I've tried tons of different exercise styles, from yoga to HIIT to Pilates to rowing. But looking back, I can honestly say I've never been totally blown away by an experience. I've enjoyed plenty of workouts, of course, and I've had varying degrees of results depending on the style and the intensity, but they've all been relatively predictable and I've always been pretty sure of what the actual class was going to be like. Not so with EMS training.

EMS, or electrical muscle stimulation, is exactly what it sounds like: extra stimulation of your muscles to make your workouts more effective. The technology was originally used in physical therapy to help build back muscle strength after an injury or atrophy. Now, the EMS suits -- literally a full-body suit full of electrodes that you wear while exercising -- are being used to enhance workout.

The claim of EMS is pretty lofty, namely that a 20-minute workout is equivalent to two hours in the gym. "There is no other workout where you can focus on your arms, but simultaneously also have every other large muscle group working and completely activated," says Anna Herrin, a model, trainer, and co-owner of The Studio EMS in Los Angeles. "EMS contracts up to 90 percent of muscle fibers and can help your body do up to 85 contractions per second."

I decided to join the ranks of EMS-devotees Usain Bolt and Victoria Secret models Elsa Hosk and Alessandra Ambrosio and try the EMS workout for myself. Over the course of a month, I did eight 20-minute sessions (twice per week). Keep reading to learn about my EMS experience and my results.

EMS delivers electrical impulses to targeted muscle groups, stimulating the deep muscle fibers which are often hard to engage during regular exercise. According to Herrin, pairing these muscle contractions with movement makes for a very efficient workout, usually in just 20 minutes.

EMS is meant to target almost all of the major muscle groups in your body: inner thighs, hamstrings, abs, low back, mid-back, shoulders, chest, glutes, and arms. You can also turn off specific areas of the suit to just focus on the muscle groups you want to target. "With EMS, you're working your whole body for the entirety of the 20-minute session," says Herrin. Because the EMS suit is bypassing your brain and contracting your muscles for you, you have no other option but to keep your muscles fully engaged for the entire workout, she adds.

While most of the existing research behind EMS is generally positive, many of the studies were done on small groups -- there isn't much high-quality, large-scale research out there. Meaning, more evidence is needed before we can say for sure how effective it is or what the long-term risks are.

A 2016 study found that people who did a six-week squat program using EMS had greater strength improvements over those who didn't use EMS; another study from 2021 showed that the set of women who did low-intensity resistance exercises three times a week for six weeks using the EMS suit had a significantly more improved body circumference and cardiovascular function than those who didn't use EMS. Other recent studies have shown that EMS has positive effects on full-body toning, building bone density, reducing belly fat, and alleviating back pain.

Other studies, though, like this 2019 review of e-stim research, just say it has minimal effect. It's interesting to note that most of the studies that show minimal effects were conducted on men, which may indicate that EMS is more effective for women. TBD.

Let me preface this by saying that I mostly do yoga, with the occasional barre or Pilates class thrown in. I don't do a ton of cardio or weight lifting, and I had knee surgery in my 20s so I don't do any HIIT training. I'm pretty fit, but not all that used to weight training -- and EMS definitely humbled me.

With The Studio EMS, a trainer came to my house for each session. Most EMS trainers do in-home visits, but you may be able to find a gym that also offers the program. In order for the electrodes on the suit to activate, you have to wear activewear made from either cotton or tencel -- other fabrics can disrupt the electronic stimulation. I got my shirt and capri set ($50) directly from The Studio EMS, but your trainer may also have a base layer that they prefer.

Before actually getting into the suit, it has to be pretty thoroughly drenched in water, which acts as a conductor from the electrodes to the muscles for a consistent electrical flow. So yes, you're going to be wet during the workout, but it's honestly not all that noticeable since you immediately begin sweating (or, at least I did).