Compex Editor

Today's tip is all about how to use your Compex Training Recovery Program

The Compex lineup offers the best of training and recovery to athletes and gym rats and with the newest options of the TENS add-on, users can treat pain, too. Whether injury is acute or chronic, the use of of a TENS device can help to inhibit the experience of pain by targeting the sensory nervous system. With new knee and back wraps from Compex, pain management is even easier for common target areas by combining compression, heat TENS, and NMES all in one simple package!

Compex Wraps

With the new Compex wraps, targeting bodily pain becomes easier and puts treatment into the hands of individuals. With specially designed wraps for both the low back and knee, users that suffer from injuries to these common areas can seek relief. The anatomical fit of the Compex wraps maximizes the efficiency of the TENS device and eliminates the need for electrodes while also providing compression. No cords and sticky pads to worry about! These wraps also have two levels of heat control to increase blood flow to the affected area. The wireless device fitted to the Compex wraps feature an easy-to-use touch screen to choose the program, intensity level, and control heat functions. Portable and lightweight, it’s an easy add-in to your gym bag or travel pack when on the go!

What’s the Difference? TENS vs NMES

Though both TENS and NMES may appear similar, the use of either device serve very different purposes. An NMES device targets muscle fibers, exciting muscle tissue much like regular exercise would. This stimulation allows muscle growth and can aid in recovery from training by bringing blood flow back to sore or damaged tissue. On the other hand, a TENS device targets the sensory nerves, inhibiting the reception of the “pain signal” to the brain. This function “tricks” the mind into ignoring pain for a period of time and is also believed to release endorphins that further aid in shutting off pain. Sufferers of bulging discs or even arthritis often benefit greatly from the use of TENS.

More effective and usable than ever, Compex’s most recent expanses offer considerable benefit to both training, recovery and re-cooperation. Gone are the days of relying solely on therapists for relieving pain and treating injury - it can happen right from your gym bag, right where you are!

Today's tip is all about understanding how to use the Endurance Programs on your Compex device.

LeBron James wishes good luck to Compex athletes (Camille LeBlanc Bazinet, Josh Bridges, and Mike Mancias) at the CrossFit Games

Last week, Compex announced an exciting partnership with CrossFit and the CrossFit Games. This is a great opportunity for the CrossFit community to experience the benefits of training and recovering with Compex, a muscle stimulator.

Read the full press release here: Compex and CrossFit Partner Together

Tune in for the live announcement with the 15.4 CrossFit Open airing on the CrossFit website on March 19 at 5pm Pacific.

Follow our athletes on their CrossFit journeys on Twitter & Instagram

Camille LeBlanc Bazinet | Twitter | Instagram

Josh Bridges | Twitter | Instagram

Mike Mancias | Twitter | Instagram

LeBron James | Twitter | Instagram

Follow Compex to gets updates on our athletes and learn more about our muscle stimulators
Compex USA | Twitter | Instagram

We caught up with Compex triathlete Josh Amberger to talk about his favorite Compex program he uses and how he incorporates it into his weekly workout routine. Here's what Josh had to say:

I love the strength mode on my Compex and I use it twice weekly to compliment my strength sessions on the bike. We can only stress the heart and lungs to a certain point before fatigue, but I find I can use the Compex in strength mode to get a little bit more from the muscles without stressing the heart and lungs beyond the bike ride. Once I get in the door from a key bike ride, I prepare a meal and then sit down to eat whilst dialing the Compex into a strength program. The strength program has different levels of operation, which I can adjust depending on how hard and low I pushed on the bike, what training I have tomorrow, and how far away from a key event I am. It's the perfect mode for going one step further in my training.

Connect with Josh and follow him on Facebook.com/Josh.Amberger and Twitter.com/JoshAmberger

To learn more about the different Compex units and which electric muscle simulator device is right for you, check out our product comparison page. There we talk about the differences and benefits to using the Comepx Edge, Performance US and our Sport Elite unit. ShopCompex.com/Muscle-Stimulators

Compex athlete Jordan Rapp. Photo Courtesy of: Eric Wynn

IRONMAN Arizona is one of the most popular triathlon events in the world because the spectator friendly non-ocean swim, atypical flat and fast bike route and its relatively flat running course. Compex athletes Jordan Rapp, Timothy O'Donnell, Amanda Stevens, Mike Zafirovski, and Neily Mathias competed this year under unusually adverse conditions ranging from cold temps to high winds on each leg of the race. Learn more about how Compex athletes Jordan Rapp and Timothy O'Donnell incorporated Compex into their post-race recovery programs after IRONMAN Arizona.

Congratulations to all Compex athletes:

3rd Place:  Jordan Rappor
5th Place: Timmothy O'Donnell
5th Place: Amanda Stevens
10th Place: Mike Zafirovski
21st Place:  Neels Mathias

Compex triathlete Jordan Rapp, who placed 3rd,  talks about his IRONMAN Arizona post-race recovery and how he incorporated Compex into this recovery plan:

"Post race, I typically wait to see how the body sorts out for a few days. In the immediate aftermath, everything hurts. If there's long travel involved (not the case in this race), then I'd use the Recovery Plus or massage settings on a very low current just to keep the muscles moving my legs on the plane ride. I thought of this after racing IMMEL in 2013, and sitting on that 16 hour plane ride after the race and just locking up, I thought, "I have to figure out how to do this differently." And that's when I started experimenting, and the Compex is so easy in that regard. But since I fly to Tempe and it's just an hour flight, there's a lot of walking - too much! - at the airport and such and so I don't worry as much about keeping the muscles moving. This race is also different because as the last race of the season, I'm less worried about bouncing back as quickly as possible. I try to mentally unwind as well and just sort of let things flow. I take this approach with vitamins and stuff as well. I just sort of step back away from being an athlete for a couple weeks at the end of the season.

Compex athlete Jordan Rapp. Photo Courtesy of: Kerry Yndestad

But I'm very keen to get back into swimming, since I find that is a great way to stay active, recover fast, and continue to work on my biggest weakness. So I'll probably start to getting back into swimming before the end of the week. For swimming, I personally have found the Compex to be great for obliques. All the rib muscles take a beating with the various demands and super long day of an Ironman, but I seem to have particular trouble with some of my obliques. So again, I'd start with using that to get those firing. Some light massage, recovery plus, and then maybe some potentiation before I swim. Mid-season, I'd probably focus more on doing something with my legs, especially in the peroneals and anterior tibialis to get my toes and sub-talar joint control working again. But since I'll take at least a week off of running and cycling, I'll just wait to use the Compex as normal and as needed once I start back up there.

I'm sure that as I unwind from the race, sore spots will crop up - like in my neck from lugging the bike box and suitcase on a beat-up body - and I can just get some relief with massage or recovery plus modes, again with super low current.

And, at least for this time of year, it's also good to use the Compex to get your abdominals working after you stretch your gut out to 5X its normal size at Thanksgiving!"

Compex athlete Jordan Rapp. Photo Courtesy of: Kerry Yndestad

Compex triathlete Timothy O'Donnell, who placed 5th, talks about how he speeds up his post-race IRONMAN Arizona recovery with the Compex Active Recovery program.

"Recovering from an Ironman is never quick or easy, especially IM Arizona where the concrete run course take a huge toll on your legs.  I rely heavily on my Compex post to get me moving and speed up my recovery.  The active recovery program is my go to for my calves and to increase blood flow across my IT band and quads I rely on Recovery Plus Program. Thanks Compex!"

About Compex:

Compex is the Neuromuscular Electrical Muscle Stimulation (NMES) device of choice for athletes, coaches and trainers around the world.  Pioneering electrotherapy techniques through extensive research and innovation spanning the last three decades, Compex’s flagship “Muscle Stim” devices are used to improve physical performance, speed recovery in preparation for the next performance, and for rehabilitating the muscle for peak performance.

Compex enables athletes to safely customize their training, exercise more muscle fibers in less time, and recover faster. The result is a more efficient workout with less risk of injury and virtually no cardiovascular fatigue.  Learn more at www.ShopCompex.com

Compex, the leader in electrical muscle stimulation devices, is proud to announce that its sponsored athlete and UFC fighter Chad Mendes will be competing for the World Featherweight Championship in UFC179 against Jose Aldo Jr. in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on October 25.

The fight will play host to a rematch in which Aldo won by knockout in 2012 during UFC142. At the end of UFC142, a controversial foul came along with Aldo’s victory. Aldo visibly grabbed the fence to stop Mendes from taking him down before launching a knee strike to the head to win the fight. Without a doubt, Mendes will be out for redemption and revenge – not to mention blood – during this week’s fight. Since losing to Aldo in 2012, Mendes has changed and enhanced his fighting style and won four of five fights by knockout or TKO. If Mendes wins the title fight, he will join his teammate T.J. Dillashaw from their Sacramento camp, Team Alpha Male, as champions in their respective weight classes.

In preparation for his fights, Mendes integrates Compex muscle stimulators into his rigorous training regimen. Through electrical stimulation of the muscles, Compex maximizes the benefits of warmup, strength, endurance and recovery programs, ultimately leading to greater performance gains for high level athletes.

“Chad has been training overtime to ready himself for his upcoming bout,” said Compex Coach Jim Bruskewitz. “Now it’s time to polish up his training. Compex puts that last critical piece of his preparation in place by ramping up the rate at which he recovers in the days leading up to the big event.”

Compex Recovery programs are run multiple times daily during an athlete’s taper period. The result is 4.5 times the blood flow to working muscles to flush out the hard work and repair the muscle from all the work they have done. The production of endorphins from these programs will leave them feeling light and quick. The massage portion of the programs will relax their muscles and revive them.

Mendes is serious about using Compex. He has posted multiple photos on his Instagram and Twitter accounts about using Compex for warm-up prior to  training and then for recovery in between and after workouts. Here’s what he had to say:

“Just finished a hard morning prac now got my @compexcoach hooked up for a lil shoulder recovery before my next prac at 2:30…”

“Lil sat am recovery and TV in bed. @compexcoach,”

“… This baby's a life saver! @compexcoach”

Stay updated on Mendes’ workouts, recovery tips, and upcoming fights by following him on Twitter and Instagram @ChadMendes. And follow the #UFC 179 hashtag to stay in the conversation.

Mendes, who hails from Hanford, CA and fights out of Sacramento, has a 16-1-0 record and almost 60 percent takedown accuracy, which is about 20 percent higher than the average. He has a long and renowned career in wrestling, extreme cage fighting and is being trained by Coach Duane “Bang” Ludwig. Many are predicting Mendes to win by TKO in Round 3.

Learn more about Mendes’ upcoming fight with this UFC’s Countdown video which takes you behind the scenes before UFC 179:

Compex, the leader in electric muscle stimulation devices, is proud to announce that its sponsored athlete, Mirinda “Rinny” Carfrae, 33, has won the 2014 Ironman World Championship title in Kailua Kona, Hawaii. On October 11, more than 2,100 high performance athletes began the grueling course, which consists of a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike ride and 26.2 mile marathon run. The Ironman World Championship in Kona is known to be the most physically demanding, single day sporting event and the choppy water conditions, extremely windy bike ride, and hot and humid run made for an even more arduous experience.

Carfrae, an Australian native known for her exceptional marathon times, blew past Switzerland’s Daniela Ryf four miles before the finish line winning her second straight and third overall world title. During the 2013 Ironman World Championship, Carfrae set the women’s record for the run portion at 2:50:38. This year, she finished the 140 mile race in 9:00:55, with a 2:50:26 marathon time, making her the fourth woman in history to have won the Ironman Hawaii three times or more. She joins Paula Newby-Fraser, Natascha Badmann and Chrissie Wellington in this highly elite group.

Rinny says that crossing the finish line in Kona and defending her 2013 title was a dream. “When I started the run, I knew I had to dig and hope for the best,” she says. “I am so thrilled about the day and how it ultimately unfolded. Now it’s time to celebrate and recover!” In addition to celebrating her victory in Kona, she says she’ll be using her Compex muscle stimulator as she travels home.

Carfrae has competed in the Ironman six times and has received podium positions each time (with three gold, two silver and one bronze medal). She began competing at the age of 19 and has since dominated in marathon and half Ironman competitions.

The world’s hardest endurance test, the Ironman World Championship, starts this month in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. On October 11, more than 2,000 high-performance athletes will test their limits during the 140.6-mile journey under the scorching sun and among the beauty that is Kona. We’re happy to announce that four Compex sponsored athletes will be racing in the Ironman: Mirinda Carfrae, Timothy O’Donnell, TJ Tollakson and Dr. Amanda Stevens.

We had some time to chat with 2006 Ironman World Champion, Michellie Jones, about her racing history and how Compex has helped her along the way to Ironman victory. As a professional athlete for more than 25 years, Michellie has found longevity and strength in career because she’s a firm believer in investing in yourself and spending ample time in rest and recovery.

Taking Rest and Recovery Seriously

Michellie has been a Compex believer and user since 1995 and says the electro muscle stimulation doesn’t take away from training, but rather enhances it. “It’s not all about taking care of yourself in terms of diet and training for an Ironman,” she says. “But you always have to take rest and recovery very seriously.”

Using Compex is simple and easy and you can do it while watching TV or sitting at a desk, “The strength program is brilliant because the machine is producing energy, not your body,” she says. Michellie uses Compex before, during and after training. For instance, she’ll start her mornings with the pre-warm up setting to get her blood circulating before a workout. After an interval training workout, she’ll use Compex again to speed up recovery and flush lactic acid.

Benefits of using Compex as an Endurance Athlete

If you’re using Compex because you’re a professional sports player, endurance athlete, or just the average person, you already know how much Compex has changed the way you perform and recover. Michellie believes endurance athletes can benefit from Compex because it enhances your recovery at all levels.

“After using Compex during recovery, you’ll be able to reach a consistent, high level of training on your next workout,” she says. “The removal of lactic acid speeds up recovery and the increase of blood flow enhances recovery. Compex is an amazing, cool, portable device and it should always be in your training bag.”

Training for a demanding athlete feat can leave you feeling uneasy or anxious and Compex helps to enhance your mood by stimulating your endorphins. Michellie uses the Recovery Plus mode often to flush muscles and feels much better after use. “It’s amazing how good you feel.”

Using Compex during Training

When Michellie was using Compex while training for Ironman, she would start her regimen six weeks before the race. One day she would use the Compex strength program on her abs, or her quads, or any other areas of her body that needed extra stimulation.

“The majority of athletes have used a TENS unit during rehab or a chiropractor appointment for pain relief,” she says. “Compex is so much more complex than a TENS device. Muscles are contracted and depending on the Compex mode, the muscle is held for varying amounts of time depending on the program purpose. The Strength mode feels completely different from the Recovery Plus mode. For the Strength modes you are not restricted by range of motion so your Compex device can activate the entire length of the muscle.”

Michellie also says that one of the hardest parts of training for an Ironman is actually getting to the start line injury-free. Training can be grueling and you want to be in the best possible shape. “It doesn’t matter if you’re a pro or what age group you’re in,” she says. “Recovery is part of your training for an Ironman and is part of the whole picture.” While everyone has a slightly different journey to Ironman, the finish line is everyone’s goal.

Using Compex Daily

Like most endurance athletes, Michellie works out frequently at about six to seven times a week. She recommends using the device as often as every day to keep blood flowing and circulating.

“I’m getting on a long flight tonight and plan on using Compex on the plane to keep my blood circulating,” she says. “There are so many things you can do with it and it’s not just for use with an injury. It will benefit you even if you don’t work out.”

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Good luck to our Compex Ironman athletes and to all of the Ironman Kona participants!