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What is Electrical Muscle Simulation? Healthista’s Parisa tries it (Clue: it hurts!)

Healthista reviews Electrical Muscle Simulation at E-pulsive in Knightsbridge

Boasting a celebrity clientele that stretches from Courteney Cox to Made in Chelsea stars Lauren Hutton and Rosie Fortescue, celebrity trainer Mario Kaspers trains his clients in a very unusual way. Sessions involve wearing an electrical muscle simulation bodysuit which essentially gives your body an electric shock as you train.

The impulse currents supposedly reach deep muscle layers that are usually hard to activate through your normal training session at the gym. The electrical training claims to be able to target specific body parts based on individual goals and was training originally developed to help injured athletes get back into shape. EMS training has been used for over 20 years by the medical profession and according to E-pulsive will have you looking noticeably trimmer in just four weeks if you combine it with a healthy diet.

MORE: What REALLY happens in Crossfit

According to E-Pulsive the workout uses 98 percent of muscles compared to the 50 percent of muscles that they say we usually use when we’re working out. Sessions are only 20 minutes long but you can supposedly burn up to 500 calories in a session.

Needless to say, I was both terrified and intrigued to be giving this a try. In a small terraced house on a back street in Knightsbridge, I went along to try out the E-pulsive workout.

After doing one session I can see how that could be the case – it was not easy work. When I first got to E-pulsive I was handed some black shorts and a black top, that almost made me feel as though I were wearing a victorian swimming costume. I changed into these in the bathroom and when I emerged my personal trainer was waiting with a big black electrical jacket for me to put on. From my arms to my bum, wires were attached to my body and I started to get a little bit nervous. My instructor wet the suit before putting it on me, as apparently, this helps the electrical current run. And we were all set to go.

e pulsive jacket slider, Healthista review electrical muscle simulation by healthista

I was told to hold out my arms, the machine was switched on and I think my face said it all. I was cringing in shock, my muscles tensed and I was just waiting for it to stop. When we’d figured out a level of electric shock that was bearable, the workout began. We made our way through various basic bodyweight exercises as well as some weighted strength and conditioning moves. These exercises should have been fairly simple as I wasn’t doing them for long but the electric current made my body feel heavier and made all of my muscles seize up so that everything felt twenty times more difficult.

It was an unusual feeling because although I wasn’t sweating very much at the end, my muscles felt exhausted

The worst part was the anticipation. I worked 10 seconds on and 10 seconds off and every time the electric current was about to start again my body tensed up ready for the electric to hit. Although it was an uncomfortable feeling, it wasn’t unbearable. It did make the workout tougher but because I knew my break was coming quickly and that the workout was only 20 minutes long it was easy to take.

It was an unusual feeling because although I wasn’t sweating very much at the end, my muscles felt exhausted. At the end of the session I almost felt as though I hadn’t exercised at all, but at the same time, i felt as though my legs needed a serious sit-down.

I would definitely recommend this session to anyone that is looking for a quick get-fit-fix

I would definitely recommend this session to anyone that is looking for a quick get-fit-fix. If you’re happy to pay the £40 a session, it would be the perfect exercise for busy people. 20 minutes out of your day isn’t a big ask. However, I missed the breathless, exhausted, euphoric feeling that comes after a good workout and I felt that you really just didn’t get that from electrical muscle simulation.

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