Mattress Responsiveness and Ease of Movement
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At the end of a long day, there’s nothing better than crashing into a warm, comfy bed and finally unwinding. Here at Dweva Review Team, we want you to soak up that good feeling every single night. To help make that happen, our mattress reviews look at details you might not even think about—like how responsive a bed is, which affects how easily you can move around.
Ease of movement refers to how simply you can shift positions, adjust yourself, and get in and out of bed. Beds with high responsiveness can set you up for smoother, more comfortable sleep. Let’s take a closer look at how we test ease of movement and why it really matters.
Why Mattress Responsiveness Is Important
When a bed has a lot of bounce and allows easy movement, you deal with less drag and less of that “stuck” sensation when you shift around. This can mean you’re less likely to wake yourself up when you roll over during the night.
Ease of movement may be especially important for the following groups of people:
Combination Sleepers
Some folks crash on their backs, while others snuggle down on their sides or sleep flat on their stomachs. But not everyone stays in one single pose through the whole night. Combination sleepers might wake up in the middle of the night if their body meets too much resistance when they try to shift or roll over.
So if you’re a combination sleeper, you may want to put a lot of focus on ease of movement when picking out a mattress.
Older Adults
As you get older, those long stretches of totally uninterrupted sleep might happen less often. Many older adults wake up more easily because they spend less time in the deepest stages of sleep. So, a bed that doesn’t respond well might throw off your sleep more than it would have earlier in life.
You might also notice yourself getting up to use the bathroom more frequently. This is way less of a hassle if your bed lets you move and sit up without much struggle.
People with Mobility Issues
Finding a mattress that’s simple to shift around on is super important for people dealing with physical issues such as back pain, joint soreness, or arthritis. It can influence the whole experience—from climbing into bed, to adjusting how you’re lying, to getting up again.
How We Test Mattress Responsiveness
Ease of movement can be pretty personal. Taller folks and heavier-bodied sleepers might feel like it’s tougher to shift around on a mattress, while smaller or lighter people might think it’s no big deal. That’s why, when we test mattresses, we gather input from multiple testers with different body shapes and sizes.
Switch Test
Our first dedicated test for checking responsiveness is super straightforward: we just roll around on the bed! We rotate through the three main sleeping positions (side, back, and stomach) and pay attention to how effortless that feels. Are we sinking down and fighting against the mattress, or is the bed kind of helping us glide as we move?
Kettlebell Test
We also check responsiveness by placing a 44-pound kettlebell right on the mattress. When we pick the kettlebell back up, we time how long the mattress surface takes to bounce back to its original flat shape. If it snaps back almost instantly, we know the mattress is highly responsive. If it slowly rises and takes its time, that’s a sign it might feel tougher to shift positions on that bed.
Testers compare notes and talk through what they noticed during both tests. When one tester writes up the mattress review, they include insights gathered from everyone’s experiences. We give each mattress a responsiveness rating on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 meaning it responds quickly and easily.
How Mattress Materials Affect Ease of Movement
There’s a reason we’ve noticed the best ease of movement with latex, hybrid, and innerspring mattresses: The stuff a mattress is made of has a huge effect on how easily you can shift around. Let’s break down why.
Memory Foam Mattresses
Memory foam beds can be awesome for side sleepers. Combination sleepers? Not so much. Memory foam hugs the shape of your body and takes its sweet time bouncing back. So moving around on all-foam beds can feel like wading through thick mud, especially when the foam is dense.
If you really adore that memory foam squish, but don’t want to feel like you’re sinking into quicksand, look for a mattress made with responsive foam that snaps back fast after you press into it.
Latex and Latex Hybrid Mattresses
Latex feels springy and lively. It doesn’t mold around your body as deeply as memory foam does, so you shouldn’t get that “stuck in a hole” sensation. Most folks find it pretty easy to roll around and change positions on latex mattresses.
The innerspring coils in hybrid beds also make movement a breeze. Combine latex with coils, like you’ll find in latex hybrid mattresses, and you end up with a bed that’s super simple to shift around on. Check out some of the best latex mattresses for some solid picks.
Hybrid Mattresses
Want a memory foam mattress, but don’t want to feel trapped every time you scoot across the bed? Just look into hybrid mattresses.
Hybrid beds include coils in the support layer. Not only do these coils boost the bed’s support; they also make repositioning way smoother. In lots of hybrid beds, you’ll notice you’re resting more “on top of” the mattress rather than sinking deep “inside” it.
Innerspring Mattresses
If ease of movement is your number-one priority, consider placing innerspring mattresses at the top of your list. These mattresses are packed with coils, which give support and help the mattress bounce back to shape quickly. This makes innerspring mattresses some of the easiest to move around on. Traditional innerspring beds don’t have a ton of cushioning on top, though, so some people may not find them as plush or cozy as foam or hybrid beds.