Slendertone Gymbody

mountainyman

I was recently given a Slendertone Gymbody by a friend.

I am currently engaged in an attempt to improve my fitness and lose weight.

Are there any possible ill effects from using a Slendertone.


Many Thanks

Mountainy Man

amazingemmet

The main ill effect will be you sitting around wearing the thing when you could be doing some proper exercise.

monkeyman

mountainyman wrote:

I was recently given a Slendertone Gymbody by a friend.

I am currently engaged in an attempt to improve my fitness and lose weight.

Are there any possible ill effects from using a Slendertone.


Many Thanks

Mountainy Man

They are rubbish. Go for a run or walk or take up a sport

,.

Boru.

The following is a reprint of a previous post on this. I hope you find it useful.

Boru
info@borufitness.com

16-11-2004, 17:33


Hey all,

A lot of people have been asking me about the Slendertone belts you can get these days. Well here’s my answer. For my two cents I don’t particularly like Slendertone or similar products and I'll go through the reasons why in a moment. Before that however I'd like to explain a little bit about the background and history of the product and how it actually works.

Originally products like the Slendertone were developed to aid in the maintenance of muscle tissue and prevent atrophy due to lack of use as in cases of paralysis, paraplegia etc. In fact the late Christopher Reeve had trousers that had the same function as a Slendertone and stimulated the muscles of his legs. He gave a fascinating talk on this and other technologies used to aid people with disability in front of Congress.

Canny marketing people realised that many people may prefer this to doing repetitive and boring exercises and as such created models for home use, Slendertone and Body-Tek being the most famous.

The product works on a simple principal, muscles contract in response to electrical stimulus, the medium of communication in the body. Thus with a small yet directed electrical pulse the Slendertone belt, pads etc cause the muscles to relax and contract in rapid succession without any voluntary effort. This is important as it is the point of my primary objection to such products.

Does the Slendertone work? Yes. To an extent. Muscle contraction to a sufficient extent coupled with a proper diet will lead to increase in toned muscle. The Slendertone comes with the ability to progress by giving you stronger impulses and a variety of time spans thus giving you a variety of workouts. Will the results be visible is an entirely different matter. The science is sound however.

So why do I object to a device that will workout your body for you?

My first point of concern is that such a product is counterproductive. The Slendertone

causes your muscles to tense in response to an electrical stimulus. An electrical stimulus that is not your bodies own! Your body transmits on a specific frequency to you and your muscles respond. Using a Slendertone encourages your muscles to respond to a different frequency. Essentially you train and develop your muscles not to respond to your own nerve stimulus!

The long term effects on muscle and skin tissue had not been conducted as this is a relatively new technology and therefore the extent of damage can not be predict and determined. Although you may look slightly better you are making yourself weaker! (To what extent though?)

As such in a situation where you are required to use your muscles you will find yourself lacking and predisposed to injury. This is further compounded by my second point.

A Slendertone only works the specific muscles on the surface of the body. I'm going to take the abdominals my example to illustrate the problem with this. A standard Slendertone will work the rectus abdominus (6 pack) and the oblique’s (love handles). If you develop those muscles you will get a six pack however you will not be healthy! What you will get is a muscular belly! (If you've ever seen John Travolta in the General's Daughter or an E.Honda from Street fighter you'll get the idea).

In order to get the flat toned stomach, so desired in today's society you need to work the deeper muscles underneath in particular the transverse abdonomis. The Slendertone does not do this, and as such is not providing a strong foundation for the increased muscle tissue of the rectus. This is just one form of muscle imbalance that the Slendertone promotes.

Another is that the primary focus of such a product is to develop the "mirror muscles", those on the front that look good. As such the muscles of the rear are rarely worked and as such lead to muscular imbalance in the body. The shoulders round and come forward, the elbows bend up ward, and the abs pull the spine out of alignment, resulting in a muscle bound, ape-like appearance. (Worse case scenario). Either way you will develop reduced range of movement and an increased risk of injury.

The final point I wish to raise, although there are many more, is that of the chest stimulators. Aside form not balancing the muscles with back exercises, a more pressing worry concerns me. The heart, a muscle, also works on the basis of electrical impulse. The electrical impulse controlling the heartbeat is called the synarthrodial rhythm, or pacemaker. A direct electrical impulse over the heart can have fatal

consequences. Now I doubt that a Slendertone has the power to do that but it could contribute to irregular heart beats and other cardio conditions.


In summary the pros are

1. Minor increased tone.
2. Effortless

and the Cons

1. Weakens muscle and nervous system
2. Does not work all muscles needed
3. Promotes muscular imbalance, reduced range of motion and injury.
4. Electrocutes you.
5. Expensive.
6. Undermines mental strength.

A final note, shortcuts always lead to dead ends.

Hope this helps

Boru
info@borufitness.com

that guy

Interesting thread.

Bit of scare mongering saying that one of these devices could affect your heart. Wouldn't be allowed near the market if that were the case, and don't paralytics and paraplegics have hearts??

Also, "shortcuts always lead to dead ends" ??? That's gotta be the worst saying I ever heard !

the_syco

Nice article, Boru. One question, tho: would it be of any use for losing weight (mainly the beer belly)?

I'm used to lose about 2 pounds every week, doing (2 days of) cycling, but due to the shorter + colder days, this is going to be phased out, so I'm looking for an alternative. Also, I can be somewhat lazier. I'll take up swimming again, but I find that doesn't really take any weight off me (it just keeps me fit), so, as I said, I'm looking for an alternative.

mountainyman

I won't use it.
Boru that's a fantastic post thanks.

Shortcuts don't always lead to dead ends. Though for people who drive through estates on the way to work they should.

Mr E

You absolutely will NOT lose weight using these things... it'll (kinda) tone the muscle under your beer belly, but thats it. Exercise, water and eating properly is the only way.

Boru.

Yeah...that shortcut line was pretty lame. ;-)

that guy....it does affect the heart, as do many other things that are available, including but not limited to cigarettesm and caffine! ;-)

Oh and the_syco, I'm afraid it won't help with fat loss. As TMB says, good diet and a healthy amount of cardio are the best ways to go. If that's what you are intrested in pm and I'll send you a copy of my intrdoucatry guide to heart rate training which gives details on how to start an effecive aerobic routine for weight loss and cardio vascular fitness.