NMES vs TENS

If we’ve already convinced you to move forward with the investment in an electric muscle stimulator, your next step would be to pick a specific system. 

And with all the various TENS and NMES devices on the market, we know how hard that simple decision can actually be. 

 

In this article we’re going to break down the comparison between the two different electric muscle stimulators. 

 

Whether you’ve already invested in the system or are looking into the finer details of how it works, we hope this comparison can help you gain some clarity that you need before moving forward with EMS. 

 

First and foremost, let’s take a closer look of EMS itself. 

 

The Benefits of EMS

EMS can do a lot for your workout or aid in strengthening your physical fitness as you train. 

 

From warmup to cool down, EMS can increase yourpotentiation and muscle activation.This sort of triggering focus can do wonders to warm your muscles up effectively. Gone are the days of static stretching and doing a few arm windmills (although arm windmills are not a bad exercise!). Using EMS for your warmup can help engage your muscle—without even movement from you—talk about effectivity! So, without anyenergy expenditure on your part, you can bring your EMS to an intermittent pulse setting to help activate your muscles before your workout! 

 

You can solicit muscle contraction without needing poly articular movements. 

 

How?

 

For the chest, you can use EMS to contract your muscles and get them activated without needing to perform chest flies or presses that would require involvement of your shoulders. 

 

Unfortunately, you‘ll still need to warm your shoulders up but with the EMS you really focus on activating the muscle you’re trying to work, without involving other muscles. 

 

So, Bottom Line?

Now that we have an idea of how effective the EMS can be for warmup, activation, and even cool down and recovery, let’s take a closer look at our choices.

 

Since you have so many different NMES and TENS devices to choose from, picking one off the market can be an overwhelming or even intimidating decision to make! 

 

Although all EMS systems may seem like they’re doing the same thing, there are differences between them.

 

NMES

Neuromuscular electrical stimulation, or NMES,instead focuses on the contraction of the muscles. The device sends electrical impulses to your body’s nerves. 

This connection then triggers a contraction of the muscles. This can help re-train your body’s muscle function so that its in an optimal state to rebuild strength—which is especially helpful after an injury or after surgery and can be a great recovery tool with the reduction of lactic acid, and increase in oxygenated blood flow.

NMES is different than the TENS because it works with higher Hz rates to stimulate muscle fibers.

Certain NMES devices have evolved to both stimulate Type 1 and Type 2 muscle fibers, which can help engage more and more muscle fibers for a warm up or recovery. 

 

TENS

As one of the most common EMS devices, TENS, which stands for “transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation”, are generally found at a budgeted price. You’ll most likely have already been introduced to its system through a physical therapy session or even seen it at your local gym being used by a member.

 

However, this OTC device is actually not fully FDA approved. Generally used as a pain-reliever, the TENS will send electrical pulses to connect with your nerve and skin surface. It can help “close the gate” of your central nervous system and block pain receptors to help you find relief from your otherwise consistent pain.

 

There have been various updated editions that have taken this ground baseline and promoted more user-friendly adaptations, with simple options to select the type of pain the user is going through (whether it’s from an accident, a chronic type of pain or if it’s an athletic injury). 

 

You can also control the setting and power of the TENS system, allowing you to be able to set your tolerance. This can help you feel more in control and less scared or anxious about being in more pain during the session.

 

Finalizing Your Decision

Although there are many different types of EMS and different ways to best utilize it for your benefit, you can rest assured that all of Gymtech’s products have been proven effective in all ways. 

We wanted to provide you with anelectric muscle stimulation system that helps you recover, improve, and achieve your highest athletic and fitness potential—even if you’re not an elite athlete.