So, you’re looking for a memory foam mattress that’s soft enough to contour your body, firm enough to provide much-needed relief, and cool enough to keep you from overheating? We found one that could deliver all three!
The Bear Original mattress is a popular choice for many sleepers. But if you’re not up to speed, it’s one of the best-performing all-foam mattresses making waves on the bed market. This mattress is also one of the best-valued, as it offers many convenient and comfortable features in one product.
In this review, we’ll take a detailed look at the Bear mattress by testing it for ourselves and seeing if our results align with what we’ve been advertised. It may be a recommended choice for active individuals, but how well will it perform in giving them a good night’s rest?
For those of you who prefer a more visual experience, here is a video review from Sleep Advisor’s YouTube channel. Do check out our article below, however, because it has a comprehensive overview of DreamCloud’s Bear Mattress.
Overview: The Bear Original Bear Mattress Athlete
The Bear Original mattress is an all-foam mattress designed to provide all-around relief and comfort to those with active lifestyles. It is a vital mattress with important properties such as the gel-infused memory foam top layer that cushions the body’s pressure points and keeps it relaxed. Not only does it make the sleeper comfortable, but it also includes Bear’s signature open-cell response properties designed to increase airflow throughout it. The state-of-the-art Celliant fabric covers the mattress, making it powerful enough to prevent the body from overheating.
The Bear Original is a bed-in-a-box product with a medium-firm comfort level. Medium-firm mattresses, regardless of type and construction, are preferred by most sleepers, although what makes this one unique is its slightly bouncy feel. The Bear mattress is one the most popular products from the company named after it. It was created in 2014 with the sole purpose of making bed apparatus that can be used by athletes, first responders, frontline workers, and others who have a proactive way of living.
Who are the ideal users of the Bear Original?
- For those who want an all-foam mattress at an affordable price
- People who like to sleep on memory foam, but aren’t averse to the sinking sensation associated with it
- People who sleep hot after a long day of intensive work or hard activity are more likely to be comfortable.
- For back sleepers, a firm and supportive mattress is preferred.
- Couples sharing a bed with someone who is restless at night or who doesn’t want any disturbances may have a problem.
Who shouldn’t use Bear Original?
- Those who are looking for a bouncier bed – all-foam mattresses, including the Bear Original, are notorious for not being too springy
- Those who may appreciate beds with stable edge support
- Lightweight side sleepers who may find this mattress to be too firm
- This may be too soft for average-weight stomach sleepers.
- Heavyweights who prefer to sleep flat, on their stomachs or backs, are called heavyweights
How Does the Bear Original Feel?
Is it going to give you the relief that you need from your aches and pains? How much will it sink your body? Is it as cool as the makers behind it claim to be? To answer these pressing questions, we tested the Bear mattress based on its firmness, pressure relief performance, and cooling capabilities.
Firmness
We use a scale of 1-10 to rank mattresses. One is super soft, five are medium and ten are extremely firm. We can confidently state that the Bear Original’s comfort level is medium to firm based on what we discovered while testing it. 7 to be exact.
Bear has stated that its mattress is medium-firm. Considering the use of memory foam, which has gained notoriety for its sinking feel on the body, the overall construction still somehow manages to be sturdy and stable. The Bear Original has a thick layer of high-density foam foundation, and high-density material is characteristically solid and not as pliable as spring coils.
This mattress has more benefits by having the material underneath the memory foam. Although the top layer is flexible enough to mold the body of the sleeper, it’s countered with a firmer foundation beneath, creating what appears like a perfect balance. We have had plenty of issues when testing on memory foam mattresses, but not on this one. We felt like we were sleeping on the surface of the Bear, not beneath it.
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Pressure relief
The Bear Original mixes the flexible softness of the memory foam and the solid strength of the high-density foam into one balanced mattress. It can provide sufficient pressure relief for most sleepers. No pressure buildup was observed in the heat map tests, regardless of what type of sleep position.
We are impressed by its incredible pain relief abilities, but we must also mention that it is only available to a small number of people. The Bear mattress may be more suitable for average-weight people. For heavyweights and lightweights, the experience may vary – some may feel more firm whenever they sleep on the sides, while others may feel too much pressure that it leans more towards discomfort. Bear Mattress Athlete
Temperature
As previously mentioned, the Bear mattress has open-cell foam, gel infusion, and Celliant fabric, all combined to keep the body cool enough that it doesn’t overheat. Although all-foam mattresses are not known for having the best insulation, this mattress performed admirably in maintaining the temperature at least to a neutral level. It is not too hot nor too cold.
While we can’t promise the Bear Original to have the same cooling properties as any innerspring or hybrid mattress, its three insulating features are enough to soothe a person, especially after a day filled with long, arduous tasks. They’re also enough to keep the couple from getting too heated – two bodies are prone to heat up faster on the mattress than one. If you’re in a relationship and looking for an affordable all-foam cooling bed, you may want to try the Bear mattress!
Sleep and Body Type Analysis
How effective will the Bear mattress bring much-needed comfort to the light, average, and heavy sleepers?
The Bear Original is tested in various sleeping positions
The Back
The Bear Original has proven yet again in providing the best back relief for most sleepers. This mattress is suitable for light-weight people. It has a healthy mix of support and conformity to help them feel comfortable while lying flat. It will be appreciated by those of average weight, as they get the best-optimized support and comfort.
In the case of heavyweight sleepers, however, the Bear may not work well in their favor. Being an all-foam mattress, they shouldn’t expect it to conform to their silhouettes like their light- or average-weight contemporaries. It usually ends up in sinkage, which doesn’t sound nice especially if you move often. We also noticed on the heatmap that the pressure points were higher then the rest.
Stomach
While the Bear delivers remarkable benefits to most back sleepers, stomach sleeping is different. Some may get a collectively positive experience while sleeping flat on the stomach, while others may find the surface too soft to provide pressure relief on the hips and keep their spine in alignment.
Both light- and average-weighted persons feel the same way when sleeping in this position. They may initially find the Bear to be supportive enough for their stomachs. But in the long run, since the mattress is all-foam, softness and sinkage may be inevitable, and it’s up to them to adjust. For heavyweight individuals, sleeping on the Bear with their stomachs laid flat on the surface will not bring them the benefits they crave. They often feel like they are sinking and have more pressure points than if they were sleeping on their backs. Bear Mattress Athlete
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Sides
The Bear’s feelings on the individual while they sleep on one side or the other is similar to lying flat on their stomachs. Lightweights might find the surface too hard for them, while others may feel the relief they require on their shoulders and hips. Average sleepers, meanwhile, would likely say the same thing.
Heavyweights won’t appreciate the Bear’s side-sleeping experience as much as they would like. According to a few of our testers, while they experienced the support and comfort from the mattress, the firmness, sinkage, and high-pressure point outweigh the pros.
Combination Sleeping Positions
Regardless of body weight, we found that the Bear Original should work okay with most individuals who usually sleep in a combination of positions. Based on our observations, it was adept enough to deliver comfort and relief to the testers even when they slept in altered postures. In regards to changing positions, there is a possibility that some sleepers may have slight difficulties in the movement since the mattress, after all, has a top layer of memory foam.
Mattress Performance
The testing doesn’t end there. Aside from the main tests, we also analyzed how well the Bear Original performed in terms of other factors, such as motion transfer, ease of movement, and more. For couples wondering if the mattress will serve them benefits, you should check this one out!
Motion Transfer
The perfect mattress must have motion isolation to help you sleep and not be disturbed by movements. Since the Bear’s all-foam layers are designed to absorb motion and dampen the vibrations caused by it, it does exceptionally better than, say, innerspring mattresses.
Ease of Movement
Considering the types of foam used, the Bear doesn’t conform to the body as much as the softer ones, yet is unable to deliver the floating feeling as the other beds do. For average and light sleepers, the ease of movement is 50/50. In the case of the heavy ones, however, they’ll most likely have challenges in maneuvering on the surface.
Edge Support
Edge support is a measure of how strong the bed’s perimeter is in supporting multiple bodies. Mattresses with strong edge support will not have couples or groups worried if one of them suddenly falls off. We found the Bear to have adequate stability around the edges, although not as strong as the innerspring models.
Sex
Memory foam or all-foam mattresses have drawn flak for not being the best beds to use for sexual activity. In the case of the Bear, however, we observed that it didn’t conform as much as other foam beds and that it’s more responsive to quick changes of movement. We conclude that the Bear is capable of performing well during sex.
Unboxing and Off Gassing
The Bear is a bed in a box mattress. This means that there will be some off-gassing and compression after you open the packaging. All-foam mattresses are known for their strong and sometimes unpleasant odors. These are caused by volatile organic compound (VOC). Bear Mattress Athlete
The Bear is no different, but since the foam materials used are GreenGuard Gold and CertiPUR-US-certified, the off-gassing smells go away much faster compared to other all-foam beds.
Construction
The Bear Original mattress is 10 inches thick and is comprised of three layers, each of which is a uniquely different kind of foam.
Top comfort layer – The first of these three layers is a graphite-gel memory foam that’s known to provide pressure relief and contouring along the body’s silhouette. With a thickness of 2″, it is also packed with open-cell cooling abilities to regulate the sleeper’s temperature – something traditional memory foam often lacks.
Transitional middle layer – Below the memory foam comfort layer is a transitional response foam that’s also 2″ thick. Made to be soft and firm at the same time, it helps to keep the body from sinking. The sleeper will feel like they’re laying on top of more than into the surface of the mattress.
Foundation layer – This is the thick, high-density foam that holds the Bear together. It has a height of 6 inches and serves as a solid foundation for the body of the sleeper to rest on.
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The three layers of the Bear Original are wrapped in a Celliant fabric mattress cover. Celliant fabric is an FDA-approved fiber material that helps speed up recovery time for individuals while they sleep. It also features design elements that improve blood circulation. It’s soft and provides enough airflow to prevent the body from overheating. With the right amount of materials formulated for active persons in mind, we can see why the Bear has been advertised as a mattress for athletes and other high-energy professionals.
Pricing and Available Sizes
Available in all standard sizes, the Bear mattress is a specially-designed bed that you can get at a range of valuable prices. It’s not a very budget-friendly model by all means, nor a highly expensive one either. Here is a full list of sizes and their corresponding prices offered with the Bear Original:
| SIZE OF MATTRESS | PRICE (PRIOR TO DISCOUNT) |
| Twin | $748 |
| Twin XL | $811 |
| Full | $873 |
| Queen | $998 |
| King | $1,248 |
| Cal King | $1,248 |
| Split King | $1,622 |
Final verdict on the Bear Original Mattress
We are confident that the Bear Original delivers comfort, relief and peace of mind after undergoing a series of tests. This mattress is a great choice for people who like to sleep on memory foam and want to be able to move quickly. It is designed with recovery in mind and has many features that will appeal to active people who are looking for a mattress they can provide what they need.
It is admirable how it works on most people, but it might not be suitable for heavier sleepers. Many mattresses will have limitations. The Bear Original mattress has a lot of great features and a very affordable price. This is why you should buy it! Bear Mattress Athlete
FAQ Bear Mattress Athlete
Where can I buy the Bear Original?
You can buy the Original mattress online at Bear’s official online store at bearmattress.com, as well as find its limited sizes through their Amazon store. You can visit their showrooms in the following states/territories to see the Bear mattress in person:
- New Jersey (Bernardsville and Hoboken)
- New York (New York City Metropolitan Area)
- Florida (Miami)
- Washington, DC (metropolitan region)
Bear offers free shipping on all mattresses. How does Bear ship to me?
Bear offers free shipping on all models, even the Bear Original. This applies to Canada and the US mainland. Residents in Alaska, Hawai’i, and Puerto Rico will still need to pay additional transportation costs. Within 2-7 business days of your initial purchase, the Bear mattress will be delivered in a box.
Is it possible to return the Bear mattress?
The Bear Original mattress is covered by a 120-night risk-free trial period. If in any way you’re not satisfied with the mattress’s overall performance, you may call Bear’s customer service hotline to ask for a full refund and return within the given period. The team will then pick up the mattress from your household free of charge.
Does the Bear come with a warranty?
The Bear comes with a lifetime warranty, which only applies to mattresses purchased through authorized sellers, including the website. The warranty covers workmanship and material defects such as 1.5-inch deep indentations, splits, cracks, and cracks in foam foundation. There are additional terms and conditions. Bear Mattress Athlete
