Choosing a Vibration Platform For Home

by Lloyd Shaw

Recently a user posed the following question:

“I want a machine for home use - domestic. So how do I know what to buy with all the choices out there - do I trust celebrity endorsements?”

In the spirit of this site we will not be mentioning brand names so you will need to still do some homework regarding what to buy. However we will cover some of the things to watch out for as you “tire kick” your way around the net - and
some of the strategies used by marketers to rope you in.

Buying a Vibration Machine For Home

This category is the easiest one to get confused over - mainly down to two reasons.

Marketers are:

  1. Deliberately blurring the lines between quality of product vs results.
  2. Playing on your insecurities and isolation.

The home user of a new exercise product is an easy target for both the above reasons - with most companies only too willing to prey on the consumer’s lack of knowledge. To make matters worse the same person will not want to hang around gyms where this type of information is discussed freely. If they are really sensitive about their weight then it may not even be discussed with their friends or family - leaving the media to be solely responsible for any education process.

Note: The more scientific the theory behind the product the easier it is to confuse the consumer.

Marketers of such products and services rely heavily on sketchy reports of famous people using their product or paying someone to pretend (it’s called acting) to use their product - the very people you read about in magazines
and see looking far more fantastic than anybody has a right too. This, in turn, raises your own expectations of what you should look like.

Combine this with the isolated mindset of someone who really does think they are letting themselves down and you have a person almost begging to be taken for a ride.

Essentially the media spend all their time causing you anguish rather than offer to fix it.

So - in steps the “marketers” with their vague promises of getting you the same machine that “so and so” uses, and the attached body (for a good price of course).

Celebrities Use Very Expensive Machines

Now most of the time they are not always outrightly lying. Your favorite celebrity may be doing “Vibration Training” but I can assure you they are not using a model you can afford. And the results on these machines are in direct comparison to the quality of the unit.

How do I know this you say - well firstly I design machines for my company, and secondly I can tell you straight up I know a couple of trainers that personal-train big stars and they have comfirmed what machines are used. I just can’t repeat it.

Note: None of them are under $12,000 U.S.

The fact is “real” stars keep things very quiet. Example: I have an expo soon that is closed to the public, no cameras, no cell phones, invites only. I will be meeting people I am not allowed to talk about. What does that tell you?

All that secrecy and combine that with generic terms like “Vibration Training” or “Vibrating Platform” and the scene is set for misdirection of the facts.

Perfect well known example below….

madge.jpg

Madonna looks amazing thanks to $14,000 vibrating plate -by REBECCA CAMBER, Daily Mail, UK July 2006

“With her heavily muscled arms, you would be forgiven for thinking it is the result of a punishing exercise regime at the gym. But it seems the Queen of Pop’s incredible shape is, in part, thanks to the vibrating platform - dubbed the ‘miracle’ machine. The vibrating platform is said to be responsible for the incredible shapes of not only Madonna, but also stars such as Claudia Schiffer and Natalie Imbruglia. But the “miracle” machine doesn’t come cheap - at £6,995 ($14,000 USD) it costs far more than the average annual gym membership. After the muscley 47-year-old Queen of Pop bought the vibrating exercise platform, sales have reportedly soared. And in Harrods, around 20 machines are sold every weekend.”

This article clearly states how much the stars unit cost her. However she had only picked up the unit that week so her figure could not have been contributed to by that exact machine (it was in fact a present for a
friend as she already had a unit at home). Companies will sell you a home machine at a quarter of the price that supposably does the same thing.

Does that sound right to you ?

I mean I myself pay NZ$12,500 to get my smallest entry level unit built for studio use -and I own the factory !! (no you can’t buy one so don’t even ask).

So where does that leave the home user? High and dry you might think… luckily this is not the case. You can get good solid results from a decent quality home model. Combine that with a bit of cardio and diet correction and you will be well on your way. No need to bust a gut - just consistent effort is needed.

A few rules of thumb to help you narrow down the field

  1. Solid steel (not cheap steel or plastic) if possible.
  2. Reputable company. If you don’t trust them don’t buy it. Try searching on-line for anything you can find about the company. Trust your instincts. Leave dodgy units from dodgy companies alone - no matter how good the packaging. There will soon be 140 companies marketing to you with similar products. Be patient and choose wisely.
  3. Ask the seller…
    1. Where it was made?
    2. Who made it?
    3. What it is made of?
    4. Who designed the program?

    If the questions above cannot be answered then walk away. This is your health we are talking about and these should be easy questions for anyone not hiding something to answer.

  4. Local warranty back-up. Well-known fitness store is best so you have someone real to walk in and talk to.
  5. Be realistic about your goals. Say if you are purchasing a unit that cost only a few thousand for weight loss (as opposed to a $14,000 U.S. unit) then things may move very slowly. Do not get frustrated, just stick to a good safe program every second day and it will happen. Think about this - you are trying to reverse how many years of abuse? It is not going to
    happen overnight is it? So relax and just enjoy the thought you are actually doing something for yourself which is half the battle right?
  6. It will have a limited lifespan.

Worst comes to worst you can always post a question on this site but try and make the question about certain characteristics of the machine rather than the brand name, or

Happy hunting folks and hope you get what you are looking for - which remember is what you pay for.

Kind regards Lloyd Shaw

Categories: How-to Guides, Questions and Answers
Written by Lloyd Shaw on May 14th, 2007

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Before asking an unrelated question - take a look at the Beginner's Guide to WBV.