It's hard to beat the gym for access to every type of fitness equipment your heart desires, from elliptical trainers to free weights and machines. If you're looking for a compact, portable and affordable alternative, strength training with resistance bands is a viable option. After all, you can't take all that equipment with you when you travel and it probably won't fit into your house. Resistance bands, on the other hand, are lightweight and easy to move around.
There's a lot to love about doing your strength training with resistance bands: They're so small and light that you can take them along when you travel and store them in a drawer at home. They're also much more affordable than buying your own weight machines — if you're ordering online, you can have them shipped to you without paying an arm and a leg (as opposed to dumbbells, barbells or kettlebells).
With that said, elastic resistance bands do have some definite limitations. One of the biggest is the amount of resistance they provide. Even the heaviest bands won't compare to the amount of resistance you can get from big dumbbells, barbells or kettlebells.
If you're a serious lifter, resistance bands alone might not challenge you enough to progress. And while you can mimic almost any dumbbell and some barbell exercises with elastic resistance bands, you generally can't use them to mimic power lifts or kettlebell moves. However, few pieces of exercise equipment are as beginner-friendly as elastic resistance bands.
Elastic resistance bands can last through a lot, but they will eventually break down. Always inspect your them before every use and retire them if there are any signs of cracking, breakage or obvious fading — which could lead to a surprising (at best) or injurious (at worst) break.
If you're just getting started with elastic resistance bands, here's your general plan: Aim to work all your major muscle groups at least twice a week, doing at least one or two sets of eight to 12 repetitions for each exercise. Give each muscle group at least one full day to rest before you work it again.
Move 1: Elastic Band Pulldowns
Elastic band pulldowns work all the major pulling muscles of your back and arms.
Move 2: Seated Rows
You can also use your elastic resistance bands to do seated rows, which also work the pulling muscles in your back and arms.
Move 1: Resistance Band Chest Press
To work the major pushing muscles in your chest, triceps and shoulders, consider using your resistance bands to mimic the motion of a chest press:
Move 2: Resistance Band Push-Ups
If your chest, triceps and shoulders are already strong, take on the challenge of adding a resistance band to push-ups:
Move 1: Resistance-Band Squats
Squats are almost perfect as a lower-body exercise. If you're just starting out, work on nailing squat form without any extra resistance. Once you're ready for a bigger challenge, it's time to add the resistance bands.
Move 2: Static Band Lunges
Not every lunge variation works well for elastic resistance bands, but static lunges can be effective, and they target every muscle in your lower body. That said, you should practice lunging form without resistance bands first, and only add the resistance bands once you're confident with your form and ready for the extra challenge.
As always when you're doing a one-sided exercise like this, remember to switch legs and do a full set on the other side, too.
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