When it comes to strength training, most of us stick to the usual free weights and machines. What you don't see a lot of is work with resistance bands or tubing.
For times when you can't make it to the gym or you are travelling, resistance tubing and bands offer an inexpensive and portable way to get a full-body strength-training workout at home or on the road.
The simple design of tubing contributes to its usefulness. There are no complicated instructions or tools required before exercising.
The resistance feels different.
When you use free weights, gravity decides where the weight comes from, so you get more resistance during one part of the movement (such as the upswing of a bicep curl) than the other (the downswing). With bands, the tension is constant, which makes it feel harder.
Resistance bands vs machines or dumbbells.
With weights, you know exactly how much you're lifting. With bands, you can only go by how it feels and the tension on the band.
That doesn't mean you're not getting a good workout, though. If you use good form and the right level of tension, your muscle fibres won't know the difference between weights or bands. Plus, bands offer more variety because you can create the resistance from all directions--the side, overhead, below, etc.
How to Choose Resistance Bands
Resistance bands have a colour coded levels of resistance. Yellow being thinnest and has the least resistance. Red has medium resistance and is the most popular one you'll see in gyms. The green, blue and gold bands have the most resistance.
How to Choose Resistance Tube
Most resistance tubes are number coded. Like level one would have the least resistance and two being medium Level, three has the most resistance.
Certain manufacturers also sell them in a variety of colours, which indicate differences in tension. For instance, yellow tubes are light tension whereas black tubes are heavier tension.
Why You Should Try Resistance Bands
They travel well. You can easily pack them in your suitcase for travel and do exercises in the car or in your hotel room.
They increase coordination. Because there's tension throughout the exercises, you have to stabilize your body. This helps with coordination, balance and it also helps you involve more muscle groups.
They add variety. With weights, you're often limited as to how many exercises you can do. But, the resistance band allows you to change your positioning in multiple ways. This changes how your body works and how an exercise feels.
They're cheap. This is nice for the budget-conscious exerciser.
They're great for all fitness levels. Depending on how you use them, bands can be great for beginners as well as more advanced exercisers. You can use them for basic moves or to add intensity to traditional moves.
People with all types of fitness goals could benefit by at least supplementing a couple of exercises using resistance tubes. They allow people to progress at a much smoother.
When it comes to fitness it's always important what you do, but it's even more important how you actually do it.
Y. Ramakrishna is a Sports Performance Enhancement Specialist at FitnessOne.
Basic exercises
Chest Press.Wrap the band around a sturdy object behind you and hold handles in each hand, beginning the move with elbows bent and arms parallel to the ground. Squeeze the chest and press the arms out without locking elbows.
Seated Row. Wrap the band around a sturdy object in front of you, arms extended and palms face each other. Squeeze the back to pull the elbows in just a bit past the torso, keeping them close to the body.
Bicep Curls.For the bicep curl, you can stand on the band with both feet (harder) or with one foot (easier). Hold the handles in each hand and curl up in a bicep curl, just as you would with dumbbells. You can make this move harder by stepping the feet wide.
Squats. For squats, stand on the band and you can hold the handles up towards the shoulders (elbows bent) to create more tension or above hip for lesser tension.
