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Shocking yourself thin?

Lately it feels like there are a million different things we can do to get fit, stay in shape or lose weight. From zumba classes to yoga, to crossfit and bootcamp, I’ve never been so confused about what fitness program I should actually be doing. In fact, all of the choices have actually put me off exercising a bit.

You see, I’m extremely lazy. I don’t enjoy going to gym, I don’t particularly like sweating and huffing  and puffing, and I’d rather spend my money on clothes than on very expensive fitness regimes. 

But my laziness has caused me to look a bit flabbier and pap than what I’d like. I’m by no means overweight, but I know what I should look like, and this isn’t it.

Then I heard of BODYTEC a place where you go once a week, for 20 minutes. Apparently, here you do the equivalent of three 90 minutes sessions in the gym and burning 1200 calories. Wow. It sounded almost too good to be true.

But before I wrote it off as a get-thin-quick-scheme (and because I’m kind of vain and would probably do anything to get thin quickly and easily) I decided to go check it out.

And what a shock it was. Literally. You’re strapped into a training jacket  and hooked up to electrodes, which then shock your muscles.

It’s called Electro Muscular Stimulation (EMS) and has been used for years in the sport’s medicine field for sport’s injuries and as a way to strengthen and tone quickly.

Research conducted by international sport institutes has shown that BODYTEC’s training results are up to 18 times more effective than traditional fitness training. According to owner Boris Leyck, “Conventional wisdom says there are no shortcuts to health and fitness. But who wants to be conventional? BODYTEC technology is so effective that just 20 minutes of training is as beneficial as three, 90 minute workouts in a gym.”  

After my first session with the lovely Jessica, the owner of BODYTEC in Tygervalley, I felt like sleeping for days. My muscles were extremely sore – it felt like I had run a marathon (not that I know what that feels like. I’m pretty sure it’s the same torture, though.)

The session goes by relatively quickly, but it’s a really weird feeling to be shocked every 10 seconds. If  you don’t remember to bend your arms or legs, you’re locked in for a few seconds – which made me panic a bit at the beginning. The good thing however, is that Jessica is there throughout, and will adjust the levels of stimulation to what feels comfortable to you.

I’ve since been for two more sessions and will be going for one last session soon. My goal was to tone up my flabby bits and perhaps lose centimetres around my tummy, legs and arms. Although I dont feel like I’ve lost weight, I can see a noticeable difference in the strength of my legs, and the firmness of my bum. It looks tighter, and I might even have less cellulite!

One thing that you should remember though, is that this isn’t a quick fix. If you’re planning on using Body Tec to lose all the weight that you’ve piled on over the years, then you’re at the wrong place. You need to combine the sessions with healthy eating and some form of exercise –whether it be power walking, jogging, swimming or gym classes. It might work to get you toned and looking a bit slimmer for your wedding or a holiday, but I doubt that the results will last if you don’t make an effort to stay in shape.

The sessions also don’t come cheap, so it’s not something you just do on a whim.

*Update: Since writing this article, I've gone for my last session and have done my final measurements. To say I was shocked would be a total cliche...  I lost a staggering 14.5 cm in total! The most was around my waist - I went from 78 cm to 72cm! And my thighs, hips, arms and bum all shrank by a few cm's. All my doubts about the sessions are now officially gone, and I'm so happy to report that it actually works. As soon as I go on a beach holiday, or have a fancy event coming up, I'll save my pennies and shock myself thin once again.



Check out BODYTEC Tygervalley’s website and watch this youtube clip to see what it’s all about.


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