Power Plate

Please share your experiences, successes, and failures in using non-drug therapies for RLS/WED (methods of relief that don't involve swallowing or injecting anything), including compression, heat, light, stretches, acupuncture, etc. Also under this heading, medical interventions that don't involve the administration of a medicine to the body (eg. varicose-vein operations, deep-brain stimulation). [This forum contains Topics started prior to 2009 that deal with Non-prescription Medicines, Supplements, & Diet.]
srgraves01
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Power Plate

Post by srgraves01 »

I want to tell people about this in hopes that it might be helpful. I have been caught in a situation where I was taking hydromorphene -- it wasn't working out for me. I previously had a home version of the power plate -- but its helpfulness was limited. I recently purchased a commercial model of the power plate for my RLS. I have already gone through augmentation and have tightness in my hips, quads, side of my thighs, butt area and back. I still need to do foam rolling on my back and thighs and sometimes on a small tight area that the power plate didn't quite get. The power plate is used for exercise, stretching and massage. My primary uses are for massage and some stretching. The benefit of the commercial model is that you can set it at a higher frequency and set it on for 9 minutes at a time. The home model would only let you do one minute at a time. I am sometimes use it for an hour. I massage all muscles on high amplitude. I massage all muscles from the hip down, including my calves. My commercial Power Plate has allowed me to go for several nights in a row with no medication. When I have attempted this before, every night after the second night with no meds was full of agony, and do be honest, some feelings of not wanting to live anymore. However with the power plate, instead of agony, I have only fatigue, a significant improvement. And it allows me to sleep between 2 to 4 hours at a time. One thing I discovered is that you need to have good posture while using the power plate or you will get tightness and soreness in your upper back and neck.

None of my medications are very effective at this time. I had to take some miripex with my hydromorphene because the hydromorphene by itself made me agitated. I had gotten to the point where I was sleeping about an hour and a half at a time, even during the day. I realized that this increased severity, which had come on gradually was augmentation (again) and I had to get off of the Mirapex. But this also rendered the hydromorphene ineffective. I just went to my pain doctor and he switched me to generic suboxone 2 mg. I have no idea if this is the right dose or not -- we will see.

Although they are pretty expensive, the commercial power plate has been a blessing in my life. I found out that the older models of the pro5 power plate have a harder push, than the new pro5. To get a harder push with the current models, which shortens your massage time, you need now need to purchase a pro5hp. I am sure there are other types of whole body vibration machines that work; but I can't comment on them; except to say that some types have a teeter totter motion -- these are not helpful in my opinion.

ViewsAskew
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Re: Power Plate

Post by ViewsAskew »

Never heard of this...but so glad it is helping you!

I use a foam roller as well as a hand held tool for working on my muscles and fascia. I also have a hand held massager for the tough spots. Sadly, not of this touches my RLS. But, one of our past mods uses a similar tool and says it helps her RLS.
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest

Managing Your RLS

Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.

srgraves01
Posts: 106
Joined: Wed Apr 24, 2013 4:34 am

Re: Power Plate

Post by srgraves01 »

I use the hand held massager too sometimes on my calf muscles -- and it usually seems to help. We used to own a gym where we had a couple of power plates -- otherwise I would likely have never known about them. I think one area of possible research would be to understand what muscles are affected and how in different instances, possibly tracing the interactions between the muscles, spine and brain. It may help us understand better the different types of RLS. It seems that when I loosen muscles that the trigger points for my periodic limb movements get better until they tighten up again. But this allows me to sleep for a while. I still experience the more traditional RLS sensations in my calf muscles and this also seems to improve with massage.

Steve

ViewsAskew
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Re: Power Plate

Post by ViewsAskew »

We definitely need to learn SO much more!
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest

Managing Your RLS

Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.

badnights
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Re: Power Plate

Post by badnights »

I tried looking up the power plate. I'm going to go on a rant here that has nothing to do with WED/RLS - just one paragraph, I promise. Like so many other sites these days, their website proclaims how the thing can help you on page after page, but to actually see how it works, you have to hunt around - even the instruction manual didn't help - and eventually you're forced to watch a video, but no, even that doesn't work, because you have to create an account or give them your email address, I forget which - just to be able to see a video that will help you decide if you want to buy the product. Argh. I refuse. They should be bending over backwards to help me decide that I like it enough to spend thousands of dollars on it, not cheaply demanding my email address so they can spam me. I don't understand why so many companies make their sites full of useless propaganda and fail to provide solid information. Do they think I'm going to buy something just because they say it's great?

I did want to see what the deal was - - if I understand correctly, basically you stand on a vibrating plate and hold cables in specified ways that transmit the vibrations to your muscles. This is either a workout or a massage, depending on ... what? srgaves01, can you help explain the mechanics of it?

I have lots of knots in my leg muscles, especially the calves. I was using a handheld rolling pin -style massager on my calf muscles before I went to bed to see if it helped. It made my calves feel good, but I couldnt really tell if it was helping my symptoms or not.
Beth - Wishing you a restful sleep tonight
Click for info on WED/RLS AUGMENTATION & IRON
I am a volunteer moderator. My posts are not medical advice. My posts do not reflect RLS Foundation opinion.

srgraves01
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Re: Power Plate

Post by srgraves01 »

Standing on it is only one way to use it. You can use it for working out, stretching or massage. I primarily use it for massage. I lay on my hips or quads or butt on the power plate to massage those parts; I hold the handle and also have a platform next to me to put my hand or elbow on to support me. I sometimes lay flat. I lay on the floor to massage my calf muscles. See this picture for laying down to massage calf muscles.

https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=ht ... mrc&uact=8

I raise my butt up to put more pressure on my calves. You have to focus pressure on the areas that are tight and painful. Youtube is probably a better place to look for videos on the power plate. There are several of them. I am not saying this is for everybody. But if you have the kind of muscle tightness I have, it can be a significant help. If you find a local gym that has a power plate, you might be able to try it out there to see if it is helpful. Some chiropractors use them to treat patients.

Steve

srgraves01
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Joined: Wed Apr 24, 2013 4:34 am

Re: Power Plate

Post by srgraves01 »

Settings to use are 40 or 50 vibrations per second and high amplitude.

Steve

badnights
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Re: Power Plate

Post by badnights »

very helpful, thank you!
those settings are for massage?
Beth - Wishing you a restful sleep tonight
Click for info on WED/RLS AUGMENTATION & IRON
I am a volunteer moderator. My posts are not medical advice. My posts do not reflect RLS Foundation opinion.

srgraves01
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Joined: Wed Apr 24, 2013 4:34 am

Re: Power Plate

Post by srgraves01 »

Yes.

Steve

Yankiwi
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Re: Power Plate

Post by Yankiwi »

Beth, I agree. Any website that is not up front immediately with what they are selling raises a red flag with me.
Power Plate might help with RLS but it reminds me of years ago when Cliff and I had our business we were in a four office building with limited parking down the side. There was a magic weight loss and toning company next to us called "Trim & Fit" where customers stood or lay on vibrating machines. These people often parked in our few well marked spots. Luckily we had a tenacious young receptionist who ran out as soon as she saw someone park and go towards Trim & Fit. Their sessions were about 50 minutes long so they couldn't claim they were only going to be a few minutes. She got a lot more exercise than any of their customers.

badnights
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Re: Power Plate

Post by badnights »

lol
Beth - Wishing you a restful sleep tonight
Click for info on WED/RLS AUGMENTATION & IRON
I am a volunteer moderator. My posts are not medical advice. My posts do not reflect RLS Foundation opinion.

srgraves01
Posts: 106
Joined: Wed Apr 24, 2013 4:34 am

Re: Power Plate

Post by srgraves01 »

Say, I'm not sure what web site you went to but I went to http://www.powerplate.com and I didn't have to put in an email address to see any videos.
A pop-up did come up about classes. But you can close it or it times out and disappears after a little while.

Steve

badnights
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Re: Power Plate

Post by badnights »

You're right.

I just went back to the site and retraced my steps. I had expected to see information about how to use the product under "Products", the same place they told me how good it would be for me. When I couldn't find it there, I looked under Education and Training - Workouts then a few more places. I suspect the videos I got to were under "Education and Training - Online Training". One of those is free but you have to put it in your cart and create an account with an email address before you can access it.

There are free videos are under News and Media, but I don't think I even went there. I must have been too angry by then :lol: But what a bizarre place to put essential information, under a "News and Media" heading. I also don't like that it's not described in words anywhere. I hate having to watch videos - which take forever - when a few words and a picture would suffice.

But the videos are there, weird place or not, and they do show what I wanted to know!
Beth - Wishing you a restful sleep tonight
Click for info on WED/RLS AUGMENTATION & IRON
I am a volunteer moderator. My posts are not medical advice. My posts do not reflect RLS Foundation opinion.

ViewsAskew
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Re: Power Plate

Post by ViewsAskew »

badnights wrote:You're right.
I hate having to watch videos - which take forever - when a few words and a picture would suffice.



OMG - someone else who feels as I do. Sometimes a video IS wonderful. Often, anymore, it replaces simple words! Words that I could read or skim in 1/10 the the time needed to watch the video. We read many times faster than we speak. No picture needed! And, when a picture would do, show a picture!
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest

Managing Your RLS

Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.

Polar Bear
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Re: Power Plate

Post by Polar Bear »

Me too !! I can't stand the videos, I don't have time for videos. And then there's the video that won't load !!
Betty
https://www.mayoclinicproceedings.org/a ... 0/fulltext
Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation

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