In these financial times, many people are looking for less expensive ways to workout. Unfortunately, people have been giving up their gym memberships and personal trainers to reduce spending. But those of us in the fitness industry do not want you to give up your commitment to exercise.
A nice way to continue your exercise regimen or introduce your body to exercise is with resistance bands or tubing.
Resistance bands were typically used in a physical therapy or rehabilitation setting, but have now come mainstream. Bands are convenient if you travel often and are looking for an inexpensive way to get started on a fitness regime. Tubing is a great way to learn resistance training because it allows the body to focus on both the beginning phase of the exercise and the ending phase of the exercise which are consecutively referred to as the concentric and eccentric movements. This is different from using a traditional free weight because gravity decides where the weight comes from, and so you get more resistance during the concentric movement than the eccentric. With bands, the tension is constant, which makes it feel harder.
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. You can do similar exercises with bands that you can do on a cable machine in a gym or at home based piece of cable equipment, without the cost. Bands also offer more variety because you can create the resistance from all directions, the side, overhead, below, and in front. Because there's tension throughout the exercises, you have to stabilize your body. This adds a functional component to the exercise assisting with coordination and balance. With weights, you're often limited as to how many exercises you can do and are not involving as many muscle groups as you can with bands. I like to implement both bands and weights when training my clients, for that reason. Resistance bands allow you to change your positioning in multiple ways which in turn changes how your body works and how an exercise feels.
The placement of the band will often be determined by the exercise you’re doing. Keep in mind that you can perform the same exercises as you do with free weights, the difference lies in positioning the band. For example, you can stand on the band and grip the handles for bicep curls or overhead presses. You can attach it to a door and do lat pulldowns or tricep pushdowns. You can wrap the band around a pole for chest exercises or shoulder rotations. The possibilities are endless, but the number one goal is safety while using the band.
I suggest using a resistance band with handles. This will make workouts a lot easier and safer. Also, tubing will need to be checked for knicks and cuts after using it for a while. The bands can break down and become stretched out due to overuse and weather conditions. Tubing typically retails for about six to twenty dollars and can be found at a fitness store, sporting goods store and some department stores.
You can also progress the exercises by changing the level of resistance of the band. Most band manufacturers make several levels of resistance bands which coincide with the thickness of the tube. Each level of resistance is designated by a different color. The colors are not standardized from manufacturer to manufacturer. As a general guideline the lighter colors are lighter resistance and the darker colors are heavier resistance.
Joanne Sgro is Television Fitness Expert, Certified Personal Trainer and Sport Nutritionist. She is Certified in Pilates, Pre-natal/Post-Partum, Yoga and Senior Fitness. She specializes in Weight Loss, Post-Rehab and Post Cancer Training. Joanne's fitness plans and recipes are available globally on her website www.fitnessanswer.com. She resides in the Phoenix, AZ area with her fiancé, where she runs her personal training business, Fitness Answer, LLC.