Electrical Muscle Stimulation

[kjcba8101]

Any if you use the TENS devices for muscle gain? I hear of people using them for muscle growth. Others seem to offer a mixed bag of opinions. Any of you efficient people used them? I've just started to learn of this and am intrigued.

 

[100TonsofOrangeFury]

Any if you use the TENS devices for muscle gain? I hear of people using them for muscle growth. Others seem to offer a mixed bag of opinions. Any of you efficient people used them? I've just started to learn of this and am intrigued.

Didn't know they had any value outside pain management. They work pretty well for that.

 

[Wally12]

Put one on your neck and cheeks. I double dog dare ya!

 

[kjcba8101]

Didn't know they had any value outside pain management. They work pretty well for that.

What kind of pain have you used them for?

 

[osuengineer]

I used them for back pain at the chiropractor office after a fender bender that torqued me weird. Never used a portable version, only used the "benchtop" model after getting adjusted at the chiro's office.

 

[cactusjackosu]

My wife has those things stuck on her back all the time.

 

[Cowpoke]

Have one for my lower back as well. It works. Temporary, but it does work. I've actually wondered if it could be used for muscle atrophy in paralysis/coma type situations before.

 

[shortbus]

I had to use a tens unit to build muscle in my knee after I tore my acl/mcl/pcl.

They would put wet paper towels on my leg and then out the tens over it and crack it as high as it would go.

Man I hated that.

 

[Cowguy]

I was in this business for several years.

Big believer in TENs (transcutaneous electrical neural stim). Wife delivered two babies, naturally, with only TENs for pain control. I've seen it work wonders for people in many ways.

NMEs (neuroelectrical muscle stim) can't hypertrophy or grow muscle. It can be used in an atrophy situation, say post injury or surgery, to help bring a muscle back to normal. Also used to activate a muscle and provide feedback to teach a patient to fire the proper muscle.

Russian stim (burst mode alternating current) was believed to have the ability to hypertrophy muscle. No real empirical evidence to back that up though. I can also state unequivocally that it hurts like a bitch. I've seen it used a lot to fatigue a muscle for folks that have spasticity. Also used by some to fatigue muscles for manual scoliosis treatment techniques.

The whole electro therapy modality industry has fallen apart. Insurances stopped paying, so home use has really waned. Still used, but it's now pretty much over the counter, out of pocket. Physical therapists still use, to good effect, in clinics.

So now you know more than you ever wanted to.