Work less, Benefit more.

Recently a “new” training modality is hitting the headlines. Due to its use by celebrities such as Madonna and Kylie Minogue, vibration training is becoming all the rage with outrageous claims being made for the benefits including “45 minutes worth of exercise in 15 minutes…!” Clearly strap lines like this make for great headlines to sell magazines, newspapers and vibration devices, but is it true?

Researchers at London South Bank University have published a paper in a peer-reviewed scientific journal demonstrating that during and subsequent to a single bout of leg extension exercise with vibration at 35% of 1-repetition maximum (1-RM), subjects responded in a similar manner to the responses observed subsequent to the subject performing a single bout of leg extension at 70% 1-RM without vibration. The longer-term training studies are not finished yet but this result suggests that lowering the exercise intensity (weight lifted) and adding a vibration stimulus could lead to similar benefits as high intensity resistance training. It is still very early days for vibration research and application but the important principle appears to be reducing the stimulus quantity and increasing the stimulus quality. For these reasons it’s been always recommend that someone interested in using vibration for training, especially at the elite level, consults qualified strength and conditioning practitioners as part of a training programme, such as the Human Performance Centre at London South Bank University.

The most common method of vibration training is that of vibrating platforms that the user performs exercises on. These devices have been used often in research but the results produced, although offering potential, are not consistent. Some users find that these devices can cause nausea, and if used incorrectly can cause the vibration to be sent straight up the spine to the base of the scull (as this user found out to his cost!). For these reasons we prefer the idea of targeted vibration directly to the exercising muscle ensuring a more specific training stimulus and eliminating any of the unpleasant side effects.

I have recently released a targeted vibration device for the respiratory system called youbreathe which causes the airflow into and out of the lungs to be pulsatile stimulating the stretch reflex of the respiratory muscles. Preliminary results look very exciting with similar acute responses to those seen in the leg training above. youbreathe is currently being used by elite cyclist, tri-athletes, footballers and rugby players who all report perceptible benefits for their sports performance. More trials are under way with future plans to conduct clinical trials with the aim of reducing symptoms of cardio-respiratory disease such as coronary heart disease, asthma and COPD.

In conclusion, vibration training certainly seems to offer the possibility of increasing the return on your exercise investment, getting more response for a given effort. However it would be too soon to draw conclusions about which is the best vibration training method (targeted vs platform) or which protocol is best for a particular desired effect (endurance vs power). I’d like to recommend taking advice from qualified practitioners and incorporating vibration training in a complete training programme. Certainly vibration training seems to offer great potential for rehabilitation in clinical populations and for training the elderly.