The Science

The non-invasive HIFEM® (High-Intensity Focused Electromagnetic) technology induces powerful muscle contractions not achievable through voluntary contractions. When exposed to strong contractions, the muscle tissue is forced to adapt to such extreme conditions. It responds with a deep remodeling of its inner structure that results in muscle building and sculpting your body.

During normal voluntary muscle contractions, the muscle fibers relax between each nervous stimulus due to the central nervous system’s inability to signal another impulse while the previous one is still in action. An EMSCULPT machine can generate impulses that are independent of brain function, and the rapid frequency doesn’t allow a relaxation phase. Under normal conditions, the highest amount of tension that could be developed and held physiologically is called maximal voluntary contraction (MVC). Usually, it lasts only for a split second.

Even when you are contracting a muscle, the individual fibers are intermittently firing. Your brain sends a signal via a nerve pathway and the nerve triggers a muscle fiber contraction. At best, you are recruiting a handful of muscle fibers at a time (approximately 30-50%).

Contractions with a tension higher than MVC are defined as supramaximal contractions (SMC). The EMSCULPT machine can generate supramaximal contractions in 100% of your muscle fibers and hold them for multiple seconds, which significantly increases the physiologic stress/workload needed to allow muscles to adapt. When exposed to these supramaximal contractions (which are humanly impossible) with 20,000 contractions in 30 minutes, the muscle tissue is forced to adapt to these extreme conditions and responds with a deep remodeling of its inner structure.