What is the Secret Behind the Shake?
Have you ever wondered why your muscles shake during your megaformer class?
Whether you’re a newbie or someone who’s been with us since the beginning, the shake is something you have definitely felt. It’s not something to avoid or be afraid of - you should welcome it with open arms! What does the shake mean, and why is this trembling something that you actually want? We’re here to tell you!
During most exercises (such as running, spinning, HIIT, weight lifting) your muscles are allowed to contract and relax during each exercise. Why does this matter, and why is Lagree a better approach to changing your muscles? It’s simple...in most types of workouts, your muscles are given frequent breaks and are not worked to their maximum. On the other hand, Lagree takes a completely different approach to working and toning your muscles. On the megaformer, your muscles are challenged to stay under tension for extended periods of time before being given the opportunity to break. The megaformer stimulates your muscles to the point where you feel that you can’t go any further. This is why we tell you to go SLOW… to increase the time each muscle is under tension.
How Muscle Fatigue Causes The Shake
During each Megaformer class, every exercise targets multiple muscle groups at the same time. Think about the escalator lunge - you are using your hamstrings and glutes on your lunging leg, you are using your core muscles to stabilize, and every muscle on the back leg is contracting to help you stabilize as well. The goal of every class and every exercise is to get your muscles working so hard that they shake every time. When you feel that shake, it means that there isn’t enough energy left in your body to keep your nerves on track, so your nerves respond to this lack of energy/signal by shaking.
As explained by Sebastien Lagree, the inventor of the Megaformer and the Lagree method, In order to make changes in your muscles and progress in the lean building of them, you have to push through the trembling. The longer people stay in the stage of effective muscle stimulation, the more micro tears occur in the muscle and the greater the adaptive/anabolic/metabolic response will be.
Shaking does not mean you are weak - rather it is a sign of strength because it means you are going beyond what feels easy and familiar. We urge you to get comfortable feeling uncomfortable… when you push past the comfort zone, you put yourself to a new level of fitness and allow your body to change.
Try a class with us 3 times a week for a month; we guarantee you will see your body change!