Over the past year my wife has been asking me to invest in “The Power Plate” for our home Gym. My wife has stayed in great shape through the years and only weighs 5lbs. over her weight when we were married. She’s usually very sensible and has never been a spend thrift either. However, this time she just won’t let it go!
Most of you know who have read my many, many posts that I don’t go for gimmicks and that is exactly what this looks like. I have told my wife on countless occasions that I would buy her something new for the Gym, but of course I was not talking about this sort of device. But, my wife has been so insistent that I have decided to come to you, my T-Nation brethern to seek your wisdom and council on the matter.
I have read all about it and I’m just not buying into the principles behind this device. Please take a look at the information and tell me what you think.
Of course, I’m going to use your comments to reinforce my argument. So…thanks in advance 
"The Principle of Power-Plate?
Power-Plate generates natural stretch reflex
The human body has natural reflexes such as the eye-lid reflex, the touch reflex and the stretch reflex. The stretch reflex is that which occurs when a doctor taps your knee with a hammer, this causes a reflex that extends the leg. The Power-Plate generates a continuous special stretch reflex called the Tonic Vibration Reflex in all involved muscles.
Power-Plate generates 30 to 50 reflexes per second
The special vibrating platform stretches the muscles, which activate Tonic Vibration Reflexes. Because the Power-Plate vibrates at 30 to 50 times per second, these involuntary muscle contractions happen at the same speed.
Power-Plate activates 95 to 97% of the muscle fibers
Not only will your muscles contract and relax at very high speed, but also the amount of muscle fibres in every single muscle involved exceeds the amount of muscle tissue utilised in regular training. For most people in conventional training a maximum of 40% of the muscle fibres per muscle are recruited. The Power-Plate vibrations recruit between 95% and 97% of the muscle fibres. This also means that the deeper posture and stabilizing muscles, such as the spinal muscles and the pelvic basin muscle, that are normally hard to train, can be stimulated. But how does this reflex create stronger muscles and increase fitness and health?
Power-Plate changes the acceleration factor
For years we tried to become stronger and healthier through weight training. Adding extra weight made the muscle adapt to this heavier load and become stronger. This is what the Greeks did in ancient times and this is what we still do. Now there is Power-Plate, where we change the acceleration factor instead of the weight with much less strain on the ligaments and muscular-skeletal system and no more long exhausting sessions.
The 10 minute result
Just 10 minutes of Power-Plate per session, 2 or 3 times a week, is enough to achieve your desired results. Most people still believe that getting fitter is about the duration of the training, but it’s the intensity of the training that gives the result. By assuming various positions on the Power-Plate you can stimulate different muscles and muscle groups. Power-Plate makes it possible to achieve fast and easy results in almost every part of the body.
