Whole Body EMS Training: A 20-Minute Workout for Busy Women Over 40

Picture a personal trainer lounging by a hotel pool while the person he trains is working eighteen-hour days. That scene changed the direction of Conrad Sanchez's life. He was an executive assistant to a billionaire, confined to hotel rooms across the world, when he decided he wanted the trainer's job instead.

Eighteen years later, Conrad is a personal trainer with a master's in kinesiology, and for the past eight years he has specialised in whole body electrical muscle stimulation, usually shortened to EMS. He joined me on the me&my health up podcast to explain what it is, who it suits, and why so many busy women over 40 end up in his studio.

From executive assistant to trainer for "special populations"

When Conrad got laid off, he put his severance into a personal training school in New York. Once certified, he worried he could only train healthy people with healthy bodies. What if a client had diabetes or a knee injury? So he spent his weekends on continuing education courses until he had, almost by accident, created his own niche: training what the industry calls special populations. His gym manager noticed that he was the only trainer who knew how to work with these clients, and started sending them his way.

He has since worked in clinical settings for diabetes, high-end private gyms and boutique studios. Then a French investor who owned a franchise of small EMS studios in Brazil hired him as head trainer for a US launch. Conrad had never heard of EMS. His first session left him sore for five days, which, as he tells it, made him a believer.

What whole body EMS actually is

Conrad describes the equipment as a suit you zip up, with electrodes woven in over the major muscle groups. Some suits are wet suits, where you dampen the electrodes so the current conducts better, although some brands now make dry versions. Professional suits are worn over a cotton top and bottom: a vest with electrodes, armbands, and pants with Velcro-fastened electrodes on the hamstrings, quads, glutes, abs, back and arms.

A session runs for about 20 minutes. Conrad says that equates to roughly two hours of weightlifting, which is the headline that gets people curious. Because it needs a trained operator to run the device, it is done one on one with a trainer.

Do you just sit there and get zapped?

This is the question every client asks, and the answer is no. Conrad explains that simply receiving the stimulation has some benefit, and physical therapists have long used TENS units to limit muscle wasting or ease painful strains. In the fitness world, though, you get more adaptation if you actually move with the stimulation on, because you are training muscles in exercises that carry over to everyday life.

That said, he has copied some physical therapy protocols into whole body EMS, so a client with a sore lower back, knee or traps can sometimes get a session where they barely move. If the goal is getting stronger or losing weight, though, he strongly prefers that people exercise.

What a typical session looks like

Conrad comes from a strength and conditioning background, so a standard session for a healthy person who wants to get fitter might include squats, rows, and rotation and anti-rotation work. He adds corrective exercise where needed. EMS can be adapted to almost any exercise format, from mat Pilates to reformer work to traditional strength training. The exceptions are the pool, and, in his view, yoga and martial arts: yoga needs you to engage one muscle while stretching its opposite, and high stimulation settings can limit range of motion.

Because the stimulation reaches the whole body, a client with a frozen shoulder can do the exercises their physical therapist prescribed while the legs, abs and back are still stimulated at the same time.

Who it suits best

Conrad says EMS is useful for many people, but it is ideal for older adults, beginners, people with injuries, and anyone short on time. He sees it as a tool that removes the usual barriers to exercising consistently:

• Time: 20 minutes is easier to fit in than an hour and a half.
• Injuries: the stimulation is directly on the muscle, so even if a joint is painful to move, you can still work on strength.
• Knowledge and accountability: it is done with a trainer, so you are not working out what to do alone.
• Fear and intimidation: worries about getting injured, getting bulky or facing a toxic gym culture tend to melt away in a one-on-one setting.

In his own practice, about 70 per cent of his clients are women aged 40 and over, many in their fifties and sixties. They are busy, often mothers, and many have never been in a gym environment where learning to lift felt comfortable.

Perimenopause, bone health and weights

I asked Conrad about perimenopause, because falling oestrogen raises real concerns about muscle and bone density. He noted that women commonly hear from their doctors that they need weight-bearing exercise to reduce the risk of osteopenia and osteoporosis, but where do you begin at 40 or 50 if you have never lifted? In his experience, EMS has been an excellent starting point for that group.

He says studies show increases in strength in these populations, and that people with sarcopenia have been studied using EMS with protein supplements. When it comes to bone density, he told me some studies show a small improvement, but he finds the gains minimal on their own. For that reason, he now combines EMS with external weights, usually around 30 to 50 per cent of what the person can lift, to give clients and himself more confidence that he is offering the best service possible for bone health.

What about athletes?

Conrad says EMS is not widely used by athletes in the US, but in Europe several soccer teams used it for strength training and, for a time, kept it quiet so rivals would not copy them. The appeal is that shorter resistance sessions free up time for sport-specific practice. Instead of five days in the weight room, an athlete might do two or three EMS sessions and spend the rest of the time on technical training. As Conrad points out, most athletes would rather play their sport than chase a deadlift personal best.

Is sweating the goal?

Not at all. Conrad explains that EMS is resistance training, so the aim is strength. Sweat is just the body's reaction to a rising temperature, and some clients sweat while others do not, particularly in a hot city like Los Angeles.

Practical takeaways

• Barriers to exercise tend to be the same few: time, motivation, accountability, injuries and knowing what to do. A format that tackles several of these at once can make consistency easier.
• If you have been told to do weight-bearing exercise but feel intimidated by the gym, a private, one-on-one setting may be a more comfortable place to start.
• EMS works best when you actually move, and Conrad combines it with weights for his clients with bone health concerns.
• Choose a trainer who has proper education in using the devices, and who understands your health history.

Where to find Conrad Sanchez

Conrad is based in Los Angeles. You can find him at ConradEMSFitness.com and on Instagram as Conrad EMS Fit. He has also written a book called The EMS Difference, available on Amazon in many countries, and he runs an online and in-person education course for trainers who want to learn EMS.

This article is general information from a podcast conversation, not medical advice. If you have an injury or health condition, or you are going through perimenopause, speak with your doctor or a qualified health professional before starting a new type of exercise.

At me&my wellness, we look at movement as one part of looking after the whole person. If you would like help working out where to start, you are welcome to book a free 15-minute clarity call.