Whole body vibration training is all the rage at the moment. It stimulates your muscles to contract by way of the frequencies created by the vibration of the machine. It is believed that this will tone and strengthen muscles – we say believe, as not all research is corroboratory with this claim. However, the ultra-FIT team feels that WBV training can be a useful adjunct to your training. Power Plate ® machines vibrate between 25 and 50 times a second, for example.

As well as creating potential muscle strength and tone, lower frequency settings can stretch muscles by turning off the stretch/reflex mechanism – allowing them to move beyond previous limits.  The stretch/reflex is designed to prevent a muscle from being overstretched. You’ll encounter it when trying to stretch a limb beyond its existing range of movement. Similar frequencies can also aid relaxation and clear the body of ‘waste’ products caused by exercise that could lead to soreness. We’ve used the machines to this end.

WBV training can be performed in a number of ways – you can hold a position on the machine, such as a squat, with thighs parallel to the ground (an isometric position), or perform an isotonic (moving exercise), such as squats, lunges or press-ups.

There are a number of focussed WBV workouts out there at the moment such as the Power Plate ® Booty Workout. Caroline Sandry went along to Harrods to try it.

“The workout is short and intense, it’s ideal to squeeze into your lunch break and the stretch and massage machine setting, really does the trick and re-lengthens those tired muscles. The exercises included lots of my favourites, such as squats and lunges, as well as a few alternatives, which really got a burn going in my hips, butt and thighs. The single leg squat series was really powerful and the beauty of the workout is that your abs and back also get a thorough workout, as your core has to stabilise in most of the exercises.

The following day I could definitely feel the effects – though I think the massage setting helped to prevent too much soreness.”

I would recommend WBV training as an adjunct to your other training. You still need to move your body with CV work to burn calories and increase fitness and perform body weight and free weights exercises to develop functional movement.

Vibration Training, 7.0 out of 10 based on 1 rating

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