You could be fooled into thinking vibration machines are a recent addition to the fitness market, but these things have been around for decades they started to appear in the early 1990s in health clubs and commercials gyms, and even then, people were praising the health benefits of these so-called miracle machines.
I’ll admit when I first heard about vibration machines, I was doubtful of their claims.
Can you really lose weight and tone muscle just by standing on a vibration machine? Do vibration plates really work? It wasn’t until I really understood how these machines work that I started to believe there’s some truth to the health claims.

How Do Vibration Plates Work?
There are a few types of vibration machines available, but they all basically do the same job, and that’s to use vibration to contract and relax your muscles. Oscillating vibration is the most popular type of vibration.
You can think of oscillating vibration as taking thousands of mini-steps every few minutes. It’s a see-saw-type motion that mimics how we walk, and for that reason, it’s seen as the most natural type of vibration.
So how do we lose weight on one of these things?
The vibrations or mini steps cause our muscles to contract and relax, and as we mentioned, this happens thousands of times every few minutes or up to 50 times per second, depending on the power of your machine.
Muscle contractions require energy, and energy = calories. The higher the speed of vibration, the more calories you’ll burn.
In a European study of obesity, one group in the study managed to lose 11% of their body weight over six months when combined with a healthy diet. The study claimed that vibration machines help trim that difficult to move belly fat if used properly.
Oscillating vibration machines are also excellent for improving balance. Their side alternating vibrations create a pleasant rocking motion that causes the brain to tell the body’s muscles to actively contract to maintain equilibrium (balance).
When our bodies try to maintain balance on a vibrating platform, it creates a muscle-toning and strengthening workout.
For Best Results, Incorporate Other Exercises Into Your Vibration Sessions
If you’re thinking of getting hold of a vibration plate, I’m sure you will not want to spend $2k + on a commercial machine. While most people will spend around $300 on a decent one for home, the acceleration speed (G-Force) is too low to be compared to results you might achieve on a vibration machine in your local gym.
Yes, you can benefit from muscle toning, increased blood circulation, bone density, and some calorie burn by standing on an affordable vibration plate.
But if you really want to make the most out of a cheap oscillating vibration machine, it’s best to incorporate other exercises into your vibration sessions to help burn calories and tone muscle faster.
You can perform squats, lunges, press-ups, and planks. Many of the vibration machines you see advertised on amazon, such as the LifePro Waver, also come with resistance bands. These are great for a full-body workout. The resistance bands work your upper body while the vibration machine works the lower.
However, resistance bands can be limiting as you can only perform a couple of exercises.
Why not get hold of a set of dumbbells? This will open up many more exercises you can perform while standing on your vibration plate. Research has proven that a 15-minute workout on your vibration plate equals 60 minutes of regular exercise. Drastically cutting your workout time.

Can Anyone Use A Vibration Machine?
The medical community generally supports oscillating vibration as a healthier type of vibration as it has less vertical impact on the body than other vibration types. It can handle more weight and reduces stress on the organ. Its natural see-saw motion mimics how we walk, which makes it suitable for any age or ability.
The other popular type of vibration is Linear (up and down). This is another excellent vibration type for weight loss and muscle toning as it too contracts and relaxes our muscles.
It differs from oscillating vibration in that it moves both sides of the body simultaneously, making it high impact up to 6 x the user’s body weight. While this is excellent for weight loss and muscle strengthening, it’s not good for people with joint issues or neck problems.
Linear vibration mimics the jump reflex, which is why it’s popular among professional basketball and football players.
However, it’s the affordable linear plates on the market like the Bluefin Pro that boast the most powerful motors and the largest vibration plates, which makes them perfect for weight loss and muscle toning. The large plates give you more room for floor exercises, and the powerful motors allow for stronger vibrations.
To Sum Up
Suprignly vibration plates are backed by a sufficient amount of research regarding weight loss, muscle toning, increased blood circulation, and bone density.
Especially with increased blood circulation with no less than six separate studies in the last decade and the most recent concluded “the rapid up and down movement of the vibration plate creates an increase and decrease of G-Force throughout the soft tissues of our bodies. Increasing the flow of fluids like blood and lymph.”
All the other studies concerning blood circulation and vibration workouts resulted in similar positive outcomes.
When it comes to calorie burn, I don’t think standing on a vibration machine on its own will burn as many calories as 30 minutes on a rowing machine. However, it will no doubt have a positive effect on your health, especially when combined with other exercises.
Still, these machines can be of huge benefit to people with health issues who might not be able to benefit from regular exercise.