Your first EMS session: what happens from arrival to leaving

If it's your first time, the most common questions are refreshingly practical: what do I wear, how long should I block out, and will it be unpleasant. Here's the visit from start to finish.

Before you arrive

• —Block out about an hour and a half so you're not rushed — the visit itself is around 60 minutes.
• —Bring clean indoor trainers you haven't worn outside.
• —Eat normally, but not right before; a light meal one to two hours ahead is ideal.
• —Drink water through the day — hydration matters more with EMS than with ordinary training.
• —Have details of any health conditions, injuries and medication ready.

The consultation

The session starts with a conversation, not the suit. Your trainer asks about your goals, any pain, past injuries and health conditions relevant to training safely.

This isn't a formality. Whole-body EMS has clear contraindications — pregnancy, pacemakers, epilepsy and metal implants in the stimulated area among them — so this step is part of the required procedure, not something to skip.

Getting into the suit

The EMS suit has to fit closely so the electrodes make good contact with the skin. Your trainer adjusts it to your body and checks every contact point. This takes a few minutes and is essential for the impulse to work evenly.

Familiarisation and the session

Next comes a short phase where intensity rises gradually so you learn the sensation. International guidelines recommend a first session of roughly five minutes of impulse familiarisation and around twelve minutes of actual stimulation, at an intensity of 4 out of 10 — somewhat strong, not maximal [1].

So your first session will almost certainly feel easier than you expect. That isn't timidity, it's the rule: muscles need time to adapt to an unusually large simultaneous load.

During the session you perform simple trainer-led exercises — squats, lunges, arm movements. The impulse cycles between load and rest, with intensity set separately for each muscle group.

What it feels like

The most common description is "tingling that turns into squeezing". The muscle contracts on its own, which feels strange at first but not painful. When the impulse stops, the sensation vanishes immediately.

If the sensation is sharp, burning or painful, that isn't normal and the intensity should come down. This is exactly why supervision is mandatory — guidelines recommend one trainer per person, with one-to-two also acceptable.

Wrapping up

After training comes recovery with electro-massage and a protein shake. That's the right moment for questions — how often to train, what to expect in the first weeks, and how the programme adapts to your goals.

What to ask your trainer

1. 1.What will my plan look like over the first two months, and when does intensity increase?
2. 2.Given my starting point, how many sessions a week do you recommend?
3. 3.What should I do if my muscles are very sore the next day?
4. 4.How do you adapt the session around my injury or pain?
5. 5.What's the cancellation window, and what happens if I can't make it?

The next day

Moderate soreness for a day or two after a first session is expected, often in muscles you don't usually notice. Light activity, enough water and normal protein intake all help.

What isn't expected: severe pain that worsens after 48 hours, marked swelling, or dark-coloured urine. With any of those, see a doctor and tell them you have been doing whole-body electrical muscle stimulation.