How to Use a Vibration Plate for Lymphatic Drainage

Vibration plate therapy isn’t just for strengthening and toning your body muscles—it can also be a powerful tool for promoting lymphatic drainage to reduce swelling and inflammation. “How does this work?” you may ask.

Let’s start with a little science lesson: In your body, a yellowish watery serum called lymph flows through the lymphatic system to remove toxins, excess fluid, and waste from body tissues and supply them with oxygen, proteins, and other nutrients. It then moves into the lymphatic capillaries and through lymph nodes to destroy harmful organisms. It ultimately supports the immune response by producing and releasing lymphocytes and other immune cells, which fight bacteria, fungi, parasites, and viruses.¹

But some conditions and treatments—like cancer, surgery, injuries, and radiation treatment—can disrupt this process, causing lymph to accumulate in the tissues of your arms and legs, a condition known as lymphedema.² When this happens, your body needs help to move lymph fluid from tissues to lymph nodes. This is what’s known as lymphatic drainage.

You can stimulate lymphatic drainage and reduce swelling through massage, exercise, wearing compression garments—or using a vibration plate. And that’s exactly what we’re getting into today. So, let’s explore how to use a vibration plate for lymphatic drainage.

The Importance of Lymphatic Drainage

Like blood, lymph is always moving to nourish tissues and remove wastes and harmful particles. If it stops, it builds up in the arms and legs, resulting in tissue swelling and inflammation. In some cases, the swelling can also affect the chest wall, abdomen, and neck.

Lymphatic drainage can reduce this swelling by pushing the fluid back into blood circulation. In fact, doctors recommend lymphatic drainage as part of a treatment known as decongestive lymphatic therapy (DLT), which also involves exercises, compression garments, and skin care to move fluid out.

Because lymphatic drainage improves lymph flow, it offers multiple benefits. For instance, it can³:

• Improve immune responses
• Supply large proteins to the bloodstream
• Help maintain normal blood volume

It can also help to manage conditions like fibromyalgia, lipedema, chronic venous insufficiency (CVI), and rheumatoid arthritis.³

Does Vibration Help Drain the Lymphatic System?

So, lymphatic drainage can be a boon to your overall health. And, as mentioned, one way of initiating lymphatic drainage is through the use of a vibration plate.

This is what’s known as vibration therapy, or vibrotherapy. It works by stretching the underlying body tissue, enabling thickened fluid to move through the lymphatic system.⁴

But how exactly does this occur?

Put simply, vibration machines deliver micro-vibrations to the intended treatment area, and this stimulates the muscles through rapid micro-engagements. These machines come in different forms, such as oscillating platforms, handheld devices, and even whole-body vibration machines. A vibration plate is an example of a whole-body machine, and you can use it by standing on it, sitting on it, or lying on it.

Vibration is even more effective alongside other therapies, like manual lymphatic drainage (MLD). Case in point: In a 2018 study involving 30 female patients, one group received MLD only, while the second group combined MLD and vibrotherapy treatments. The findings revealed that the combined treatment was more effective for the patients.⁵

Benefits of Using a Vibration Plate for Lymphatic Drainage

To get a better idea of why a vibration machine may be an excellent addition to your overall wellness routine, let’s take a closer look at vibration plate benefits for lymphatic drainage:

Enhanced Circulation

Unlike the heart, the lymphatic system lacks a pumping mechanism, increasing the risk of poor lymph circulation in high-risk patients. Vibrations can enhance lymph circulation by stimulating muscle contractions, which help squeeze and release lymph vessels. This action pushes lymph through the lymphatic system to support its natural flow.

Vibration therapy can also be a preventive measure to improve your overall health. For instance, it can benefit people who wear tight clothing, which tends to block lymphatic flow.

Ultimately, using a vibration plate regularly can help prevent excess lymph production and reduce the risk of swelling.

Reduction of Swelling and Fluid Retention

When the lymphatic system doesn’t work well, the body accumulates fluids, leading to swelling in your arms, legs, feet, and other areas. This condition is known as lymphedema, and it can be painful, resulting in difficulty managing daily activities.

Several conditions and treatments can cause lymphedema, including pelvic surgery, radiation therapy, trauma, lack of activity, tumors, breast cancer surgery, obesity, and heart conditions. It’s also important to note that lymphedema also has several stages, including 0, I, II, and III, which depend on the severity.⁶

Regardless of the cause or stage of your lymphedema, vibration therapy can be used as part of a treatment to reduce the swelling and fluid retention you’re experiencing. As you use a vibration plate, the mico-movements will help relax your firm tissue through muscle contractions, accelerating fluid drainage and blood flow to reduce swelling and fluid retention.

Steps for Using a Vibration Plate for Lymphatic Drainage

Implementing vibration therapy to manage lymphedema (or as part of your overall wellness routine) is simple once you understand how to use a vibration plate. Fortunately, we’re here to help with some tips and best practices:

Recommended Positions

One key advantage of vibration plates is their adaptability. They can support a number of different positions—depending on your needs and goals—including standing, sitting, lying down, lunges, and plank. Vibration plates also work with different exercises, including tricep dips and push-ups. Learn more vibration plate exercises for arms in our blog.

Let’s take a look at a few ways you can use the plate in these positions⁷:

• Standing – Stand firmly on the plate with your feet shoulder-width apart and start with short sessions of 1 to 2 minutes at a frequency of 8Hz. This position can help improve muscle tone, circulation, and balance.
• Sitting – Sit on the plate with your legs extended in front of you. Aim for a 2-minute session at a frequency of 18Hz as you start. This low-impact position stimulates lymph circulation and supports core engagement. Learn more about the benefits of sitting on a vibration plate in our blog.
• Lying down – Lie down with your legs on the plate for a 1-2-minute session at 15Hz. This pose is ideal for relaxation and lymphatic drainage, and it works by stimulating blood circulation in the lower body.
• Plank – Place your hands or forearms on the plate and extend your legs behind in a plank position. The plank position works the arms, shoulders, and glutes to support your core workout.
• Lunges – Put one foot on the vibration plate and the other on the floor in a lunge position. With this pose, the vibrations target your quads, glutes, and hamstrings for muscle strength and flexibility.

These positions for vibration plate exercises can enable muscle contractions and boost your metabolism to further reduce swelling. Plus, they provide a low-impact approach to working out on your vibration plate, making it ideal for individuals of all ages.

Session Frequency and Duration

While a vibration plate offers multiple benefits, it’s important to find the right balance and ensure moderation for effective use. Talk to your healthcare provider about creating a program tailored to your unique needs. Then, you can adjust it as you adapt to the exercises.

So, how often should you use a vibration plate? In general, beginners should aim for 10 to 25 minutes per session and start at a lower frequency of 8hz. Also, limit the use of the plate to 30 minutes daily and up to 3 to 4 days a week.⁷ This will allow your body to experience the optimal benefits of vibration therapy without excessive strain on your joints and muscles.

Allow at least 48 hours between training sessions to give your body adequate time to repair and recover. Recovery time is also essential to avoid injuries due to overuse.

Finally, sticking to the recommended frequency and duration limits is particularly important if you’re using vibration therapy to manage swelling due to an underlying condition, as overusing your plate can lead to headaches, fatigue, nerve damage, digestive issues, and body pain.⁸

Make it a habit to continuously check in with yourself—and with your healthcare provider.

Boost Your Lymphatic Health with Lifepro's Vibration Plates

The lymphatic system plays an important role in the body, supporting the immune response to fight off bacteria, parasites, and viruses. However, things like cancer, trauma, and surgery can all impact the function of this system, resulting in fluid retention and swelling.

The good news is that you can manage this swelling and fluid build-up by using vibration therapy. For this, you’ll want a high-quality vibration plate—an innovative whole-body machine that stimulates rapid muscle contractions through high-frequency vibrations.

And Lifepro Fitness offers exactly that. Our collection of vibration plates is designed to support your wellness and recovery efforts, featuring intuitive user controls, adjustable intensity levels, and multiple vibration settings, to cater to all users.

For optimal results, take the time to learn how to use a vibration plate for lymphatic drainage, and start with positions that have the most impact, like standing and squatting.

Explore our vibration plates and exercise machines today to find the right model to support your lymphatic health.

Sources:

1. Cleveland Clinic. Lymphatic Drainage Massage. www.my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/21768-lymphatic-drainage-massage
2. Mayo Clinic. Lymphedema. www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/lymphedema/symptoms-causes/syc-20374682
3. WebMD. Lymph Drainage Massage: Benefits and Risks. www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/what-is-lymph-drainage-massage
4. University of Michigan. Lymphedema Therapy Techniques.www.med.umich.edu/1libr/PMR/Lymphedema/LymphTherapyTechniques.pdf
5. PubMed. Low-frequency vibrotherapy considerably improves the effectiveness of manual lymphatic drainage (MLD) in patients with lipedema: A two-armed, randomized, controlled pragmatic trial. www.pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29847188/
6. Cleveland Clinic. Lymphedema. my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/8353-lymphedema
7. Lifepro Fitness. How Often Should You Use a Vibration Plate?www.lifeprofitness.com/blogs/news/how-often-should-you-use-a-vibration-plate?
8. Healthline. Do Vibration Machines Work for Weight Loss? www.healthline.com/health/vibration-machine-weight-loss#precautions
9. Lifepro Fitness. Vibration Plate Workout Guide: How to Train at Home with the Vibration Plates. www.lifeprofitness.com/blogs/news/gym-closed-heres-how-to-train-at-home-with-the-vibration-plates?

Author

Joel Gottehrer

Joel Gottehrer is the Co-Founder of Lifepro Fitness and has dedicated his life to helping people transform theirs. With over 12 years of experience in the fitness industry as a personal trainer and owner of two personal training studios, Joel has a wealth of knowledge when it comes to helping transform lives. After suffering from physical injuries, Joel and his business partner, Abraham Brach, came together with a common goal to alleviate the pain caused by their injuries.

They continued to find themselves disappointed with the results stemming from various products promising to relieve their pain, and with that – Lifepro Fitness was born. Joel's mission is to have a positive impact on millions of lives with the Lifepro brand. Whether it's finding new and innovative ways to help people recover from injuries or developing products to improve overall wellness, Joel is always looking for ways to push the boundaries. Thanks to his commitment to help people live their lives free of pain, Lifepro has been able to do this for thousands of people since its founding in 2017.