Efficacy of Whole-Body Electromyostimulation on Muscle Strength, Anthropometrics and Performance in Active Young Adult Populations: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Background: Whole-body electromyostimulation (WB-EMS) is a relatively new training modality with most of the research being conducted on sedentary or elderly populations due to its high exercise acceptance, relatively easy of use (always supervised by qualified professionals), and time-effective nature of the modality. Results in these populations suggest WB-EMS to be a viable alternative to other training methods. It would be inappropriate to extrapolate the observed effects from this population to active and trained young people, since the scientific community recognizes that these individuals require significantly greater training stimuli to elicit a response in performance variables. › Objective: The objective of this study was to provide a systematic review of existing research in WB-EMS training on muscle strength, anthropometrics, and performance variables in active young adult populations. › Methods: A literature search was performed using the databases of Scopus, Google scholar, Web of Science and PubMed (search date 26.05.2023). The studies were then analyzed for duplicates and relevance to the search criteria. › Results and Conclusion: This study suggests that WB-EMS does not offer superior training adaptations compared to other training methods in active populations, with clear guidelines outlining the most effective practices for WB-EMS needing to be established. It is inconclusive as to whether WB-EMS training interventions may be as effective as other types of training at achieving positive adaptations in muscle mass, strength and power, and performance variables, such as sprint speed, and change of direction speed.