DPT_1119_Living_BusinessBeat_LightningFit

Lightning Fit Instructors Chris Arangua and Connor Covington.

By Breeana Greenberg

Lightning Fit at the Piazza Wellness Center has expanded. The fitness studio, founded in 2017, uses Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS) technology to target and stimulate muscle groups for a more effective workout.

“We’re able to contract your muscle fibers like they’ve never been contracted before,” instructor Chris Arangua said.

Not only has the studio expanded to a larger room, but the technology received an upgrade as well. Previously, the suits were plugged into giant machines, tethered by two cables. Now, the suits use wireless technology, so everything is Bluetooth-controlled by trainers using tablets.

“The suits and machines themselves feel a lot better and are more effective,” Arangua said. “There’s more electrode pads, so it hits a broader group of your major muscle fibers. So, a lot of changes have been coming along, which is very exciting.”

Clients wear an electrode suit with a battery pack attached at the hip. The electrodes in the suit physically contract clients’ muscle fibers as they work out. Instructors Arangua and Connor Covington control the intensity of the stimulation from a tablet. The 25-minute sessions typically consist of a 2-minute warmup, a 20-minute workout, and a 2-minute cooldown. Most clients come in for a workout twice a week.

The sessions “spike your metabolism, and not just for the actual workout itself,” Covington said. “For the next day or two after, your metabolism is spiked, and you’re constantly burning an accelerated amount or increased amount of calories.”

A client’s first session at Lightning Fit will be shorter than the normal 25-minute workout. The session begins with a consultation on the client’s fitness goals and health history.

“There is a potential that you may be sore from the workout even though it is a short workout, because it is the first time you worked out 95% of your muscle fibers,” Arangua said. “From a normal workout, maybe you can work 65% of your muscle fibers. So, that’s why we’re able to give you a very short, effective workout within 20 minutes, and have an equivalent to a 3-hour gym session.”

EMS can be particularly helpful for anyone healing from an injury. Since the electrodes can contract 95% of a client’s muscle fibers, they don’t have to use heavy weights to get an intense workout. With the use of the electrodes, “We could just sit down and stand up with no weight at all, just your regular body weight, and it feels like you’re squatting 200 pounds,” Arangua said. “So, you’re not putting added pressure on your joints or anything like that.”

“Whether you’re looking for a more cardio-based workout, a high-intensity type workout, improve some flexibility, strength and balancing, or if you want to grow bigger, get those muscles, weight gain and muscle gain, and all that stuff, or if you want to trim your weight,” Arangua said. “There’s so many different applications and settings we can do on our end to give you the workout that you want.”

Lightning Fit’s expanded location in Dana Point is located at the Piazza Wellness Center at 24941 Dana Point Harbor Drive, C 120. For more information, visit lightning-fit.com or call 949.200.7965.

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Breeana Greenberg is the city reporter for the Dana Point Times. She graduated from Chapman University with a bachelor of arts degree in English. Before joining Picket Fence Media, she worked as a freelance reporter with the Laguna Beach Independent. Breeana can be reached by email at bgreenberg@picketfencemedia.com