Home Equipment for Self-Care

Whole Body Vibration Plates

You have probably seen our staff and practitioners taking a little movement break on a vibration plate from time to time. When I was a student at New York Chiropractic College (Now Northeast School of Health Sciences), we often spent time in the lab doing research on supplements, biomechanics studies, and gait analysis studies. We had two large and expensive vibration plate machines. Their idea was to stimulate increased oxygen to tissues and challenge the deep spinal stabilizing musculature while doing exercises on larger muscle groups.

Research

Several studies show a measurable increase in oxygen capacity when using whole-body vibration with an exercise routine. However, they often only measure young, fit, male patients, or varying amplitudes were not explored. Blanks et al., 2016, examined these immune, metabolic, and muscle tissue responses to vibration exercise in obese and average-weight patients finding positive changes in both populations. I will reference a few articles below to examine. The research does seem to note a benefit of whole-body vibration with a little harmful effect on the individual.

Disclaimer & Recommendations

When using personal machines at home, follow the instructions given by the manufacturer and make sure you are cleared for use by your primary care physician. Some acute or chronic illnesses would be negatively impacted by vibration, such as those with clotting disorders, strains, sprains, fractures, or certain spinal or limb-associated surgeries.

The ideal use of whole-body vibration is to perform weighted upper body exercises while standing on the platform and weighted or bodyweight-only squats and push-ups (different variations). Some platforms are large and stable enough for lunges and sitting.

I use my personal vibration plate daily to “wake up” my body in the morning, to perform weighted full-body exercises throughout the day, and I sit on it to start my meditation at night. It certainly isn’t for everyone, but it’s an exciting consideration for daily self-care. I have posted an affiliate link to my favorite whole-body vibration machine. It is not for professional use but an at-home, affordable version. This particular machine is my favorite choice because most devices are 22-24 inches wide. This version is 36 inches making more room for sitting and feeling more safely balanced than the smaller versions. This machine is also more stable with unbalanced workouts, such as one-legged workouts.

Feel free to reach out by email with questions or comments on your experience with whole-body vibration!

Best,

Dr. B

Reference Materials:

Milanese, C., Cavedon, V., Sandri, M., Tam, E., Piscitelli, F., Boschi, F., & Zancanaro, C. (2018). Metabolic effect of bodyweight whole-body vibration in a 20-min exercise session: A crossover study using verified vibration stimulus. PloS one, 13(1), e0192046. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0192046

Kang, J., Porfido, T., Ismaili, C., Selamie, S., Kuper, J., Bush, J. A., Ratamess, N. A., & Faigenbaum, A. D. (2016). Metabolic responses to whole-body vibration: effect of frequency and amplitude. European journal of applied physiology, 116(9), 1829–1839. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-016-3440-9

Blanks, A. M., Rodriguez-Miguelez, P., Looney, J., Tucker, M. A., Jeong, J., Thomas, J., Blackburn, M., Stepp, D. W., Weintraub, N. J., & Harris, R. A. (2019). Whole body vibration elicits differential immune and metabolic responses in obese and normal weight individuals. Brain, Behavior, & Immunity - Health, 1, 100011. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbih.2019.100011

NOTE:

With all things, please only purchase items appropriate for your health and ability range, if you are unsure, please contact your health care provider. Please use all home recommendations according to the instruction manual and provider recommendations (when applicable). Healing Arts Chiropractic & Wellness, our associates, and Dr. Crystal Gullo-Buzzetti are not liable for personal home purchases and usage of products, so please purchase and use at your own risk. Please note that some of these are affiliate links.