Fitstreet - Mobile Personal Training in Surrey that guarantees results

'Good Vibrations' or just another gimmick?

Right now, with the New Year here and people keen to lose weight, the media is going crazy about the latest exercise machine that promises amazing results in
a matter of minutes, 3 times a week. It's called the 'Powerplate' and everyone is talking about it. Many of you have been asking me what the deal is.

Let me enlighten you. Manufacturers claim that this vibrating platform offers the same benefits of an hour-long sweaty gym workout in just 15 minutes, with
the machine burning the calories for you. Sound too good to be true? Let's see...

The machine is a vibrating platform that you use as the basis for any exercise
that takes your fancy. You can either stand on it or place your hands or feet up
on the plate, to complete upper or lower body exercises that you would otherwise
do on terra firma. You can squat, push up, lunge, lift and pull your way through a full workout, and be assured that all the right muscles will be twitching away!

Manufacturers claim that the Powerplate uses 'whole-body vibration' to contract
muscles 30-50 times per second. As the vibrations begin you are forced to tense and relax your muscles continuously to keep your balance, and the feeling that
shoots through your body is unlike anything you will have felt before.

The idea was originally conceived by a Russian scientist who came up with the idea for vibration training as a means of preventing muscle and bone wasting for astronauts while travelling in space!

When I tried this machine out a couple of years ago I have to say that it did a pretty good job of forcing me to control my movement and slow each rep down. There was no room for half-hearted technique! You are quite literally forced to stabilise your joints and use the correct muscles to complete the exercise of
your choice. Due to the high number of contractions per second, your muscles will tire much quicker than doing the exercise on solid ground, allowing you to complete a set in a shorter period of time.

However, before you race out and buy one of these gizmos, take note. For starters these machines are not cheap (£2500 - £6000). They are also quite strange to use, akin to using a road drill, sending a numbing vibration
from your head to your toes, and causing your eyesight to go a little wobbly!

You will be so busy willing the 15-30 second vibration intervals to stop that you will barely think about the exercise that you are performing, which is just the problem! You NEED to be aware of which muscles are working, what you are feeling and where there is restriction in your movement. You may be able to perform all your regular exercises on this contraption, but stick you in a real life situation, like lifting a heavy box, twisting round or regaining your balance after slipping, and where will you be without your vibrating platform? You need to practice movement as it will occur in real life, not on an oscillating box!

Where I do believe these machines are worth using is in a rehab environment, where clients find it hard to isolate particular muscles due to shut-off from injury. They are also great as a supplement to your current training, to further challenge your core and spice up old exercises that you'd like to give a new lease of life to.

As for the product claims, can they really be the answer to getting fit and losing weight in just 10 minutes a day? Unfortunately no. Nothing is that simple. Give it
a go if you get the chance and see for yourself. After 5 minutes you'll be glad to get your feet back on solid ground!