Just over two years ago Power Plate began to call their new machines “Acceleration Trainers”.
Now they have trademarked the term “Acceleration Training” for exclusive use in their marketing around the world and especially in North America.
So What does Acceleration Training Mean?
Don’t be fooled by the semantics, Acceleration Training is just yet another term for Vibration Training. Since the market began to saturate with all kinds of VT models and Power Plate knock offs, the marketers at Power Plate knew they had to come up with at term that would separate them from the rest of the pack.
That’s all it is, just a word, and the technology isn’t any different. If you read Power Plate’s press releases, they themselves, when using The Term “Acceleration Training” use parentheses with a.k.a Vibration Training inside them.
Although the overall industry accepted term is “Vibration Training”, marketers of other machines have coined many other terms as well.
- Whole Body Vibration
- Whole Body Vibration Training
- Vibrating Exercise Machine
- Vibrating Platform
- Vibration Fitness Training
- Vibration Plate Training
- Bio-Oscillation Training
These are just a few of the many terms out there. So don’t be confused or fooled. Look at the machines specs and track record instead of getting allured by it’s fancy name.
{ 19 comments… read them below or add one }
Power Plate had already applied for the trademarked term ” Vibration Therapy ” and planned to charge everybody to use it ( as far as I could make out ). They actually thought Vibration Training was a strange term as before then they did not even advertise you could lose weight with this technology. It was all about the osteoporosis and therapy values. I still have all the original material.
When I told them we could develop the technology further into a full on “training” system they at first did not believe me, but when faced with the possibility of a much larger target demographic they obviously thought it was a good idea.
Note: Power Plate were not happy I filed for the trademark Vibration Training and then abandoned voluntarily “due to prior” even though no use existed, as this blocked them from ever owning that term or charging for its use.
Acceleration Training….?
I think you will find they tell people it just accelerates normal training, as remember they get people to do normal exercises on the plates. This was introduced after the machines got weaker ( as they went into plastics and moved away from steel ).
But I think they were also trying to appease personal trainer etc… who could not get their thick heads around staying still. It means they can incorporate what they already know onto the plate and not look completely lost.
I personally think they have done the industry no favors by watering everything down. But marketers always choose the easiest path so no real surprise there.
Informative article Ted. Lloyd – it appears the relationship (financial) between Power Plate and Athletes’ Performance(AP)may just be a marketing ploy to promote “acceleration training” on Power Plate in commercial gyms etc. to people. Is this correct? I have never been able to figure out how Power Plate can have people like Mark Verstegen (Chairman of Athletes’ Performance) on their Sports Medicine Advisory Board when Mark and AP are getting paid by Power Plate. It seems to be a big conflict of interest and misleading to the consumer. When there’s money involved, it seems people will do or say what a company (i.e., Power Plate) wants done or said.
I see PowerPlate using TM next to the term Acceleration Training but I can’t find anywhere where it is registered (which would then allow them to use the R symbol if they wanted, just as they do next to the work PowerPlate.
Maybe they are just trying to confuse – suggesting the term belongs to them as TM suggests the word or term is being used in the manner of a trademark but it does not necessarily indicate trademark has been granted. It’s okay to use either TM or R if you own the trademark. There are other fitness groups that use the same term for regular training and I’ve previously seen it applied to flying.
Ted, can you please tell me which countries PP actually hold these words as a registered trademark?
“Acceleration Training” doesn’t describe the method in the way “Vibration Training” does. That is unless they are marketing a very different product.
Apart from being a standardised term within the industry (even with the minor variations) “Vibration Training” is a descriptive term that is broad in context – it hints at results but does not say what they are and we know they are many. Maybe I am being particular but “Acceleration Training” would seem only to accelerate an already happening process whereas,to my thinking, the regular term suggests more.
Oh well, I guess it took their marketing dept months to come up with and kept some people in employment
Thanks for the insight Di. I’ve called Mark Verstegen numerous times and he won’t call me back. This makes me think both Athletes’ Performance and Power Plate – to use a favorite word of Lloyd’s – are “dodgy.” Apparently, they are not accountable to anybody for their actions. Why else would they refuse to answer simple and straight-forward questions?
The Power Plate Advisory Board continues to shrink. It’s down to 8 now from when they were saying 11 a few months ago. Mark Verstegen is still on it. I’m still waiting to hear from Mark. To view the Power Plate Advisory Board, go to http://www.powerplate.com, select U.S., and go to Education at the top of the homepage. The Advisory Board is under the Education heading. First it was Dr. Steve Blair that dropped out and now (I am not sure who?) somebody else has disassociated themselves from Power Plate.
Hello again everybody. One general question. If a pivotal unit is listed with a 900 RPM maximum (roughly 15 hz) would that actually equal 30 hz because of the pivotal motion? Would this be sufficient to achieve the affect reached in experiments that talk about a more full range of benefits above 26-28 hz? Thanks guys.
Jordan
Jordan,
15Hz is 15Hz, it is not doubled due to the pivotal motion.
The Hz is ONLY taken from one place on the platform with an accelerometer. Not from the motor or anywhere else and it is never multiplied, subtracted or divided with anything.
Anyone tells you different they are not confused, just lying.
One other thing to add about the Power Plate Advisory Board that I mentioned in the above June 30 post. A bird (reliable bird who’s a scientist) told me a few weeks ago that Dr. David Nieman does not run the Power Plate Research Center at Appalachian State. Dr. Jeff McBride is the one who actually runs it. But, Power Plate has Dr. Nieman listed on their Advisory Board – probably because Nieman has received $3 million in funding over his career and it sounds impressive. Thus, it seems deceiving that Power Plate has Nieman on the Advisory Board if McBride is actually the one who runs it. And I doubt if Nieman (or McBride) have ever communicated with Mark Verstegen (who’s also on the Power Plate Advisory Board). Still no response from Mr. Verstegen.
One other thing, I’m quite sure Dr. Nieman is a doctor of public health (DPH) and not a PhD. Perhaps minor but you’d think Power Plate could at least list his doctoral degree correctly since he is on the Advisory Board. But, oh well, this is Power Plate so what do you expect from the dim bulb marketers that come up with this stuff?
Google Dr. David Nieman and his information comes up saying he is a “doctor of public health” yet the idiots at Power Plate have him listed on their advisory board as a PhD.
I got it straight from one of the horses mouths today about the Power Plate Research Center at Appalachian State. I spoke with Dr. Jeff McBride this morning. McBride said he was involved with “one” study on Power Plate and Dr. Nieman did “one” study on Power Plate. That’s it! They have no plans to do any more studies on Power Plate. Now, isn’t it unethical for Power Plate to have Dr. Nieman listed on their Advisory Board saying he runs the “Power Plate Research Center” at Appalachian State? It doesn’t even exist now and apparently never did amount to much. McBride said Power Plate gave them some funding. He also said companies like Power Plate make equipment and then come to researchers like him wanting “to prove” it works. You can read between the lines on that last comment.
I also asked McBride about vibration for the elderly. He didn’t see any benefit over normal strength training saying they can lift for a short duration of 15-20 min or so and see the same results.
Thus, it appears McBride is not very impressed with vibration after his one study on Power Plate. He did say it may have a slight 1-2% value as a warmup or neural potentiation for elite athletes but that was about it. He said you can get the same “warmup” effect running down the field a time or two and “why pay $10,000 for a vibration platform?
Dr. McBride is enjoyable to speak with. I was almost in tears and rolling on the floor with some of his comments. I had to cut the conversation short to get in my workout this am. A delight to speak with – Dr. Jeff McBride. He gives his straight opinions.
Lloyd, since there’s no Power Plate Research Center at Appalachian State, maybe you could get some studies done on your equipment? You’d have to do a good job convincing McBride after his experiences with Power Plate. He thinks it’s “a fad.”
Good point John
OK, at the risk of sounding blonde and female two attributes that I know don’t stand me in good stead…
Why haven’t any studies been done on good machines? Yes I know that it would be too much for Vibra-train to front up – but any research company or hospital worth it’s salt will surely do research and work out the these are the best machines. I am genuinely at a loss why so many supposedly pioneering departments just dismiss without looking. I have a customer with a very rare progressive disease who has seen huge benefits from this and has improved in spite of the fact that he is set to decline. He attributes this to Vibration Training yet the hospital refuse to investigate. Naiive I know… but why do they do this?
I don’t know Philippa. They would probably say it’s a placebo effect. What they fail to realize is even if it would be placebo it’s still helping. That and the fear of stepping out from amidst the skepticism of their peers. Look how long it took weight training to be accepted by the medical folks.
Money is a big issue. I spoke with another scientist this am. He said he thought Dr. Nieman may have agreed to let Power Plate use the words “Power Plate Research Center” at Appalachian State in order to get the funding in the first place. This same scientist has/is doing studies on Power Plate and said they were supposed to be getting some more money from Power Plate but have not heard anything for a while. It sounds like Power Plate is in financial trouble.
Somebody has to fund studies. One thing Dr. McBride mentioned in our talk yesterday was research on the manipulation of volume and intensity in periodized exercise programs. This is something I’ve been interested in for many years for athletes (along with the general public). And there isn’t much research on this. Why? Because you have to find somebody to fund it.
I’d love to see unbiased research on Lloyd’s Vibra-Train equipment. But, we have to find a way to get somebody to do it.
“Id love to see unbiased research on Lloyds Vibra-Train equipment. But, we have to find a way to get somebody to do it.”
Me too, John, but I know Lloyd will only allow this if the Researcher follows the Safety Program and I get the feeling that the only people who have shown interest so far just want to jump on the machine and do whatever they choose. Vibra-Train machines are high force so too much at stake in the wrong hands.
It’s still unbiased when following the designers program – in fact it’s sensible as that’s what gives results – machine + program
I don’t know why researchers would fail to follow Lloyd’s guidelines on his equipment? Has anybody asked researchers to do this? To me, if Lloyd could get legit unbiased studies done on his equipment showing measurable results that would be the best marketing in the world. With all of Power Plate’s problems, it would put his training programs and equipment at the forefront. To not have or try to have studies done does not make any sense at all to me.
This is what has happened to date….
I have been approached by Auckland Uni 3 times. All 3 meetings they brought in academics from different sporting fields who were apparently go to design the programs and protocols. None of the departments I asked to be there were invited.
They made it clear they were not going to follow my advice, they had their own ideas. And they wanted a machine at the Uni.
I in my normal highly diplomatic way I quizzed them on their basic knowledge and they openly admitted after a while they knew nothing. But they would ” work it out as they went along”.
I told them they would never get my 240 kg Training machines to play with, their lack of knowledge was embarrassing and they were a bunch of clowns.
On a positive note, I did add however if they wanted to use any of the machines at my studio ( just down the road and open 7 days ) under the watchful eye of my staff, my door was always open.
They never came ?
Dr. Jim Peterson, now retired from the U.S. Army – who spent 20 years or more with the U.S. Army at West Point – once made a remark to me several years ago at a conference. Dr. Peterson said: “Twenty years in the army taught me there were a lot of people with anal retention.”
Some people are very arrogant. I do believe there are good people out there. You just have to find them.