Vita Master
The Vita Master was the jack-of-all-trades in the 1950s world of passive exercise. This all-in-one machine featured a vibrating belt, roller massager, and sometimes even heat pads. It looked more like a prop from a sci-fi movie than a fitness device. The belt jiggled your belly, the rollers thudded against your thighs, and if you were lucky, the heat pad gently toasted your lower back like a mechanical marshmallow.
Vita Masters were marketed toward housewives who wanted to stay trim without sweating off their makeup. They were the centerpiece of beauty salons and glamorous enough to be seen in department store catalogs. Unfortunately, no amount of jiggling, rolling, or roasting did much for actual weight loss. Medical experts eventually condemned it as ineffective at best and potentially harmful at worst. The Vita Master now stands as a relic of a time when fitness was sold with more flair than facts—and comfort was the name of the game, even if it meant looking ridiculous.
