hypervibe

Whole body vibration machines as we know them todayhave been around for more than four decades, Russian scientists being the first to use these platforms for helping their cosmonauts recover after space missions.

In this particular group of people, whole body vibration therapy was being used mainly for strengthening the muscles and bones of people returning from space, whose tissues had been affected and weakened by the lack of gravity.

The effectiveness of WBV in strengthening and relaxing muscles didn’t go unnoticed, and soon the therapy started to be used in sport competitions, for helping athletes recover faster and improve their performance.

Nowadays, whole body vibration training is still recommended to people looking to improve their muscle tone and strength, as well as to those with muscle weakness caused by various health conditions. Also, this form of therapy is widely used in treating people with decreased bone density, as the energy waves sent by WBV machines have been proven to be beneficial in improving the density of bones.

However, not all WBV machines available on the market are equally effective in increasing one’s bone mass and strengthening one’s muscles, and as much as we hated to admit this, price does matter and can make a great difference in this case.

Still, this doesn’t mean one has to spend all their savings in order to purchase an efficient and highly qualitative WBV platform. There are some very good devices at accessible prices which offer the right parameters for proper muscular stimulation, so if you’re thinking about purchasing such a device, you should be more concerned with the machine’s power.

What makes a WBV platform powerful enough?

Whole body vibration machines work by sending energy waves through the body, and these waves are absorbed by tissues. Muscles are activated by vibrations and contract faster than normal, the number of contractions varying from 20 to 50 times per second, depending on how powerful the vibrations are.

This leads to an increased muscle strength and tone, as well as to a faster blood and lymph circulation, as muscle fibers work as a pump on the blood and lymphatic vessels. However, when the stimulus applied to muscles is too intense or lasts for too long, the process becomes less effective or better said, becomes ineffective, as the fibers can only absorb certain amounts of energy.

Sending too powerful vibrations to muscles won’t results in a better response from their part, as this form of therapy or training causes fatigue just like conventional training. According to researchers, the optimal frequency for WBV training is 20 Hz to 45 Hz, anything above 45 Hz being too much for the muscle tissue and very likely to cause severe soreness and even hematoma. As for frequencies under 20 Hz, those are good for relaxation and recovery.

Beside frequency, you should also pay attention to G-force, and choose a whole body vibration platform able to provide at least 10G of gravitational force. Whole body vibration machines that provide 10G and reach 20Hz to 45Hz are powerful enough to work your muscles and can be used for rehabilitation and relaxation as well, so they’re the best investment.