In-keeping with my recent re-surgance of fitness motivation, last week I tried out E-Pulsive, which is a new training method that’s just come over from Germany.
Its technical name is Electrical Muscle Simulation – it’s a full body work-out using impulse current, which basically means that small amounts of electricity are pulsed through your body. This causes your muscles to contract continually while you work out, WAY upping the intensity. It also pushes muscles you might not normally use to get active – according to the science behind it all, a conventional workout engages about 50% of your muscles, whereas an E-Pulsive sesh uses 98%. And burns up to 500 calories per 20 minute session. If that’s your thing.
So. You arrive at the studio and put on kit that’s been specifically designed to conduct the electrical impulses. Which is pretty awesome because you end up sweating a LOT. Then you get hooked up. Your trainer attaches contact pads to each major muscle group which are hooked up to the machine. So you kind of look like something out of Avatar or The Matrix.
Then you get going. The pulses being delivered to each muscle group are introduced one by one by your trainer, so you can figure out what level they need to be. The first one was quite a strange sensation as I wasn’t sure what to expect. I guess the best way I can describe it is like having those Slendertone abs things wrapped around your whole body. It feels kind of tickly.
So then you’re ready to work out. Essentially what happens from there is like a regular one-on-one training session, except that you’re hooked up to a machine. I did a 10min cardio session followed by 10mins strength training. You do things like squats, lunges, sprints (on the spot – obv), and jumping jacks, all with active rest breaks in-between. Basically HIIT.
Apparently a 20 min session can do as much good as a three-hour conventional workout in the gym. Which is kind of nuts, and a training-maths no-brainer.
To try a free session, head to their website.
Olivia x
