All the studios in New Zealand and Australia are busy with regular customers and lots of “newbies” – people who come in for a trial session; some buy a concession card or membership right away, others go away and think about it; all are thoroughly impressed at how hard it is and can see right away that it’s going to be effective for their fitness and strength training.

HARD – Yes I used the word Hard

This year’s new customers have taken the time to find out what they’re in for – most already know its going to be exercise which is, as we all know, hard work; you can’t get results by just messing about. The Vibra-Train safety Program (used in Vibra-Train and many other vibration studios worldwide) is exacting; we insist that customers maintain perfect position throughout the time duration of each pose.

Can it be too hard for some people? This really isn’t a problem as the Safety Program accounts for all the aches and injuries a person might have while still allowing advanced users to “go harder”. There’s four varying levels of the “Bullet” (Vibra-Train’s lineal vibration machine) in the studio I’m working in plus there’s the “Vibra” machines with side vibrating handlebars that are used both for extension work and for simpler, greater support for those who are less able or have injuries.

So, what about Guys?

Well, this year there’s been a lot of guys coming in for trial sessions. Some already know they are going to have to work hard; others, especially those who come with their girlfriend or partner, have the idea that vibration training is for the girls (they’ve seen an advert for a cheap machine or maybe seen a video with pretty girls on a light machine) and they come with an opinion that its not really serious exercise.

Guys with this attitude are a lot of fun for the trainers – it can take just 60 seconds to change their mind and by the end of a 8-10 minute session they leave exhausted. Of course we have to be careful not to injure the male’s fragile ego by making the session too hard while their female friend just gets on with it without complaint but we do make sure they leave suitably impressed.

Many of the guys who are already fit and carry extra muscle mass find the workouts on the Vibra-Train machines to be really hard. I’m training some very strong guys at present, one in particular who is a Personal Trainer himself and is using Vibration Training to add that “extra” to his program.  There’s another who was becoming quite fit and had lost a lot of stomach flab but he definitely over-indulged over Christmas and came back in a lot heavier – he came back in saying he was “afraid” of me. He knew I would insist he worked through the sessions correctly and safely and work very hard to get back into shape. He’s already getting great results again after just three weeks ( 9 sessions).

Guys who have never exercised in their lives do well with Vibration Training. On the vibration machines they are working with their own body as resistance so they can handle the program just as well as those who are already highly trained or fit. Of course it all seems very hard at first but that would be true of any exercise.

Then there’s the runners and those who regularly cycle long distances. These guys have strong legs; they can easily hold the squat positions but they fail in the upper body work. Vibration Training on high-force lineal machines such as the Vibra-Train or Vibro-Gym helps to even out their training and give them overall fitness.

Any guy reading this who still thinks vibration training is for chicks is welcome to come into a Vibra-Train studio for a free session.

I work mornings mostly starting at 6.30am and other staff take over for the afternnons and evenings until close at 10pm. Then we also do Saturday and Sundays from 9am to 6pm so there’s never an excuse for people to say they want to come but the hours don’t suit.  I’ve had new customers every day which has been both hard work and lots of fun and rewarding. These “newbies” have been all different ages and body types and most have had no previous exercise experience. It seems that Fitness has been a New Years Resolution for many and I’m taking it very seriously to see that these people get the first experience and the ongoing results that turn their fleeting good idea into a full lifestyle change.

In the wider Vibration Training Industry I’m involved in many areas, from discussions and debates about “how things work” to having to refute a lot of misinformation.  Also I get emails and online contacts from people all over the world asking for help on various questions, from which home machine would be best for their needs to finding a studio or gym with training vibration machines that will enhance their fitness program. I write articles for various places, make videos for our YouTube Channel and am active in online social media.

People sometimes ask if I have a life outside of Vibration Machines. Yes, I do – I’m just not so sure where I left it right now.

You’ll find some articles with excellent information for people wanting to train in a studio or to buy a machine for home use but you’ll also read many artices that are thinly veiled, often poorly worded informational advertisements with click-throughs that take you to sites that sell cheap, home machines.

These articles are easy to spot, once you’ve read a few of them, as they promote a particular brand of machine and the same article, word-for-word, often appears on many internet sites at the same time.  Even worse, the authors sometimes go by more than one name, so you will find the same, word-for-word, article on different websites, written by Jessica Watson, Jessica Whatson, Shilipi Sharma, and Sanjana Sharma. These are all the same author writing paid articles to promote HyperVibe machines.

If a search engine, like Google, finds many articles about a brand, product or service, that brand’s website goes up in the rankings, (the ideal being to show on Page 1 of a search for that product) and so it gets even more hits and the brand is thus, promoted.  Most articles also contain “click throughs” – links to the promoted company or brand’s real website.

If you use Google again and type in the actual brand name of the machine promoted in the advertorial articles you’ll sometimes find other articles exposing the particular brand; sometimes an opinion on the marketing pratices (as in the example of multi-writers above).

Other times (not related to the paragraphs above) it’s the brand of machine advertised and promoted as the “best machine available” or the “only one that does what it does, that others within the vibration training industry take “offense” at. These advertising terms are very common but when attached to low price, low quality brands, they have caused intending buyers to give up and look for other fitness products instead. We know that advertising hyperbole is the norm but I believe more care needs to be taken when advertising a health and fitness product.

I recommend people check out the Vibration-Training-Advice.com website for articles that tell the truth plus a review of machine types and what they can be used for.

My website also exists to educate and, like this article, expose scams and frauds that are, in my opinion, harmful to consumers.

There’s just one problem -

some people seem destined to be “ripped-off”.  They read the articles exposing low quality machines, go to the machine review page (I presume as it’s often listed in articles plus it appears in bold on the Vibration-Training-advice website), yet they ask non-sensical questions.  Those of us writing the help articles get emails or questions on forums asking the price or where to buy a low quality machine we’ve just given a bad review to or written an explanatory article about.  You have to wonder if people really do read the articles or if they presume every brand you write about must be the machine that will give the results they’re looking for.

After two articles exposing the Gymform VibroMax scam and telling readers the real uses of that machine I got the question, “how much do you sell the VibroMax for?”

Let’s make it simple – at this point in time, I do not sell Vibration Machines and If I ever did sell the Gymform VibroMax I’d sell it for a true price (not the exaggerated prices I’ve seen on the TV Infomercials that use models and trainers to promote the machine) and I’d sell it for it’s true use, which in my opinion, definitely isn’t fitness training.

We’ve had many first-timers at the Vibra-Train studio where I work. I’m wondering if people are looking forward to summer and know that now is the time to improve their fitness and strength; and look great.

Last week’s customers all had questions about Vibration Training or they had specific desires, several wanting to only work out their upper body, telling me that they did a lot of running and that was all they thought they needed for their legs.

These customers are “the best” – they haven’t just come along because they’ve seen an TV advert for Vibration Training or an article in a magazine and come to try us out for a few visits, kind of like trying the latest flavour of icecream and then off to try some other fitness facility – they’ve come because they’ve already done some research or talked to a friend who’s getting great results – these are serious, long-term, new customers and they want their questions answered.

Those who are regularly walking or running need to understand how different Vibration Training is; how training on high-force, lineal machines builds muscle and is considered a form of resistance training whereas running is for cardio fitness. They soon realise that despite frequent running they must follow the full Safety Program to get the results.  If they vibration train regularly two or three times a week they soon be telling me how much easier their running is becoming because they’ll have increased their overall fitness; those who sprint get faster and those who walk or run longer distances find they have more stamina and don’t tire so soon.  An advantage runners and regular walkers have over other “newbies” is that their leg muscles are strong so they manage the squat positions very well.

We often talk about the different machine types and brands available and the Vibra-Train difference.

I worked on Sunday, and two new customers had specific back injuries that required me to make decisions about their ability to follow the standard safety program.  I have the option of giving them fully assisted (side vibrating handlebars) squats so that their lower back, hips, knees and ankles have even more support and allowing them work through the whole program; or, if necessary, they can do only the side handlebar assisted squats, that’s if their medical condition or severity of injury suggests they will be unable to do the regular program.

I have to make the choice.  I’ve gained experience in this and I can always refer back to Lloyd Shaw, the owner of Vibra-Train if I am really unsure but he expects me to be competent in this by now.  Sometimes I wait and and then decide  from how well they handle Position 1 – The Basic Squat – getting them to use the side handlebars instead of front ones, but even before that very first first position, I’ll be thinking and deciding as they’ve filled in a questionaire and we’ll have discussed their health or injury concerns.

Confidence is the thing -  I can make the right decisions for these customers.  I can decide if they can follow a Training program or is they need to start with Vibration Therapy.  It’s really not hard to decide!  I err on the side of caution but I don’t want to send a customer away disappointed because they could have done more.

So, yesterday’s customers – one had a severe lower back problem and had expected to have surgery but was declined by our national accident insurance system.  Despite her injury being the result of an accident there was an element of degenerative plus overuse issues.  She was hoping her private medical insurance would help pay for the needed surgery and told me she was currently unable to lift up and carry her 18 month old toddler.  It was quickly obvious that she was not able to work through the full program so she did a simple set of side handlebar assisted squats and will come back in few days to tell us how she felt afterwards and then we may increase what she does – She did Vibration Therapy.

The other customer with lower back and knee pain arrived later in the day.  Her injuries resulted from years of working in childcare squatting on the floor while she played with children and picking them up from the ground.  I thought she would be able to do the full Safety Program using the side handlebars for support in the squat positions.  Then as my boss walked into the studio I decided to ask his advice.  Lloyd (my boss) took over and put the customer through the program and I observed.  She did the full program – Vibration Training. I noticed she was putting her body weight onto her toes not balanced onto heels and toes.  This was what was causing her back and knee pain as it was the way she regularly squatted down when playing with young children.  Lloyd pointed this out to her and told her how much she would benefit from the Vibra-Train Safety Program; with an instructor supervising her sessions she would quickly learn to keep her heels down and take the pressure off her knees, also keeping her back neutral and relaxed.

I love it when I see Vibration Training giving such benefits that will change a young person’s life so dramatically. I’m excited to be able to watch this new customer’s progress.

We use a Safety Program specifically designed to give a safe workout with excellent results. Customers are fully supervised and quickly learn the steps to get into and maintain perfect position on the machines.  Over time, however, people tend to cheat a little, usually unintentionally, and their body moves slightly out of position making the workout easier (and less effective) so I still have to watch them.

Early this morning I had many regular customers in the studio; ones that I don’t have to watch too closely.  One couple come regularly every Monday and Thursday morning on their way to their office.  They started at another Vibra-Train studio five years ago and have been coming into the Auckland City Studio for about a year so they know the program very well, so well they could just about do my job and instruct others BUT this morning I, foolishly, left them alone for a few minutes while I cleared rubbish bins in another part of the studio.

Walking back into the room I laughed as I saw them both struggling with a position that involves having a mat on the platform while doing the position.  They had both chosen the wrong mat; one that fits our larger, “Bullet”  machine platform so it overhung the “Vibra” machine platforms they were using.  I asked them to look at the platforms and the mats and both said, “the mat doesn’t fit;  it was hard to hold position”.  They still didn’t realise they’d done anything wrong yet  they had both walked accross the studio and taken mats from beside another machine instead of using the ones right by them, ones that perfectly fit the “Vibra” platforms they were using.

Maybe they’d had a busy weekend and had Monday-itis!

As I’ve talked with my daughter and her friends I find that many young people in their late teens and early 20′s dismiss Vibration Training as a form of exercise because  they think they wont  enjoy it, BUT these are young people who don’t do any exercise other than a quick dash between classes or to the latest movie or party.  They are completely lazy about any form of exercise that requires them to make an effort.  Later, when they hit their late 20′s or early 30′s they’ll panic and search out a simple, time-sparing way to exercise and Vibration Training will be available.

But what about those who are regularly training, for fitness or sports?

Yes, there are teenage athletes who love Vibration Training.  It allows them to gain strength and stamina in a way that also lets them challenge their own ability each time they come into the Vibra-Train studio.  In my opinion it’s far safer than allowing these young people to lift heavy weights and risk injuring themselves.

It’s important that they workout with an experienced Instructor so that their form is continually checked and Perfect Position maintained throughout the time of each position of the Safety Program.

I’m currently working with a very young athlete, a 13 year old girl who loves Netball and wants to improve her arm strength and force.  To get the results she wants she’s simply doing the full Vibra-Train Safety Program, nothing more and definitely nothing less.  I’m as excited as she is about seeing the results we’ll get.  She’s a little overweight which probably doesn’t matter in an active girl of that age but I’m thinking she’ll lose a little fat as well as gaining muscle and overall strength.

In just a few months time this young lady is going to be a force to be reckoned with on the Netball courts this, New Zealand, Summer.

I don’t recommend Vibration Training for every young person as it’s an individual thing.  Many teens, especially younger ones, get all the stimulation they need from their daily lives and those who are serious athletes often workout hard with practise sessions for their chosen sports and a fitness program built around that.  There are some, however, for whom Vibration Training works very well and the young netballer In am working with is one. We are very careful to ensure she is always in Perfect Position; important  for everyone and even more so for her as she’s still growing.

I also enjoy travel – usually this is just a quick weekend away; an “escape” from home and work and all the stresses of daily life.  A two or three day weekend out of town is excellent for relaxation, for trying new activities, going to a show, or sightseeing.

Last weekend I was in Sydney where I went to a show, “West Side Story”, and did some shopping.  It wasn’t really a rest travelling from Auckland early Saturday and back Sunday night but it was a very much needed break.

So where do Vibration Machines feature in my short weekends away?

There’s the increased fitness and strength to power me through up to 24 hours from when I get up at 3am until I get to bed in Sydney the following night.  With a two hour time difference and lots to do and see I can be active for a very long time with my only rests being the waiting time at Auckland International Airport and onboard the aircraft for three hours.  Once I arrive it’s all go!

The Vibration Training benefit I appreciate the most when I travel is that of increased circulation. I try to train immediately before I travel, at least the afternoon before.  Then I can sit for long periods of time without discomfort in my legs and my risk of d.v.t. is decreased.  I try to stand up at least once during a 3 1/2 hour flight but having a window seat can prevent this; it’s easier to stay put than clamber over two other people to stand.

If I have travelled over three hours by car or aircraft my first stop apon arrival is the local Vibra-Train or VibroGym Vibration Training Studio.  There I work through the Safety Program which again gets my blood circulation stimulated and my mind alert and ready to go (Shopping !)

Unfortunately The Vibra-Train studio in Sydney is too far out of town to visit on a weekend trip and there’s no alternative.  I hope that one day we’ll see High-Force, Lineal Vibration Machines available for use at Airports with Instructors to guide travellers through the session.  Premium Speed Pivotal machines would also be useful as they can be used to mimic the natural walking gait and relieve the backache that comes with long periods of immobility.

So here’s a business idea that someone might want to run with – a Vibration Training Studio within an airport complex – There’s certainly enough people about to make it commercially viable if the owners do the setup right and provide suitably experienced Instructors to work with customers.

Or perhaps you own or run a Vibration Training Studio or you’re interested in getting into this industry – You want your clients to get great results but there are so many choices of machine brands, type, price and quality, so what should you demand from the company you choose to supply your machines?

Watch this Video,

“What to look for in a Commercial Vibration Training Platform”

As I look back, my personal joys of 2009 were many; working for Vibra-Train gave wings to my dreams and then brought me down to earth with a thud, the responsibility of being an effective Vibration Training Instructor is both exciting and seriously demanding.  It’s my job to ensure that customers get the benefits they are paying for.  I also had several articles published online on magazine websites.

My son and daughter both graduated from their respective universities;  my son completing a post-graduate year with high distinction in Computer Science and my daughter graduating with a Bachelor of Communication Studies degree.   My son will soon be moving to Sydney, Australia to begin his PhD research and other studies  involving robots and artificial intelligence.

2010 will be, I believe,  a year of consolidation for the Vibration Training, Vibration Therapy, and Vibration Machine companies.  Those who are solid and ethical will join forces to present a united group.  This will allow for better use of resources (informational, people, and maybe even machines) and even better than before, articles online and in print to inform and teach the public as well as keeping the current and new training instructors and proprietors well taught in safety program use and methodology.

Many new people will get to benefit from Vibration Training.