The Amazing, Incredible Electro-Stim
This was my welcome to the incredible world of electro-stimulation. There were two pads attached to her abdomen, and another two attached to her biceps and triceps. There were wires going all over the place, and they were all hooked up to a small box with several knobs and flashing lights that was placed next to my wife.
I thought I walked into a scene from a cheap sci-fi flick. “What the heck is all that?” I asked. “Isn’t this great, dear?” replied my wife. “It’s the amazing new Electro-Stim!”. And then she went on to give me 10 minutes of running commentary on how the principals of electronic-stimulation are performing the equivalent of 60 minutes at the gym. Thanks to the wonders of electro-stimulation, electronic impulses were coursing through my wife’s abs and her arms and giving her a complete workout, even though she was on the couch reading a book!
I’m not entirely convinced that this gadget does what it boasts. I do know that the lights on the mother-box were blinking away and her abs, biceps and triceps were doing some weird involuntary twitching. “Are you sure that doesn’t hurtâÂ?¦?” was the only thing I could think to ask her.
Perhaps you’ve seen these things before. I’m not sure if they are that popular in the United States, but in Europe (and Italy in particular) you’d think someone just invented the wheel. Every time I switch a channel I see one of these gadgets being pushed on television. I’ve seen them in magazines. This particular model of electro-stimulation has 6 electrode-pads, but I’ve seen models advertised with as little as four and as many as eight or ten. But do they work?? I have been raised to believe that sending electricity through your body – in any shape or form tends to be a bad thing. (At least that was my impression after getting zapped while standing under a tree in a thunder storm).
A little research was in order. I couldn’t believe how many sites are devoted to electronic-stimulation on the internet. There are dozens and dozens of sites for this type of product. My wife’s Electro-Stim is characterized by “âÂ?¦low volt stimulation targeted to stimulate motor nerves to cause a muscle contraction. During the voluntary contractions, which take place in the muscle group during normal exercise, the brain sends a special via a nerve impulse to the “motor point” of your muscle. That signal is a message for your muscle to contract and exercise…” That’s according to the “exercise manual” that was included (and translated into 5 languages, so apparently someone else besides my wife is purchasing these electronic wonders) Electro-Stim duplicates that message causing the muscle to contract and exercise just as if it received a signal from the brain.
That explains why my wife’s muscles are bouncing are all over the place. What I think is interesting is that this invention is tied to some sort of research that apparently was conducted in the former Soviet Union. Like that validates anything. I’ve noticed that ever since Rocky 4, Russia has had a bad rap thrown over it regarding sports-conditioning. You’d think every Russian athlete was stuck in a damp, dark lab somewhere in the Gulag with Electro-Stim cables and pads stuck all over his or her body. And the “doctors” quoted have names I can’t even begin to pronounce. Hey, I’m sold! If Electro-Stim is good enough for the Siberian Olympic Team, than it’s good enough for me and my wife.
But I’m still waiting to see the results. “A significant difference (To my finances? My utilities bill? I’m not sure) is supposed to take place after 5 weeks. But hey – Rome wasn’t built in a day! All I know is for the price of this hi-tech wizardry I could have signed my wife up at the local gym for 3 months. But if I did THAT she’d fall behind on her reading.
