What’s it all about?
Simply put, you wobble your way to wellbeing. The Power Plate consists of a vibrating platform upon which you perform all sorts of moves ranging from squats, crunches and push-ups to dips, steps and lunges. It’s a vibrating Mr Motivator. The vibrations mean that your muscles work harder than in traditional strength training, and therefore your training time can be cut.
What claims does it make?
The Power Plate hit the headlines again recently when former supermodel Cindy Crawford, at the ripe old age of 43, credited her irritatingly toned body to it. Whether that’s true or not, the hype claims that you get a full body workout in just 15 minutes and that the machine can reduce cellulite, improve fitness and reduce the size of your bum, thighs and calves.
The bumf I was sent quotes two ridiculously named scientists, Dr Horst Frank and Dr Birgit Moos (of the Sanaderm Professional Clinic for Skin Illnesses and Allergies in Germany), who apparently saw a 25.7% reduction of cellulite on their test subjects when they used the Plate over six months.
What’s the science?
Power Plate works by transferring vibrations to muscles, activating reflexive contractions. It’s similar to the knee-jerk reaction that occurs when the knee is tapped by a hammer in a doctor’s office: without thinking about it, your body responds with a strong involuntary muscle contraction, making your leg ‘kick out’. On the machine, these strong muscle contractions are repeated at a rapid rate.
How hard is it?
The moves themselves are not difficult, but different instructors will tell you different things about the required intensity of your workout. I heard many a story along the lines of: ‘simply stand on the plate and lose weight’.
Well, it’s not quite that easy. Certainly, at The Lifestyle Institute where I went for my sessions, I was quickly disabused of the notion that all I had to do was stand still. These Power Plate specialists had me using it as a step machine, doing tricep dips, and all manner of other sweat-inducing activities. The worst bit was that at most there were only ever four people working with one instructor, thereby minimising the chance of discreetly slacking off.
Is it fun?
Most places don’t have a cardio workout on the Power Plate but at TLI they are experimenting with the machine. My personal favourite is boxing: you sit or stand on the Plate and kick or punch pads. If you’re chanelling Rocky, you can add sit-ups at the same time. I also tried circuits and stretch and strength classes.
Being in a small group (sometimes on your own) and having a trainer standing over you shouting motivating things makes a massive amount of difference to your willpower. “Just hold it for 30 seconds more, Rachel! Hold it … hold it … five, four, three, two, ONE!”
Does it work?
The first time I did a class I was warned that although I might feel like I hadn’t done very much (ha! My legs were like jelly), I would hurt the next day. The instructor spoke no lies: the morning after my class I was barely able to get out of bed. Every time I had to leave my desk that day I adopted the John Wayne shuffle. However, with time and more exercise it gets better, I was relieved to find.
After three months I was feeling fantastic. I was much more limber, felt really toned and was running around showing off my triceps (all those dips, you see).
Who is it good for?
It’s low impact so there’s no strain on joints, so it’s good for anyone regardless of their age or ability. At TLI it’s also fun, but I have heard about people using the Power Plate machine at their gyms and feeling that it isn’t making a difference. Therefore I would advise shopping around until you find a class that’s right for you. You definitely need someone to show you what to do for at least the first few sessions.
Best avoided if
You attend a lonely gym where there’s no one to show you how it works. Using the machine incorrectly could lead to some nasty injuries.
Where can I go to try it?
The Lifestyle Institute offers a free trial lesson so that you can see if you will enjoy Power Plates. Virgin Active gyms, David Lloyd and various independent gyms use the machines too.
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