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As a kid I remember watching those wonderful television ads that marketed ab shockers. You know, the waist belt that would give you a six-pack by sitting in front of the TV and drinking beer? I would always scoff and think to myself, “there is no way that a shocking belt could give people six-packs.” (Abs, not beer.) Over the past year, my previous assumptions have changed greatly about that stupid shocking belt. Why? Because I am subjecting myself to the same technology as the guy who turned his keg into a six-pack by sitting on the couch.

I am, of course, speaking of the Globus Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS) units. Fundamentally, EMS units allow users to go beyond what they would normally do in any type of classic training. EMS units work by bypassing the brain’s electrical signals for muscle contraction, and replacing them with external electrical impulses through gelled pads attached to the skin. By taking the brain out of the equation, users can achieve a much higher training stress and eventually adaptation if used correctly. This type of technology has great potential in the world of road cycling and mountain biking because of the wide variety of programs that can be tailored to individual riders. It is rumored that Saxo Bank and several other top-level professional teams and riders have been using the technology for years. Erik Zabel is one of the notables in this case, because he made it no secret that EMS units allowed him to stay at the top of the sprinting world years after his prime.

My decision to purchase an EMS unit came years ago while wasting time and searching a cycling store’s website for exciting new training equipment. I first came across altitude tents and power meters, eventually on to supplements, then more or less checking out everything the site had to offer. I was already using an Ergomo Pro power meter to measure my power during training and races and I felt like I needed to push the bounds of conventional training, but in a safe way. Indeed, there was one product that caught my eye. It was a device that shocked your muscles but had a great capacity to improve strength, endurance and recovery. With the ab shocker commercials of my youth in mind, I began my research into the product with great skepticism. Two hours later, after skimming through endless reviews, news reports and European studies, I was convinced I had to try this thing for myself.

My EMS unit arrived a few days later and I felt as anxious as a 15-year-old student driver. I eagerly read the directions and associated warnings, like don’t place the electrodes on your head, chest or groin. Check, check and check. Through my research and common knowledge, I decided that my quads were the most important to the sport of cycling and that they were what I wanted to shock first. The glutes and hamstrings are important as well, but I wasn’t ready to jump off the high dive quite yet. Following the directions, I placed the pads on my quads, attached the associated lead wires to them, and finally to the small control device.

I had purchased the Globus Sport unit, whose programs have a specific purpose with regard to training and physiological adaptation.

 ·         The Endurance program is half an hour long and imposes a medium level of intensity on the muscles. It is designed to increase the VO2 uptake of the muscles and increase the average working power over longer durations.

 ·         The Resistance Program uses a much higher working level and targets the fast-twitch and slow-twitch muscle fibers in the muscle. During the short program session, it also activates the anaerobic metabolism system, which stimulates the production of lactic acid. This program has great benefits for criterium racers and mountain bikers who consistently put out great power for short 1 to 5 minute intervals.

 ·         The Active Recovery and massage programs may be the most beneficial of all programs. It stimulates recovery in the muscles and can easily replace a sports massage on a daily basis. Globus reports that there is up to a 200% greater reduction in lactic acid blood level than mere rest.

 ·         The Strength and Explosive Strength programs are designed to increase shear force. The strength program would be synonymous with heavy weightlifting in the gym. The explosive strength program is ideal for pure sprinters and anyone who wants to improve their sprinting power.

 ·         The Warm-Up program is used prior to an event. The 10 minute session activates and warms up the targeted muscle and seems to have a greater effect on preparing the muscle for competition.

So there I was, ready to embark on my first EMS session. I chose the resistance program (bad choice) because it is shorter than the endurance although much more intense. The program began with a few minutes of warm-up to prepare my muscles for the actual work. The warm-up is characterized by short, intense contractions. It was quite a surreal experience to see my muscles contracting without any thought or direction from my brain. Then, the actual program started. Eight seconds of contraction followed by eight seconds of light twitching rest. During the contractions I thought my legs were going to explode. They didn’t, of course, but for the next few days following my first session, my quads were so sore I could barely walk. However, everything I read on the subject seemed to agree that first-time users are always going to experience soreness. The soreness is mainly caused by the fact that most muscles barely use all of the available muscle fibers.

The EMS units work by targeting a specific muscle. Instead of your brain telling it to only use 50% of the potential, the EMS can tell it to use as much of the muscle as you want. Essentially, the EMS unlocks strength that your body doesn’t want to activate. Even professional cyclists and other high level athletes can benefit from the training because even they have a large percentage of muscle fibers waiting to be unlocked.

As my soreness subsided in the following days, I noticed something peculiar while out on rides - I was quite a bit stronger in short efforts. It is hard to explain, but from the time I first recovered from the EMS I could feel a change in my muscles.

From then on, I have implemented the EMS into my regular training regimen for road cycling with immense results. Over the past year of use, my Functional Threshold Power has increased almost 15%. While this increase is nothing to scoff at, I feel my greatest improvements have come in my overall endurance and ability to recover from hard efforts. Working the different training programs into a rider’s yearly plan can get quite complicated, but essentially the programs are what their names suggest.

The Endurance program can be used during the off-season and all the way through the racing season because of the minimal risk of long-term fatigue and soreness. A rider can add this program on any day he or she chooses to increase the aerobic ability of the chosen muscles. It’s more or less like adding a few hours of easy aerobic riding to a training plan for each session. Even if a rider is greatly fatigued, he or she can still tack on a few extra virtual hours of training with the Endurance program. It also helps greatly if a rider only has a few hours a week to ride. It also allows athletes to continue training without the risk of increasing the severity of a mild illness by riding outside.

The Resistance, Strength and Explosive Strength programs have a great benefit in the off-season as a rider is building strength. While normally done in the weight room, EMS units allow riders to perform strength training with minimal risk of injury. While most programs shouldn’t be performed every day, it should be said that Active Recovery is the exception. For those of us not fortunate enough to have a massage therapist on retainer, the AR program is certainly a competent stand-in.

A benefit of the EMS that I have personally experienced, besides increased strength and endurance, is the equalization of muscle strength in my legs. Because the EMS allows the user to select the intensity or Milliamps, it is possible to train one leg a little harder than the other and thus provoking a greater training response.

For the uninitiated, EMS units may seem like as much of a crock as the guy sitting on his couch getting a six-pack, but in truth the science and technology are very sound. I only wish that the next time I’m doing the endurance program, I could fulfill the old commercial of my youth by watching TV with a nice Dales Pale Ale!

Happy Riding!

Graham Gifford, Director of Sales for North America, Ergomo USA