choose a firmness based on what feels comfortable, alleviates pressure, and provides the best support.

Firmness is measured on a 1-10 scale, with 1 being the softest and 10 the firmest. Most beds sold today fall between 3 (soft) and 8 (firm). Softer mattresses usually conform more closely, so if you experience frequent pressure points or you sleep on your side and want better spinal alignment, a bed with a 3 to 5 rating will probably be most comfortable. Lighter people also tend to prefer softer beds because firmer mattresses do not conform enough.

Firmer mattresses do not contour as much, but they keep sleepers on an even plane using high-density foam, coils, and other supportive materials. This makes them well-suited for heavier people who sag too much on softer beds, especially back and stomach sleepers who need extra reinforcement to prevent their midsection from sinking further than the rest of their body.

If your firmness preferences tend to fluctuate from night to night, then a mattress with adjustable firmness – such as an airbed or a flippable model with two sleep surfaces – might be the way to go. Many couples also have different preferences, and in these cases, we recommend a mattress with dual-firmness, or a different feel on each side. This allows you and your partner to enjoy your preferred balance of comfort and support without impacting the other person’s sleep.

The Ideal Sleep Environment for Athletes

If you’re a physically active person, there are many ways to optimize your sleeping environment apart from choosing the right mattress. These include maintaining a comfortable sleep temperature and reducing your exposure to outside noise. You can also invest in additional products to enhance your sleep experience.

Pillows

Pillow selection is, arguably, just as important as mattress selection. The right pillow provides enhanced support to your head, neck, and shoulders, and also supports the spine. The wrong pillow can have the opposite effect, leading to added aches and pains, as well as spinal misalignment.

The best pillow will offer enough cushioning to fill the gaps between your head and shoulders. Pillows fall into three general loft, or thickness, categories: low-loft (less than 3 inches), medium-loft (3 to 5 inches), and high-loft (more than 5 inches). When choosing a pillow loft, be sure to consider your bed’s firmness level. A softer bed will conform more closely, causing you to sink beneath the surface, so a low-loft pillow might provide sufficient padding. For a firm mattress that contours very little, a high-loft pillow to fill the extra space may be the best option.

The best pillow loft also depends on your sleep position. While preferences vary by person, the table below lists optimal loft for most people based on how they sleep.

Sleeping Position	Pillow Loft Recommended
Back	Medium
Side	Medium or High
Stomach	Low

Also, be sure to consider pillow fill and density. Fill refers to the materials inside the pillow, and density refers to how heavy these materials are. Some fills have a higher density and will not compress as easily, creating a more stable and supportive surface for your head. Less dense materials will sink and conform closely, and may not provide enough neck support – especially if you are a physically active person dealing with cramps, strains, and other discomforts in that area.

The most common fills for today’s pillows include:

• Memory foam: Some pillows contain a single piece of memory foam. They offer close conforming that is comparable to memory foam mattresses. Others contain shredded memory foam, which contours a bit and also sleeps somewhat cooler. Shredded memory foam pillows can often be adjusted for loft by adding or removing fill, whereas single-piece pillows have a fixed thickness.
• Feather/Down: Feathers are the coarse outer plumage from geese and ducks, and down refers to the soft inner plumage. Feathers are often used to support the pillow’s center while down pads the outer chambers. That said feather/down pillows sink very deeply and provide minimal support.
• Buckwheat: Buckwheat pillows are filled with hulls, the hard casings of buckwheat kernels. Some liken buckwheat pillows to stiff beanbags, but the material is very supportive and does not lose shape easily. You can also adjust your buckwheat pillow’s loft by adding or removing hulls.
• Polyfill: Polyester fibers can be used as a less expensive down alternative fill, mimicking the soft and light texture of authentic feathers and down. Interlocking polyfoam, which provides more support, is also fairly common.

Mattress Toppers

A mattress topper is a layer of cushioning that rests on top of the bed’s surface. Toppers are designed to change the firmness of a sleep surface. Most toppers make the surface feel softer, but some can add a firmer feel. For this reason, toppers are widely used for pull-out beds, RVs, and other sleeping areas where the mattresses are less than ideal.

A topper may also be suitable if you are dissatisfied with the firmness of your mattress, but cannot return or exchange it because your sleep trial has expired. Many mattresses adopt a different feel over time, and those with thick foam layers may lose shape as the material begins to deteriorate. Most toppers measure 2 to 5 inches thick, so using one is basically equivalent to adding a fresh comfort layer to your mattress. Toppers are also generally inexpensive, especially compared to buying a new bed.

Toppers tend to have shorter lifespans, so using one is, in all likelihood, a short-term solution to a permanent mattress problem. However, these layers may provide more comfort and pressure relief than your bed’s comfort layer, especially if you are physically active and want your sleep surface to promote physical recovery.

Bed Platforms, Foundations, and Box Springs

Most mattresses are designed for use with some sort of support system. Many mattress warranties strictly forbid placing the bed directly on your floor.

Traditional box springs are still fairly popular. These support systems consist of a solid wooden frame equipped with steel springs and a cloth cover. The frame has a flush surface for optimal support and the springs act as shock absorbers for you and your bed, making box springs very well-suited to heavier innersprings. Box springs are designed to fit into a taller bed frame with the mattress on top.

Foundations are similar to box springs, but they do not contain springs and have slatted side panels. They feel exceptionally firm and should provide adequate support for any mattress as long as the top surface is perfectly flush. Foundations are also designed to fit into bed frames.

An alternative to box springs and foundations is a platform bed, which features a wooden or metal frame and evenly spaced slats instead of a flush surface. The slats should not be too far apart. Otherwise, the mattress will begin to sag and lose support. Many mattress warranties also require certain slat widths, so be sure to read the fine print before choosing a platform bed.

What Mattress Features Are Important for Athletes?

As you shop for a new mattress, you’ll undoubtedly notice plenty of marketing hyperbole, such as “universal comfort,” “forever lifespan,” or “the perfect bed.” Ignore this jargon. You should select a new mattress based on your personal preferences and needs as a physically active person. The factors below should be your most important considerations.

• Mattress Type: All-foam mattresses conform closely to the body. Latex mattresses also contour, but a little less so, while airbeds can be adjusted for different contouring levels. If you want a mattress that conforms less and provides more support, then an innerspring or hybrid might be your best option.
• Contouring: Some people want a deep body cradle while others like to sleep on a flush, even surface that barely sinks. If you’re unsure which contouring level is best for you, visit a brick-and-mortar mattress store to test different models. Online sleep trials can also help you narrow down your ideal setting.
• Mattress Thickness: For a lot of sleepers, mattress thickness is somewhat negotiable. However, a bed’s profile can ultimately affect how supportive it feels, and how easy (or difficult) it will be getting on and off the mattress.
• Quality Materials: Mattress materials are linked to durability. High-density foam, organic latex, thick coils, and other components will probably last longer than materials of lesser quality. Materials also impact breathability, pressure relief, edge support, and other performance factors.
• Firmness Level: Firmness and contouring go hand in hand. A softer bed will hug the body much more closely than a firmer model. This potentially means more pressure relief and better alignment for lighter people, but also more sagging and discomfort for heavier individuals. The opposite is also true. Lighter people may find a firmer bed does not conform enough, whereas a heavier person might find this mattress ideal.
• Pressure Relief: If you experience pressure points due to physical activity or other reasons, you should seek out mattresses that conform closely enough to your body without sinking, sagging, or losing support. Consider your body type and sleep position, as well.