Powerplate my3

Power Plate is probably the largest company selling whole body vibration machines and vibration plate in the world, with dealer locations across multiple countries in hundreds of cities.  A WBV review site would never be complete until it contains the popular home use WBV system from Power Plate.  We previously tried the MY3, MY5, and the Pro5 at a local Fitness Town, but since that was awhile back, we decided to pay another visit to the store to refresh our memories and feelings to the machines.  This review focuses on the PowerPlate MY3, please see our other reviews for different WBV machines.

When we walked into the store, we saw a row of WBV machines in the show room, with the Power Plate MY3 sitting at the end of the row.  Compared to the other vibration machines on the floor, the MY3 looks quite small with a platform size of 25” x 14”.  It is the most basic WBV machine from Power Plate. The machine basically vibrates at one speed, 35Hz, meaning the machine is capable of creating 35 muscle contractions and relaxations per second. This creates a problem if you want to operate the vibration machine at a higher or lower frequency, because you can’t adjust the speed. You either use the machine at that speed, or use the machine with the power off and use the platform as a stepping board!

The timing feature on the Power Plate MY3 is also quite puzzling, it is either 30 seconds or 60 seconds.  Which basically means that by the time you finish with 1 or 2 exercise positions, the machine would time out and stop.  You would need to press the ON/OFF button on the machine to restart it.  A typical 10 minute workout would require you to start the machine 10 times. Kudos to the design team for putting a REPEAT button on the machine, so you only need to press one button to restart the machine.  Otherwise, you would have to press 3 buttons (ON/OFF button + TIME button + AMPLITUDE button) every minute to restart the machine.

The last button available for pressing is the AMPLITUDE button, which controls how high the platform shakes. Each time you press the button the platform would slow down to a stop, change from low gear to high gear, or high gear to low gear, then resume vibration. The process takes a few seconds to complete.

Hopping onto the vibrating platform, the machine feels sturdy, although any form of holding the pole and leaning our body to a side would tilt the machine. The small vibration platform limits how far you can spread your feet apart when you are in the standing position.  It also limits how far you can spread your hands when you want to get down and do some pushups.
We tried many different vibration machines from different companies and this machine falls into the “minimalist” category, since there is really nothing that you can adjust or to customize for your workout.  If your priority is name brand first and functions/features second while on a limited budget, then the Power Plate MY3 is a good choice for a WBV vibration machine. If you must get a Triplanar machine and practicality/functionality is your preference, then you may want to look elsewhere.