Firm January 2023

How to Choose the Best Firm Mattress?

A high quality mattress is somehow a balanced combination of softness and resilience and bringing these two decisive qualities of a mattress into one whole. The undoubted advantage of firm mattresses is their responsiveness and support of the body surface.

“The two of them laid K. down on the ground, propped him against the boulder, and settled his head upon it. But in spite of the pains they took and all the willingness K. showed, his posture remained contorted and unnatural-looking. So one of the men begged the other to let him dispose K. all by himself, yet even that did not improve matters. Finally they left K. in a position which was not even the best of the positions they had already rehearsed. Then one of them opened his frock-coat and out of a sheath that hung from a belt girt round his waistcoat drew a long, thin, double-edged butcher’s knife, held it up, and tested the cutting edges in the moonlight.”
Franz Kafka - The Trial

Let’s use Kafka’s cold-blooded meticulousness to imagine yourself lying on a mattress. Imagine, like in slow motion film, that your body on the mattress begins to move in order to change its position. One way or another, your body must reach its destination. And suddenly, halfway through the movement, your body helpfully meets and accepts the surface of the mattress, which then takes over the rest of the path, brings the parts of the body to the right place, and without interrupting the movement, forms a corresponding recess for a new comfortable body position. Notice how your body’s effort is drastically minimized with this movement mechanism. Reflection is responsible for the beginning of the movement (which means almost zero conscious effort, hence the absence of stimulating signals harmful to a restful sleep), the movement continues with inertia, and then the mattress takes over that part of the path where your body had to try hard - first strain for an even descent (this is also a reflection, turning on a defensive reaction when a person falls, but in this case, an excessive load on the muscles), then meet a new part of the mattress surface yourself (which will most likely turn out to be unfriendly, if only because your body is waiting in its flat horizontal position, while parts of your body have a certain roundness like any other person), after which your body must also balance to find a common line with the relief of the surface of the mattress, and finally, in order to win this war with the mattress, your body must win back from the surface of the mattress is a convenient location. A resilient mattress takes care of it all. “Each resilient mattress?” you might ask almost reflexively. Of course not. Only a high-quality firm mattress is able to establish a harmonious dialogue between its own surface and the surface of the human body lying on it. The firmness is a characteristic rather for consumers, and for a mattress provider the firmness is a necessary niche, a parameter. This parameter has long been established in the world of mattress production: 7/10, where 7 is the degree of firmness of the mattress on a 10-point scale. In fact, reaching the 7th degree of firmness is not a very difficult task. Today, modern technologies and materials allow almost every manufacturer to comply with the required 7-point criterion. Therefore, when you hear from some mattress manufacturer a magnificent statement like “a fantastic achievement of an incredible 7th degree of firmness of a hitherto unseen mattress”, we recommend that you show at least unobtrusive suspicion. It is not enough to get the coveted 7. In order for the surface of the mattress to be able to predict the wishes of your body, a firm mattress must be able to skillfully vary this 7th. A high-quality firm mattress, when necessary, can bring the degree of firmness from 7 to 5 out of 10, and if necessary, even rise from 7 to 7.5 out of 10.

Your mattress firmness is essential for your sleep quality. A too soft mattress will give you back pains and make you feel as if you haven’t moved all night, so it’s best to vary the firmness down a level or 2 to find the right one for your body. On the other hand, a body-contouring mattress could be the most comfortable and blissful rest you’ve ever gotten. Ultimately, mattress feel will depend largely on personal preference. However, it’s important to note that your mattress should support you for the best possible sleep.
A firm mattress is often an excellent choice for certain sleepers. Back and stomach sleepers prefer a firmer surface to keep their hips and lower back aligned with their shoulders and knees. Those who tend to sleep on their stomach or side and are heavier could also find the best body support by sleeping on a firmer mattress that offers ergonomic support.