Workout Diaries: MFA Writer Angela gives the wireless EMS suit a go

I am not an active gym-goer, and many of my friends know this. But when given the chance to try out this new session at PowerLounge last week, I was genuinely intrigued. I’d heard a lot about this ‘wireless EMS suit’, but had no idea whether it was going to be effective or maybe even embarrassing for me to try. For the sake of doing an honest gym diary, though, I decided I had to suck it up and put in as much effort as I could. If anything, I figured I’d probably get a good workout out of it, right? Boy, did I underestimate just how ‘good’ the workout would be.

Follow my adventure as I recount the 20-minute PowerLounge EMS training session that I undertook with Izad, my enthusiastic personal trainer.

It Begins…

6:15pm – I’d just finished 8 hours of work at the office. Together with another member of the MFA team, we make our way down to PowerLounge. The gym is located near Tanjong Pagar MRT station, an easy 15-minute walk away from our workplace at Raffles Place.

6:30pm – I step into PowerLounge with a nervous grin on my face and what I hope is an excited expression. I have no idea what to expect, but there is a laid back atmosphere at the gym and I eventually feel myself relaxing. It is well lit and spacious. All at once, I am made to sign a waiver and then I am given one of the wireless EMS VisionBody suits to change into.

The suit is easy enough to put on without any help. It is elastic and flexible, reminding me of a wetsuit, but also surprisingly snug and comfortable. It is studded with various electrode pads that target the shoulders, neck, back, buttocks, legs, abdomen, and chest areas.

7:00pm – The 20-minute workout commences. Well, not quite. A short warm up comes first. Some simple stretches, regular squats and a few minutes on the treadmill precede the actual session. Very standard, just to get the blood pumping and the muscles loosened. Izad, Head Trainer of PowerLounge, is meticulous and driven, letting me know exactly what to do.

7:10pm – After the warm up, the real session begins. Izad powers up the suit and tells me all about the full-body muscle contractions that I will feel every 10 seconds. They are quite startling at first – almost shocking to the system, until you get used to the sensation. Izad wastes no time in getting me to do a whole slew of exercises, one after the other. We start with twist lunges, followed by…

… standing crunches, squats, cross crunches, squats with lats pulled down, standing reverse flyes, squats with reverse flyes, squats with side shoulder raises, biceps curls and triceps extensions.

Things got a little intense for me towards the end of this, but I am only halfway through the workout at this point.

7:20pm – After a really short break, I am back on the mat and ready for more. Izad explains that he will now decrease the current on all parts of my body except for my abdomen, to put more focus on the muscles of this area while I tackle the core exercises.

We start with some 10-second planks and 20-second planks, which are easy enough, until we move on to Russian twists, leg raises and scissor kicks, which to my utter horror made me discover that I have terrible balance. But with Izad pushing me to keep going, I manage to complete the full 20 minutes without giving up.

The Aftermath…

Immediately post-workout – My legs are jelly. The entire session wasn’t long at all, but it felt like I’d been put through a 3-hour workout. I now see why they say EMS will make conventional training 18 times more effective. Those deep muscle contractions are certainly worth it. It’s not hard to see why using EMS in training will make you achieve your fitness goals faster.

The morning after – I definitely feel the burn in my thighs, buttocks, arms and shoulders. Not so much in my core, perhaps because I didn’t put enough effort into straining myself during the second half of the session due to exhaustion, but aching in every other place makes me feel pretty good about myself.

24 hours later – My appetite is increased, but I know this is a normal thing to expect. My body is still aching and it feels incredible. The pain may be a little inconvenient when I have to climb some stairs or when I feel like stretching, but it makes me content to know the session at PowerLounge was 100% effective and worth it.

3 days later – My muscles start to recover and the aches slowly fade. I notice my arms are more toned, and my thighs feel firmer. My stomach is tighter and I do feel stronger. If a single 20-minute session can make me feel like this, I would like to know what effects several sessions will produce!

Overall impression:
I have never been so impressed with myself after a gym session, and I believe I have the EMS technology to thank for this. The wireless suit is convenient and didn’t hinder me in any way – it acted like a second skin. I have no doubts that the suit will complement any training exercise of any intensity, and achieve excellent results.

I would like to add that the people at PowerLounge were fantastic at creating a fun and friendly vibe, especially Izad, who treated me with plenty of care and respect, but also with strict discipline needed to push me through those last few tough moments.

EMS training is available at PowerLounge, 146 Robinson Road, #01-01 Singapore 068909.

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