One product caught our eye this week, and that’s the Flex Belt, which Susan Brady of HealthNews.com wrote about last Friday. This product offers the same types of promises that we see in many of the items that get called out in as being worthy of a “Kinetic(Mis)Shift.”
The Flex Belt is, from what we found, an electronic muscle stimulator (EMS), a product category that has been around for a while. It has even been cleared by the FDA as a class II medical device, and has been endorsed by Olympian Janet Evans and professional football player Jerry Rice. According to Brady, the Flex Belt utilizes “the same technology used by physical therapists to exercise the muscles of their patients who can’t do it as effectively for themselves.”
Our question is whether these electronic “cheats” are even the best use of technology, even if it actually works. So far, we’ll say this much, we’re not really convinced. The product is reportedly available for $199.99, and that’s a lot of money for a product that bills itself as being able to replace traditional crunches and exercise. For one thing, let’s say it does work. Should we really embrace any product that offers shortcuts? Because if you can get a flat stomach without the pain, couldn’t it encourage people to take the route of least resistance with other workouts? Feeling good is often about more than just looking good.