But in much the same way you might mix barbells, dumbbells, and cables at the gym, you ideally want to mix up your training with resistance bands too. That all makes resistance bands a quality option for any workout. One tool (hint: not the dumbbell), however, is so tiny that you can easily fit it in your backpack for any and every road trip. But both tools can have a place in your training, and in the grand workout scheme, both tools can complement each other. You’ll have to squeeze your muscles extra-hard to fight banded resistance, a habit that will improve your dumbbell training, too.ĭoes that make bands better than dumbbells? No.

The stretched band is fighting you more, forcing you to accelerate through the entire range of motion and challenging your muscle fibers in a different way. Why Resistance Bands Workĭo the same curl with a resistance band and as you near the top, it doesn’t get easier instead, you have to work to earn the squeeze at the top of the curl. Resistance bands provide you with the ability to hit just about every muscle group in your body-if you're willing to work hard and get a little creative with your surroundings. Need resistance? Stand on your band to curl, press, or row it, or tether it to an anchor point ( just make sure it's safe and sturdy to avoid any mishaps) and you can perform all manner of pulls, extensions, and more. Using just your bodyweight and a band, you can load up essential movements like pushups and squats. But a resistance band's utility goes beyond just convenience and cost-effectiveness.įor one, bands are incredibly versatile. Sure, bands take up less space in your house and are no sweat to toss in a bag for on-the-go training, and even the hardiest band is bound to be much cheaper than the least expensive set of adjustable weights. The stretchy rubberized tools are more useful than just filling in for other, heavier gear like dumbbells, barbells, and kettlebells, after all. Now, you should consider ways to keep them in your routines permanently as you ease back in to more typical training protocols. Finally, bands got their due over the past year and a half, and became valuable as much for their utility as for their wide availability as supply chains made weights tougher to find. Resistance bands have gone from a little-considered afterthought in the gym to one of the most commonly used implements in the home and outdoor workouts that dominated fitness trends during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Pull the pin challenge 37 15 moves