What Is Planet Fitness Total Body Enhancement? A 2023 Guide

(Last Updated On: June 9, 2023)

What is Total Body Enhancement at Planet Fitness? Total Body Enhancement is a type of therapy booth that used red-light therapy combined with whole-body therapy to recharge your body with energy before a workout.

You can imagine Total Body Enhancement as some machine that can reduce wrinkles, increase fat loss, and help you get rid of cellulite. The best part is all the benefits come without having to eat anything special. 

Total Body Enhancement is installed in almost every branch of the popular gym franchise, Planet Fitness in the USA. It is manufactured by a company that goes by the name Beauty Angel. 

For understanding Total Body Enhancement in a better way we went inside the machine to let you know how it functions from the inside and how to operate Total Body Enhancement at Planet Fitness. 

First of all, let’s learn what Planet Fitness Total Body Enhancement is like from the inside. 

What Is Total Body Enhancement?

Total Body Enhancement is a type of whole-body therapy machine at Planet Fitness Gyms that is made using a vibrating foot plate combined with red light therapy bulbs. It has the shape of a tanning booth and it also works in a similar fashion. 

The rays emitted from the red light therapy bulbs aren’t UV rays and have no damaging effect on your body. 

Below the legs, the vibrating foot plated is Vibra Shape. Its benefits can be considered similar to the vibration that your body produces while using a trade mill and can increase your metabolic rate. 

The wavelength of the red light emitted from the bulbs in Total Body Enhancement ranges between 618nm to 702nm. 

Besides the primary red color, the light also emits some blue and white rays giving it a look of white/pink hue in your eyes. 

The vibration intensity of the Vibra Shape can be controlled with the help of remote control provided inside the machine. 

When you look at the benefits of Total Body Enhancement, it looks too good to be true. The benefits include lessening your wrinkles (anti-aging effect), reduction in cellulite, warming up your body before a workout, and stimulating ATP release. 

So, what is the intensity of UV light that is emitted from Red Light Therapy tubes? Their intensity is no more than a regular overhead fluorescent. Thus, you shouldn’t be worried if that’s dangerous to your body.

How to use Total Body Enhancement Machine?

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Now, most of you since haven’t tried total body enhancement and need to know how do you use or operate the Total Body enhancement machine? Let me tell you, It is really simple.

Most of their functions are controlled by the remote control it has inside. You can use Total Body Enhancement 2-3 times a week to see optimal results. 

The result however might take as long as 90 days to show up. Also, between each session keep a gap of at least 24 hrs. 

When you are at Planet Fitness Gym, the Total Body Enhancement booth can work out as a body relaxer after an intense workout. The red light therapy inside is good for helping tissues with natural repair and the vibration mechanism can help your muscle loosen up.

There is no guide provided by Planet Fitness on how should you use Total Body Enhancement in particular. However, we tried getting inside the machine and inquiring the staff to learn how it’s used. 

Even though not for workout recovery, Total Body Enhancement can also be used as a standalone treatment. Now, how to use Total Body Enhancement at Planet Fitness? Let me explain it to you. 

User Guide Of Total Body Enhancement

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The very first thing is you need to remove all the wearables including your jewelry, piercing, and cosmetic products. Now take your position inside the Total Body Enhancement booth. 

For this, you need to stand still in the center of the device. You can slightly bend your knees if you feel the top of the device is very close to your head. 

Now, to create better muscle tension, we recommend putting up overhead straps to support your muscles and create tension. 

Another important thing, always try wearing your eye protection or you need to keep your eyes closed for the entire time you are inside the device.

Now, how long should the length of each session be inside Total Body Enhancement? The maximum length of each session should be no more than 12 mins. You can stay inside it for a duration of 10-12 mins. You don’t need to worry much since there is a voice guide to alert you at the end and start of the session. 

Here is the view of the controller that you’ll see inside the booth.

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The vibrating plate that is Vibra Shape has 4 different levels allowing you to target different causes such as exercise intensity, muscle stimulation, and massage. 

Once you are inside the booth, close the door. To start the machine press the Start button at the bottom (#8) and when the feet button is lit, adjust the program by using the left and right navigation arrow button. (#6 and #9)

When the machine is on, the Vibrating pad below your feet will come in and the lights will turn on which are used for red light therapy. 

To turn off any function in the total body enhancement machine, first, navigate to the icon and then press the start/stop button to turn on and off. 

For turning off the entire machine, long press the start/stop button. At an early stage start with a lower vibration frequency to see if your body can tolerate it well. 

You can use all the functions by using the left and right navigation buttons and waiting for the icon to get lit up. There is also a voice guide system inside the booth. 

The voice guide helps you understand what to do inside the Total Body Enhancement. To turn the voice guide navigate to number 4 using the 6 and 9 buttons. 

What Should You Wear In Total Body Enhancement Machine?

Whether you should wear your clothing or not when using a Total Body Enhancement Machine is entirely up to you. 

Some people choose to go without clothing for efficiency and comfort, while others prefer to wear clothing for protection and security. Finally, the choice is yours.

Also, this depends upon you for what feature or specific benefits you exactly will be using Total Body Enhancement Machine. 

For example, If you only use the vibration feature of this device, it doesn’t matter what you’re wearing. Simply put on your regular activewear or gym attire.

You must make the regions you wish to be treated with red light visible if you want to fully benefit from this machine’s red light treatment. Red light is not visible through your clothing. It must directly shine on your skin.

If you wish to spend time with one of these machines, we recommend that you expose as much of your skin as possible or as much as you feel comfortable with.

While we do not suggest you be naked (you don’t want to surprise anyone!) Wearing only underpants allows you to keep your modesty while exposing a considerable section of your body to the light source.

Who Should Avoid Using Total Body Enhancement Machine?

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Some of the reasons stated by the manufacturer for not using the Total Body Enhancement Machine include:

• Bodyweight over 300 lbs.
• Dvt (Deep Vein Thrombosis).
• Fresh wounds and recently undergone following operation or surgery.
• Pregnant ladies.
• Suffering from epilepsy or generally sensitive to light.
• Cardiac pacemakers users.
• Acute osteoporosis or suffering from retinal detachment.
• Extremely photosensitive people.
• People are on a lot of medications or taking herbal remedies which cause light sensitivity such as antifungal agents, antibiotics, and anti-inflammatory agents.

Total Body Enhancement: Pros And Cons

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Here are some pros and cons of the Total Body Enhancement Machine that you could find useful if you’re thinking about joining a Planet Fitness gym or already using one.

Pros

1. Relief from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome symptoms

Total Body Enhancement may help with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, a condition where you feel tingling and numbness sensation due to a pinched nerve in your arms.

Carpal tunnel syndrome can have several underlying causes like high blood pressure, diabetes, fluid retention after menopause, or thyroid dysfunction.

The machine at Planet Fitness can help overcome carpal tunnel syndrome symptoms. However, long-term relief isn’t guaranteed.

2. Reversing the Ageing Process:

The red light waves produced by the total body enhancement machine might help reverse your aging skin. People who used it reported a reduction in their wrinkles visibility after using it.

Now, how does it really happen? Red light therapy is believed to help your body produce more collagen. And as you already know collagen can help diminish fine lines and wrinkles thus ultimately reversing aging.

3. Enhancement in Wound Healing:

For people who recently faced some sort of trauma or surgery, Total Enhancement can show them noticeable wound-healing effects. The machine makes your wound healing site more active than usual. 

The wound could be of any type like a burn, infection, skin grafting, etc. So feel free to take a Total Body Enhancement therapy session in such a case. 

4. Reduction in Pain And Inflammation

Inflammation of your tissues and cells is a major reason for pain. The infrared rays used by Total Body Enhancement can help relieve pain by reducing inflammation of your tissues. Just always remember to keep the area exposed where you want to experience/feel the result. 

5. Stress Relief

An increase in your stress level could be a consequence of several day-to-day activities like your day job, not being able to take much rest, and others.

Total Body Enhancement is also known well for its stress reduction ability. For better stress relief you can use this machine for a continuous 30 minutes duration.

The vibrating technology within Total Body Enhancement also plays a major role in reducing stress. As vibrating pads relax your muscles make you feel more relaxed and eventually give relief from stress. 

6. Increased Blood Circulation

A session at Total Enhancement Booth can improve blood circulation throughout your body. The vibration of your body cells is the major driver of this benefit.

Improved blood circulation helps increase your endurance and performance at the gym. 

Also during a peer review, it was found that the red light therapy helped prevent muscle soreness after the workout. This can also help with symptoms of varicose veins. As the infrared waves irritate those veins and thus improve circulation.

7. Improves Your Energy Level and Metabolism

Another benefit of Red Light therapy is it enhances your mitochondrial performance and triggers it to synthesize more ATP (the energy currency of your cell). This enables your body to perform more energetically throughout your day. 

The Total Enhancement Booth also improves metabolism. As your body synthesizes more energy, the more food you eat.

Cons

1. Lack Of Guidance to Operate

The Planet Fitness Gym does not provide you with any instructions on how to use the Total Body Enhancement Machine. 

You only get to know the details of the benefits posted outside on the machine’s door. As a result, you must learn to regulate everything on your own.

2. You Need To upgrade your Basic Membership

To use Total Body Enhancement at Planet Fitness gym, you need to upgrade your membership to Black Premium Card.

The benefits aren’t available at the basic membership. This could be a problem in case you only want to use Total Body Enhancement and not other features under the Premium Black membership. 

These two cons of this machine are minor points.

3. Not Suitable for People Who Have Skin Issues

Red Light Therapy is not recommended for people who have sensitive skin. Because your skin is immediately exposed to the red light area which can cause symptoms such as itching and irritation.

4. Can cause side effects 

Total Body Enhancement may induce an increase in blood pressure, which may cause symptoms such as nausea, trouble breathing, and irregular heartbeats. You might also experience vertigo or loss of body control. 

Many people experience sleeping problems after utilizing Total Body Enhancement. Because your cells are highly active after leaving the booth, it takes some time for them to recuperate.

Takeaway: Though Total Body Enhancement has certain pros and cons but the benefits of Red Light Therapy make this machine worthwhile to try. Most individuals use this machine to relieve muscle tension and reverse the aging process.

Total Body Enhancement Machine Side Effects

In general, using a Total Body Enhancement Machine is safe. However, people have reported negative side effects from Red Light Therapy and other side effects that the company warns about.

• Few reported burns and blisters from using red light therapy. 
• Mild headaches may result from infrared light therapy.
• The rapid drop in your blood pressure and vertigo symptoms.
• Itching in the training areas of the body.
• Irritability and nausea.
• using Total Body Enhancement at night may disrupt your sleep pattern. 
• Hyperglycemia arises quickly in diabetic patients.
• Eyestrain may occur, increasing the risk of eye damage. As a result, proper eye protection is essential.

These negative side effects of using the Vibra Shape include dizziness, nausea, itching, hyperglycemia, and a drop in blood pressure. Vibrations can be extremely harmful to your health.

While we have not experienced any of the above-mentioned side effects, everyone is different because various bodies respond differently to different stimuli, therefore you must be careful at first when using this machine.

If you are unsure or experiencing any of the following negative effects while using the Total Body Enhancement at Planet Fitness, or if you have a problem that could be aggravated, consult with your doctor before using this machine.

In case, your body is not able to tolerate Total Body Enhancement, consider looking to some alternatives. Here are some alternatives of Total Body Enhancement with similar benefits you may consider.

Total Body Enhancement Video Guide

To better understand Total Body Enhancement, one of our friend PlayRightParent has made a video guide for you.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is unlimited Total Body Enhancement?

Unlimited total body enhancement means getting to use the machine unlimited times in the Planet Fitness gym. This feature is applicable with the most expensive plan of the total body, which is only around $21.99. The name of this plan is Planet Fitness Black Card.

Who makes the Total Body Enhancement machine?

The manufacturing of the Total Body Enhancement machine is Beauty Angel. It is a company owned by JK Group that has been manufacturing beauty and wellness machines for 40 years. 

Why are the lights white?

Inside the Total Body Enhancement Booth, the lights might appear to be whitish-pink. This effect is due to the fluorescent tubes in the booth releasing few lights of other wavelengths than red.

Planet Fitness Total Body Enhancement Summary

Total Body Enhancement at Planet Fitness can be a great way to relax your body, make you feel energized, and help enhance blood flow throughout your body.

So, should you use it? Before you try Total Body Enhancement, you must make sure you aren’t prone to any medical problems if so speak to your doctor before use. 

Otherwise, you can get in and try Total Body Enhancement. There have been many users whom we find discussing the benefits live. The machine is said to reduce cellulite, rejuvenate your skin, and get rid of wrinkles. 

However, the benefits are hard to experience in the short term. Some may feel it when they are regularly using Total Body Enhancement. 

Each session inside the booth is 12 mins long with a vibrating pad, Vibra Shape below your foot, and red light surrounding you. It can be a mood booster, can make you happy, and relax your body after your workout session. 

So, whether to use it or not is completely a personal choice. Some people we came across who used Total Body Enhancement frequently, found their wrinkles to improve and they love using Vibra Shape frequently. 

Different people used Total Body Enhancement for different purposes at Planet Fitness. Some find it great as warm while others feel it is a great relaxing aid after the post-workout. Thus you should find your purpose for using it too. 

Let us know what you think of Total Body Enhancement at PF. We surely expect to hear a lot of new experiences from our readers. Also, if you have any queries, feel free to share.