Percussion muscle therapy continues to grow in popularity. NRG Fitness is committed to giving our partners valuable insight and information about the use of percussion therapy and NIMBL percussion guns.
There are thousands of scientific studies with comparable findings on the effect of whole-body vibration (WBV) on tissue and bone. Since percussion instruments are essentially acute vibration techniques, we can certainly draw something from the enormous body of information currently available on WBV.
Building percussion into your own daily life, or your clients', is simple, quick and easy. The benefits are considerable, including muscle activation, raised muscle temperature, neural tissue regeneration, recovery after activity, trigger point and tissue adhesion release, and a great deal more.
It's important to have a strategy, and what follows is an easy-to-follow matrix for integrating percussion into your day, your training, your muscle recovery and your life.
Using a massage gun
A massage gun, sometimes called a percussion gun, is an innovative device that's becoming steadily more popular in the world of muscle recovery and relaxation. It's a portable, practical tool that helps relieve muscle soreness, reduce muscular tension and stimulate circulation.
Using a massage gun brings several benefits. First, it can help reduce muscle soreness and stiffness after an intensive session. The deep, targeted percussive techniques of the massage gun loosen the muscles and reduce knots and tension.
A massage gun can also help improve circulation. The rapid, powerful pulses stimulate blood flow to the muscles, which contributes to a better supply of oxygen and nutrients. That can lead to faster recovery and improved performance.
Using a massage gun can also help reduce stress and encourage relaxation. The deep massage movements help relax the muscles and reduce muscular tension, which can promote a sense of wellbeing and calm.
A massage gun is straightforward to use and can be adapted to individual needs and preferences. The device comes with various attachments that can be used for different muscle groups and purposes.
NIMBL interchangeable heads
Below is the hierarchy of depth, from the most superficial to the deepest trigger points.
- Plate
- Ball
- Apollo
- Thumb
- Y
- Point
Plate:
The plate is the most superficial attachment and is used for neural stimulation and superficial tissue realignment. It's comfortable and can be used on any part of the body except bony structures. Neural stimulation is an application used before activity to improve communication between neural tissues (muscles).
Ball:
The ball attachment is intended to reach deeper layers of connective tissue and muscle tissue. It's a universal tool and most people's favourite. The ball is very comfortable and can be used on any part of the body, along with the surrounding bony structures or joints.
Apollo:
The Apollo attachment is available only with the NIMBL and is designed for use on and around bony structures and connective tissue. Its patent-pending design lets users reach and treat deeper tissue. The sharp tip of the Apollo makes it possible to work between bone and muscle without causing pain or bouncing off the tissue.
Thumb:
The NIMBL thumb attachment is a highly versatile head. It has a rounded surface and a "fingernail" edge for different stages of your recovery. We use the thumb to get slightly deeper than the ball while keeping the experience comfortable. The thumb is ideal for all dense tissue, along with the muscles around the shin, forearm and feet. The fingernail is excellent for cross-fibre tissue patterns and for breaking up connective tissue in the lower abdomen, pelvis and feet.
Y:
The Y attachment is a great option for the feet, hands, forearms and for those "sticky" trigger points. The Y can be used before and after activity and is most effective in the recovery phase. The Y and Point attachments together make a powerful trigger point tool. Start with the Y, treating the area around the connective tissue or adhesion to open up the nervous system and prepare the specific tissue, then use the point to break through the adhesions.
Point:
The point is primarily a deep tissue attachment and is well suited to the deep glutes and to trigger points. Because the point can be fairly aggressive, we'd recommend taking it gently and listening to your body as you go. Remember that when the brain perceives pain, it shuts the tissue down. So start carefully with the point and go deeper as the nervous system allows.
Using the heads
Attachments are used for a great many reasons: for different parts of the body, for controlling the tissue response, and to produce changes in skin, fascia, muscle and connective tissue. We use them for neural stimulation before activity or for muscle activation. We use them for up- and down-regulation during your training or activity, and we use them for different degrees of recovery and regeneration. Below is a more detailed application plan for each attachment head.
When choosing a head, think of our adaptation matrix:
Establish whether there are bony structures nearby, and if so, choose the Apollo head. If there are no bony structures and the aim is pre-activity, use the medium-depth heads: the Ball, Thumb or Apollo.
During an activity, use the superficial to medium-depth heads: Ball, Plate and Apollo.
After your activity, or for recovery, you can use any of the heads – but remember to work around the pressure points first with the Plate or Y head, then use the Point aimed at the pressure point itself. Don't go straight into the pressure point, because the brain will perceive pain and shut the tissue down.
For connective tissue density we have a system of depth running from superficial tissue with the Plate through to deep, dense connective tissue with the Point.
Pressure
Pressure is the key to every percussion strategy, because "pain" is a significant barrier. Applying too much pressure can cause pain and ultimately shut tissue down, which minimises the effect of percussion. With NIMBL, pressure is simply the weight of the gun, and applying more can in fact cause bruising and damage tissue. AS WITH EVERYTHING, LISTEN TO YOUR CLIENT AND YOUR BODY.
Speeds
Speed is the rate at which the attachment head moves back and forth. The speeds you use matter, because they produce different tissue responses. We use percussion in 4 main areas:
- Muscle stimulation (neural tissue stimulation)
- Tissue activation
- Up- and down-regulation
- Recovery and regeneration
Research suggests that using percussion at different frequencies, or Hz levels, produces specific tissue adaptations. The following are recommendations on the use and application of speed:
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Neural tissue stimulation. Research suggests that using percussion before an activity or movement can produce greater neural tissue (muscle tissue) communication. Although every attachment head is suitable for tissue stimulation, we'd recommend the largest surface area attachment, the plate. We'd also recommend the middle speeds of 40 or 50 Hz, since these have been shown to excite the fast-twitch muscle fibres and prepare the brain for communication.
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Pre-activity. Strength work, or integrating percussion with more traditional warm-up protocols, creates a greater chance of fuller activity and minimises the chance of injury from it. Lower speeds of 20 and 30 Hz are most suitable for the warm-up phase of your activity, because these speeds produce muscular excitation while raising muscle temperature and improving oxygen supply. With more traditional forms of mobility or flexibility work, you can use percussion before or during active isolated or dynamic stretching – percussing the hip flexors during a leg swing, for instance, or the lats before stretching your back.
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During your activity is a very interesting opportunity to raise the intensity of your training while minimising the chance of injury. Applying percussion within your training or activity lets us down-regulate overactive tissue with higher speeds and up-regulate underactive tissue with lower speeds. That produces recovery in the fatigued muscle and activation in the "switched-off" one.
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Percussion in the recovery phase has been shown to reduce the intensity of muscle soreness while working to improve flexibility. When applying percussion protocols in the recovery phase we mainly use the higher speeds, 60 or 70 Hz. We can also use percussion to get into adhesions or connective tissue and so minimise the effect of muscle soreness.
Time
Time under percussion is another important part of the tissue response. Since percussion causes tissue to contract, and contractions are effort, it's important to limit your percussion before activity to minimise pre-fatigue.
Time is directly related to the speeds used, and the following is a general overview for application:
Stimulation before activity: low speeds and up to 60 seconds on large muscle groups, 45 seconds on small or less dense muscles.
During an activity: low speeds for up-regulation and a maximum of 30 seconds; higher speeds for down-regulation and a maximum of 60 seconds.
After activity (recovery phase): high speeds and up to 2 minutes per area, with a maximum of 5 minutes.
Which gun should I choose?
If you want a massage gun that's simple and quick to use at home, go for the XPRS version. It's smaller and straightforward to use. If you're planning to use percussion training professionally, choose the XLR8.
