I recently purchased a vibration platform. I purchased a Pro-Vibe froom Pneumex. I have experimented with it for about 4 weeks. Here are my observations:
The thing is great for improving range of motion and loosening up tight hip abductors, hamstrings, etc.
We have noticed that if you do a set of light squats, it fires up the hamstrings and quads real quick…so we have found it to be a good warm-up tool. (note, you have to have a large enough platform to do so)
After a hard workout on lower body, we have used it with some success theraputically…using low hertz (30HZ) and low amplitude but not for everyone, including me.
Other than that, what am I missing? I personally don’t get on the thing unless I want to go sleepless for the night. After using it, I feel dead tired but my legs felt like they were going 40 miles an hour when I hit the bed. Does anyone have any protocols which show this tool can help increase speed or vertical? How was it used, duration, amplitude, speed? I’ve read many success stories but no programs.
I have stuff for the Nemes. 5 sets of 30s with 1 min recovery. Works well but I don’t know about your machine. Use EMG to find out the best frequency for you.
Thanks, and sorry for being ignorant, but what is EMG? 30 seconds at what speed and amplitute? What kind of position are you in during the 30 seconds? Is this protocol used for recovery or strength or what? Again, I appreciate your response and apologize for my stupidity.
EMG allows you to tell how many muscle fibres are recruited. Different people respond best to different frequencies of vibration. You can use EMG to check which frequency works best.
This doesn’t take us any further . . . but a friend went to an international strength and conditioning conference in Greece a year ago at which some of the really big pro team sports clubs were attending. He received all sorts of tributes to the vibratin platforms, but absolutely zero protocols. Seems like they are a closely-guarded secret.
But a lot of the clubs use them for instant warm-up and as a (literal) “shakedown” to improve ROM (range of movement). In that way, the pathways may be cleared for improved performance.
Some serious S&C coaches I’ve spoken to think the jury is still out on how useful vibration machines are for actual training, in the reps and sets sense. And these are guys in charge of a national high performance project with their own physiology lab and a network of pretty educated S & C coaches to call on.
They build themselves a machine and dropped it into a variety of squat racks, Smith machines etc to use while squatting etc etc. But again, they haven’t been able to prove to their own satisfaction the actual training benefit (as distinct from loosening-up benefits and neural activation)… wish i could have been more helpful.
I paid 5 grand for it. (Demo) I actually purchased it for more than one thing in mind. My youngest son has very poor posture and we have tried everything to help remedy this problem. Secondly, my mother has advance osteoperois. I recently asked Mike Boyle, who has a Vibraflex, how he uses them, and he said primarily for warmup. He also thought we are only scratching the surface on how to use these effectively. A lot of conflicting info out there.
Ok, after I googled and found out in detail the use of EMG, where can one find this service without getting a doctor’s recommendation? (or if you don’t live close to a university) Very interesting…I found this information to be from East Carolina University, (The Walker Center):
Isokinetic and Electromyographic (EMG) Testing to determine:
Maximal muscle strength in a targeted muscle- provides a valid indicator for performance and injury potential, and correlates with psychological measures of vigor and aggression. Can identify progression of strength development in a targeted muscle group over a series of tests.
Bilateral isokinetic leg strength - Another assessment of potential for injury targets muscle balance in the lower extremities. Many athletes suffer from injuries in the hamstring muscle groups. Hamstring injury has been related to a weakness of these muscles per se, to a relative weakness compared with the knee extensors, and to muscle strength differences between legs. These tests will identify within and between legs imbalances in muscle strength.
Bilateral isokinetic leg strength with EMG - Muscle imbalances can be caused by aberrations in the neural activation of the muscle. These tests use sophisticated surface electromyography (EMG) techniques that help identify potential problems with neural activation of the muscles involved in the injury.
Maximal power and decay of maximal power (fatigue profile) allows coaches and athletes to determine the precise number of repetitions that can be performed without significant fatigue, and also can provide on-line computer graphics on the athlete’s rate of fatigue and muscle endurance
Neuromuscular efficiency and muscle electrical activity provides valuable information about neuromuscular efficiency and thus can provide accurate information regarding an athlete’s increased efficiency or, conversely, undesirable and less efficient characteristics of technique
I would agree 100% with this. Again, I have seen people who have collected data that seems to coroberate Bosco’s original research but as an engineer I think that the design of the machine is probably of great importance and should not be overestimated. Doing research on different machines is probably enough of a factor to significantly affect the results. Especially if you don’t measure EMG etc… like in some of the training studies that have been done.
just some useful information. vibration applied properly does elicit a documented reflex called the tonic vibrational reflex. Enoka speaks of this in some detail in one of his books i would transcribe it for you but alas quite a few of my text books where lost in transit from cali to florida, fuckin US postal service. anyway vibration does elicit a reflex similar to the stretch reflex in actuality it is the stretch reflex ony caused by external stimulus. the difference is i believe they did their work with hand held devices appled to the tendon of the desired training muscle. it was shown to drastically increase flexability and increase power but it did mention that extended use had an adverse effect of suppresing other reflexes i believe the H reflex and the tendon tap not sure though i would have to look at the book again. i know schroeder used only hand held devices so more important that anything i believe the machine must be cycled into training as to not cause a stagnent adaptation and suppression of other reflexes.
A good point James brings up is that you have to be careful when adding things to your programme. The more factors you have to control the harder a task you have. If you programme consists of purely running then it is fairly easy to monitor. The more things you add the more problems you get BUT potentially you also have more ways of avoiding overload to any specific system.
also the more tool you have at your disposal to build a better athelte. the weakness i believe in simply running or even running and doing basic strenght training is i believe that most people cannnot effeciently deal with the force they expereience during a sprint. and so they get injured and over time as they build up their abilty to abosrb the forces they being to run faster. but no imagine if you can systematically train the system to absorb those large forces. your speed would increase drastically. anb becasue you did it a progressive and controlled enviornment you dont have the incedent of injury. this is waht i believe truely differentiates elite sprinters and novices.
An EMG reading is a must… Most people will set the frequency to the highest on the dial because most think that more is better. EMG readings quickly dispell this notion for most people. You will find that for most, 25Hz is more than enough…
Ok, how does one go about receiving an EMG? I don’t have access to a world class training facility. Will doctors provide a recommendation even though this is not for an injury or illness? It doesn’t appear like EMG machines are sold to just anyone on the street?
The problem with going just by EMG is that bioelectric ativity may not be the only desired trait. allow me to explain, the tonic vibrational reflex is really just eleciting the stretch reflex. substatial vibrational amplitudes elicit the stretch reflex causing a subsequent powerful agonist contraction while at the same time inhibiting the antagonist via interneurons (believe it or not processing does occur in areas other than the brain). so although there may be an ideal level for muscle activation, muscle activation does not necessarily necessitate the desired adaptation.
Let me see if I have this correct. An EMG should tell me how fast muscles can optimally perform, speed of contraction, etc at the present moment…but it does not tell me the potential of that muscle. (Example) If I perform a 1RM bench press, it will tell me what I can bench today, but not necessarily my potential bench? This is why DB Hammer/Jay Shroeder uses EMS because one can never elict or recruit enough muscles on our own to fully maximize our true nuero potential? Or am I missing the boat alltogether?
lol you missing the boat, im simply saying a large electrical register does not necessarily mean that you are achieveing the desired stressor and therfor the desired adaptation. so use electrical activity might be high but it does not mean that it is the type or pattern of activity desired in the instance. in some instances vibration in a hertz range which does not produce a maximal electrical response is desired. sometimes the optimum not maximal stimulation is necessary to move toward a given goal.
