Vibration plates are popular all over social media right now. They claim to help you lose weight or build muscle -- all while standing on the vibrating surface. But is this accurate? Does standing on a shaking platform really help you get stronger or shed pounds, or is it just another short-lived trend? To find out, we talked to personal trainers and other fitness experts.
These experts explained how vibration plates are supposed to work, the benefits you might get from using them, the risks you should watch out for, and the right way to add them to your routine if you want to give them a try.
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What is a vibration plate?
Whole-body vibration plates are a form of exercise machine that shakes rapidly when you stand on them. When you stand on a vibration plate, you're engaging in a full-body vibration exercise, where your muscles are forced to contract and relax quickly.
"The purpose of vibration plates is to generate quick vibrations that cause your body's muscles to contract and relax several times per second," says Leah Verebes, a physical therapist and assistant professor at Touro University's School of Health Sciences. "At a far greater frequency, this resembles the spontaneous contractions that take place during exercise."
"This stimulates a subconscious muscle activation each time the machine moves, meaning your muscles are activating far more than they would on a stable surface," says Laura Wilson, a personal trainer at Life Time Fishers and director of training and curriculum at Power Plate, a company that produces vibrating exercise machines.
There are several ways to use a vibration plate, the most common being standing on its rectangular platform. However, you can also perform squats or push-ups on it.
Wilson says vibration plates can move in multiple directions: up and down, side to side and front to back. The harmonic vibrations move between 25 to 50 times per second, activating the corresponding muscles.
Vibration plate benefits
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