Posts Tagged ‘Programs’

Does Vibration Training really work?

March 4th, 2010

Checking the statistics for my website this is the term most searched for.  So I could simply answer, YES,  it really does work  but that doesn’t really answer the question does it?

Does Vibration Training work for _ _ _ _ ? You, the reader, need to insert the missing word here.

I’m so passionate about Vibration Training and what I see on a daily basis as an Instructor that I’m inclined to say YES, YES, whatever missing word you insert, Vibration Training works  BUT, in reality, I’m not so naiive.  I’ve even heard a lady ask if doing Vibration Training will cure her body of cancer.  She seemed to think that the vibrations might re-set her body onto a healing path.  Alas, no, while her theory sounds good there are some things that Vibration Training cannot do or if it does we are not willing to take the risks involved to find out.  Vibration Training is not recommended for people with active cancer as it improves blood circulation throughout the whole body and while that carries nutrients it also possibly increases the risk of spread of disease.

Vibration Training is also not recommended for people with pacemakers.  This is in line with keeping away from electro-magnetic currents.  I know the machines I work with at Vibra-Train have sheilded motors, nevertheless this is an industry safeguard so we simply don’t these people to use the machines.  And we don’t allow women who are pregnant to use the machines, not that we have any evidence that it’s dangerous but we simply don’t know.

So, leaving aside these known contra-indications and all the short-term reasons not to train (like influenza, recent surgery, recent broken bones) I can confidently say, Vibration Training is great, it works!

But again, it works for what?

Firstly what do you want to achieve? Is it gentle stimulation of a previously injured body part?  Is it muscle strength and power?  Is it speed or endurance to help with your next sports event? Is it general fitness and feeling good?  Do you want to bulk up yet strip off fat?  Are you a busy mother wanting to simply lose a few pounds of weight and increase your sense of well being?

Your results are determined by various factors -  including the type and quality of the machines you use and the program of positions you use on the machines.  I recommend the Vibra-Train Safety Program for use with lineal (upright) machines in studios and at home.  It can be difficult to do some of the poses if you are using a small, low to the ground home model but as far as possible you can follow the program and I am happy to help with any questions.  An essential accessory for home (and studio) machines is a rubber mat to place onto the machine platform to protect hands, elbows, and sometimes even the feet from the rough or bubbly surface that machines have and to assist with grip and placement.  To choose the right machine type or brand and when deciding to buy a home machine or to use a specific vibration studio or possibly a machine in your local gym or health studio I advise people to get all the information they can get before committing your money.  Read the relevant articles on my website and others and ask lots of questions of salespeople, then check their answers against what you already know and as trite as it sounds, use common sense.  If the claims are beyond belief, they are most likely, untrue.

Then it’s up to you – Follow the safety program three times a week or maybe twice if you already have an intensive weights program that you use.  Eat sensibly without going into excesses of dieting or supplementation.  Your results will be exciting, make sure you track them by a diary entry or a short note in a notebook.

Yes, Vibration Training works – It works very well. Making it work is up to you, the reader, by choosing the right equipment for your needs, following an excellent whole body vibration training program, and being dedicated to your workout sessions.  You can even get away with pizza for dinner occaisionally.

Links: Vibra-Train Safety Program, Vibration-Training-Advice

New Year – Back to Vibration Training Part 2

January 19th, 2010

Who are our Customers?

Happy People JumpingOver the Christmas weeks the Vibra-Train studio where I work remained open each day with  short hours in the morning and afternoon so customers were able to continue their training  sessions.  Many took advantage of this and have continued through into the New Year.  Others went on holiday or had time off their training to be with family.  This group included many mothers as Christmas/New Year coincides with 5-6 weeks of junior school holidays in New Zealand.  Some of these moms have returned to the studio now; some bringing their children along and I’ve found them all to be very well behaved; the children that is, the moms don’t always do as they are told!

Most of our customers who work in local businesses and come to train in their lunchhour have returned along with those who train before or after work and students who come on  their way to university.  I’ve heard many grumbles that “it’s hard” but the grumbles are usually accompanied with laughter as customers know the first few sessions back show some de-training after only two or three weeks off.

New customers this year already include just about every age group and sector of society.  I’ve noticed an increase in athletes and sports people who have chosen Vibration Training as one of their training methods.  Some new customers are not new to Vibration Training but have moved house and now live in our area.  Most are familiar with our safety program as they’ve been regular at other Vibra-Train studios or studios that follow the Vibra-Train program.

Just a few customers from other vibration studios have needed extra instruction to learn the Vibra-Train Safety Program.  These customers find their body and minds at first rejecting the new ways but they always have opportunity to ask questions, to learn why we do the positions as we do and it takes only two visits before they start seeing the benefits.  One older couple who are very fit and were experienced with vibration training are now so happy, almost ecstatic with the benefits they’re getting from a slight change to the program they’d beeen using.

All customers are being thoroughly watched over this month.  Even though training is always supervised long-term, regular customers can get slightly out of position as they strive to workout harder while their body responds by trying to cheat and make it easier to hold the positions.  Little tweaks to get back into perfect position mean better results.

It’s been a fun start to what’s going to be an amazing year.

New Year – Back to Vibration Training Part 1

January 14th, 2010

The New Year is two weeks old and it’s exercise time.  For most people the holiday season is over.  In Auckland we are basking in summer sunshine while other New Zealand cities have unseasonable rain storms.

Basic Squat on Bullet Vibra-Train MachineVibra-Train Auckland City is back to full hours, 6.30am – 10pm weekdays and 9am-6pm weekends.  There’s no excuse not to come in and train and slowly customers are coming back.  Some have, of course, continued on through the Christmas season never missing their three times weekly vibration training sessions.  Others have taken holidays from work and from training.

In Vibration Training, like all exercise, taking a break gives the body a rest but some deconditioning occurs so it’s normal to find the  first few sessions challenging and holding perfect position a little difficult.  Knowing this is normal makes it easier to accept and is a stimulus to “Just do it!”

Newcomers to the studio this week have been some who previously trained at another Vibra-Train studio, some who I recognized from the gym I used to work at, some who are new to any form of exercise, and others brought in by current customers.   It’s a fun week instructing these new people and I’m hoping there’ll be many more in the next few weeks.

As it’s a new year it’s also a time that I carefully watch over all regular customers making sure they are following the safety program correctly, never varying from the position instructions.  Customers are always watched over or fully instructed by our Trainers but those who are regular and know the program well can workout  in a seperate room on higher level machines if they prove they are able and need only minimal supervison.

Who are our customers? – See part 2

It’s Just Not Working!

November 20th, 2009

It’s just not working anymore!  This is what a regular customer told me last week when she came in for her vibration training session.

Starting six months ago, soon after I began working for Vibra-Train, this customer initially had exciting results.  She had a specific goal; fat-loss and toning, with increased overall strength and she found that vibration training, specifically using Vibra-Train lineal machines, really worked for her.  I looked forward to her studio visits and helping her train hard.

We’d chat about nutrition somedays and I often had to encourage her to eat more, not less, and help her understand that weightloss would not occur in a starvation situation, there being a huge difference in how the human body copes with calorie deficit compared with real calorie deficiency which was what she was doing and so causing her body to protect itself  by laying down fat stores rather than releasing fat to be used as part of her workout energy source.  All too often her energy “batteries” were empty.  But as we progressed this customer, who I’ll call Sue, gained strength, lost fat and a few dress sizes.  She told me how she was wearing designer jeans that she’d kept due to their cost but hadn’t been able to fit for three years.

A vacation with lots of eating-out and the long, hard winter in New Zealand bumped up Sue’s weight a little and she was expecting vibration training, which she’d kept on with three times a week except during her vacation time, to deal with it and get her back on-track and slimmed down for summer.  She wanted a body that would look amazing on the beach and she’d was working well toward it, restricting her calorie intake and occaisionally taking a walk.

dreamstimefree_10053288_questionSo what was going wrong ???

Sue had progressed so well in her ability to do the program that she did it alone while I instructed less able or newer customers.  She was supervised though, as are all our customers, and I corrected her positions occaisionally.  I also noticed that she’d dropped down to the level 2 machines whereas

» Read more: It’s Just Not Working!

Is your Workout still Working?

November 6th, 2009

Vibration Training, on high quality, high force machines, is quite different from other exercise in that it never gets easier.  Quite the opposite, as I tell new customers, the more you relax and maintain the perfect position for each of the poses the more the effect that the vibrations have.

bullet basic squatIt doesn’t get easier but it does become “comfortable”.  Customers who come in to Vibra-Train’s Auckland City Studio regularly, two or three times a week, sometimes find that they can work through the program fairly easily and they are  getting great benefits but mentally they crave for a change or a challenge.  Other customers continue week after week and get ongoing results; with moans and groans about how hard the program is.  These aren’t looking for a change or challenge but they get it anyway.

Customers of other brands of machines and those with home machines often find that they plateau; they barely maintain their fitness gains and no longer make any real progress.  This is a problem and not always as easily solved.

So, is your vibration workout still working as well as you want?  How can you take it to the next level?

For Vibra-Train customers, we encourage them to “mix it up a bit”.  That is, we direct them to do the program on a different machine to the one they “always” use.   As we have distinctly different models of machine within the same levels we can tell a customer to use a different model of machine.  They will be working at the same vibration force level but their body is “shocked” by having to respond to a machine with a slightly different “feel”.  This simple change can bring about increases in fitness and muscle strength.

If a customer is proficient in keeping perfect position throughout the program including the two minute Super-Squat and wants to advance we can move them up to the Force Level 3 Machine or above that to the Sports Level 5 platform.

Another option for customers wanting to extend their training (and again they must be able to hold perfect position) is to extend the time for some positions from 60 seconds to 120 seconds/2 minutes.  There is no inbetween; it’s straight up to double time!  This can be done firstly in position 1, the Basic Squat and later in other positions.

http://www.dreamstime.com

This increase in time can also be a way that users of other brands of machine and home users might be able to push through a plateau and get further benefits but it is also dependant on the force and quality of the machine being used.

More is Not the answer to all things in Vibration Training and we know that more often “Less is More” – - that is, customers get better fitness and muscle build using a short (10-15 minutes), intense (60 second positions) program on a high force lineal platform (Vibra-Train is the best), three times a week rather than a longer time (30min), short period of 30 second poses, or dynamic movement positions on other machines.

I’ve had new customers come into the studio where I work and tell me of the programs they’ve done at other vibration studios where the machines are lower force than the ones we have.  Some are, at first, incredulous that they will get a really good workout when they see our short, intense program but, as I always promise them, they leave quite exhausted and return a few days later very happy at their change of provider.

I do wonder, if the results they were getting elsewhere were so good, why did they even try us?

www.vibration-training-advice.com

September 28th, 2009

Remember to visit the industry’s new Vibration Training Advice Website:

www.vibration-training-advice.com

There’s articles for consumers, about studios, types of machines and exercise positions. Also lots of vibration training advice about buying a machine for home use, and a section dedicated to Instructors and Studio owners.

There’s also a discussion forum where questions can be asked to clarify what’s written in the articles or for special information needed.

Flu, Colds, Sinus, and Vibration Training

September 10th, 2009

Winter in New Zealand has brought amazing snowfall on mountain areas giving great fun with winter sports but, alas, it’s also been a time of ‘flu’s, coughs and colds for many.

StethiscopeAnd so this article will answer the question customers have been asking me:

Should they continue vibration training if they have a viral infection or other winter ills?

The answer is multi-part:

  1. If you have a mild sinus or simple cold I’ve found that a basic session of vibration training helps to unblock the sinuses and ease the feeling of lethargy, that is, it wakes you up.
  2. If you have ‘flu, fever, aches or headache it is not advisable to train. Vibration training raises the blood pressure and pulse only very slightly but if you are already unwell, it makes for an unpleasant exercise session and could even be dangerous. You wont gain in fitness and will feel more fatigued which, then, works against getting well again.

So how long should you wait before you train again?

» Read more: Flu, Colds, Sinus, and Vibration Training

Into the Snow – Skiing and Snowboarding

August 27th, 2009

Last weekend I spent in Christchurch,  which is a major city in the South Island of New Zealand.  It’s a city with a heart, having lots of activities and fun available right in the city centre each weekend.  There was a huge igloo shape sitting in The Square.  Inside was an ice-rink providing fun for young and old.

Porter Heights-1It wasn’t enough for my son and me though.  Flying in with an early morning arrival time we picked up a pre-booked rental car and headed for the mountains.  Hoping to ski at Mt Hutt we were a little disappointed when looking up snow conditions on my son’s new Google phone we read that Mt Hutt was closed due to inclement weather.  Porter Heights was open so hoping it would remain so we drove on.

The long winding unsealed road up the mountainside was a little scary to drive but once at the snow base area the sight was amazing.  Soft powder everywhere; moderate temperature and as this was a club ski field only recently turned commercial there was very few people.  Numbers increased during the day but friendliness and consideration of other skiers and boarders regardless of their ability was apparent.

kea on carKea, New Zealand alpine parrot, were interesting to watch.  They are curious, intelligent birds who have almost no fear of humans so they sit on your car pecking at edges of paintwork or rubber, or demolishing your windscreen wipers right before your eyes.  I was told they have a habit of rolling stones down the iron roof of mountain huts and so keeping trampers awake at nights.

Still recovering from flu/chest infection I didn’t really enjoy my ski lesson but I had a wonderful time watching others especially my son, Brad, who skis with such a natural talent he looks as though he was born with skis attached.

This website is all about Vibration Training and so you might wonder why I am writing of my time in the snow – » Read more: Into the Snow – Skiing and Snowboarding

What’s wrong with this pose?

February 9th, 2009
Girl on Vibration Machine

Girl on Vibration Machine

Type Vibration Training into Google to read articles about Machines, Training and Therapy, what a vibration training program looks like, weightloss, and more.  The site invites questions and discussion.

You’ll soon learn how to evaluate a machine for your specific needs and also a lot about vibration exercise programs.

So what’s wrong with the picture at right?  I don’t know the machine brand so I wont comment on that except to say that Straps are basically a waste of time.  You pull on the straps while the platform vibrates and that works out your arms – well that’s the reasoning but you wont be pulling the straps evenly so each arm will be getting a different force plus you will tire and lessen your pull so that’s even less force. My suggestion is to use the straps with the machine turned off.

How long will it be before manufacturers design machines with side handle bars and do away with straps?

» Read more: What’s wrong with this pose?

Buying a Refrigerator (Or a Vibration Machine)

January 26th, 2009
Fridge

Fridge

I needed a new Refrigerator. I spent hours reading advertisements in newspapers and magazines. I visited at least six stores looking at fridge types and asking lots of questions. I even remembered to measure the space the new fridge had to fit into. Once I’d decided on two or three possible fridges to buy I asked more questions specific to the fridge and the freezer sections as I’d decided a dual Fridge/Freezer suited my needs best. Now, one year later, I am very happy with my new fridge and it does all I needed it to do.

Why do people buy Vibration Machines without the same amount of care ??? I keep hearing, “I bought a XYZ brand Vibration Machine and now I’m not sure how to use it”; “Is CrazyXYZ a good machine?”; “Why does my ABCFitZ machine move on the floor when it’s turned on?”; “I’m using my XFitXYZ machine every day. Why do I feel so ill?”  and similar questions.

The answer to all of these is: Do your homework before you buy! If you plan to use a Studio don’t buy a one month plan on your first visit. Trial the Studio and ask questions!

(Pic  © www.dreamstime.com)