Are resistance bands good for home workout?

Nowadays, medical experts are continuously recommending strength training to improve physical and mental health. But with a hectic work and travel schedule, it is not always possible to attend the gym regularly. Going to the gym often seems like a huge time sink, so lots of people skip the gym. However, a simple search for home workout equipment and exercise regimes can work for them, no matter where they were, no matter how busy their schedule is. And the application of the recommendations can help prevent a broad array of medical conditions like osteoporosis prevention, arthritis relief, cardiovascular benefits, insulin metabolism, injury prevention, sleep benefits, mood enhancement, increased stamina, weight loss, and an overall slowing of the aging process.

Resistance bands take up so little space at home

Strength training may include weight training and other weight-bearing exercises, involving working with resistance machines and free weights (dumbbells). However, we recommend using the body’s weight, for example, push-ups, body-weight squats, and chin-ups. Also, resistance bands are the best home workout equipment to use. Because they take up so little space at home (your living room is for living not to accommodate huge pieces of exercise equipment) and are portable enough to just pop in your bag and take to work, on a business trip, or vacation. Resistance bands are ideal for working on small muscle groups as smaller muscle groups are harder to train with traditional exercise equipment. Resistance bands are flexible so increasingly recommended by physical therapists to recover from surgery or any injury.

Elastic bands to help you in building strength

Resistance bands are just what they look like: large elastic bands to help you in building strength. And can be used for a variety of exercises are safe, inexpensive, and easy to use, so are fast becoming a popular addition to the home workout routine. 

Resistance bands are the best home workout equipment available, as buying them will mean you will not have to invest money in more expensive cumbersome fitness equipment. These bands are color-coded based on tension level and are the indicators of variable resistance. You can purchase a set of resistance bands instead of purchasing individual bands, and our guide will help you tailor your workouts to your fitness levels.

Trainers and fitness experts alike favor resistance bands 

Athletic trainers and fitness experts alike favor resistance bands, especially for the travel workout, and many professional travelers are following the example to avoid interruptions to their healthy lifestyle. Traveling means a lot of time sitting around, and the road warrior workout kit will help you in utilizing your time and better managing your workout life. Traveling does not exactly equate to traveling in comfort. Waiting for planes, sitting in meetings, sitting on a plane, or restaurant all negates the good work you do to keep in shape. Also, your back takes the strain from lugging your laptop and accessories. You can save yourself with the road warrior workout where you will find your body maintains shape, and you maintain a more relaxed outlook.

Resistance band training session at home

If you do a resistance band training session at home, it is easy to forget to include a few stretches first to warm the muscles up and get them ready for exercise. It is easy to think that resistance band training is not as serious as lifting heavy weights, but it not a good practice to skip the warm-up.

Why Stretch Muscles Before a Resistance Band Routine?

Stretching warms and loosens the muscles to prepare them for exercise. One of the most common causes of athletic injury is a failure to warm up muscles resulting in torn muscles and even torn ligaments, which are harder to repair and sometimes require surgery. Some easy movements like swinging your arms, stretching arms overhead, jogging lightly in place, and side to side movements of the core area will get some of your muscles loosened up. Then begin a disciplined warm-up that stretches large muscle groups, paying particular attention to arms, legs, and core. Hold each stretch for 8 to 10 seconds and then release.

Simple Stretches For a Resistance Band Workout

Arm warm-ups: Interlace your fingers and push both arms out in front of you with palms facing you, hold, then switch so palms are facing outwards and hold. Then lift your arms overhead, clasp your elbows, hold and then release.

Leg warm-ups: Do walking lunges, holding each lunge for a few seconds. With one foot in front of the other, your front foot should be flat on the ground, knee bent at a right angle over your ankle. Your back heel should be raised, with the leg straight. You should feel the stretch in your gluteal muscles, your front quadriceps, your back leg hamstring, and your calf muscles.

Core warm-up: Stand with legs apart, feet firmly planted, and facing forward. Soften the knees. Bend at the waist with hands down on the floor in front of you. Plant the right hand on the floor, raise the left hand to point to the ceiling, and twist at the waist. Hold. Then lower slowly and switch sides.

Resistance bands give you more of a workout than you might think. It’s not smart to underestimate the power of these thin, rubbery cords, so learn the basics of stretching and allow a couple of minutes before and after your resistance band workout to nurture your muscles with a few warm-up and cool-down stretches.

Strength training doesn’t automatically imply heavyweights

When people talk about strength training, most of us automatically invoke images in our minds of muscle-bound men with ripped bodies lifting twice their body weight above their heads. But strength training doesn’t have to imply heavyweights. Resistance bands are a great way to introduce strength training into your routine. Not only that, but they are safer and easier to use than weights and more accessible to a greater number of people.

Health Benefits of Strength Training

The body has over 650 muscles, and most of us only use a few of those each day. If you don’t use your muscles, they get weaker and become ineffective at supporting the body’s primary movements. That’s why the elderly have trouble walking or lifting everyday objects. Everyone can benefit from strength training. It helps to improve bone density. Important for fighting osteoporosis (which, by the way, affects men as well as women). Weight training helps to develop muscle mass and reduce stores of fat in the body. 

Boosts your metabolism

In turn, boost your metabolism, improves the way your body processes foods, reduces your blood pressure, and helps you look younger physically, and stay agile as you grow older. Looking better will boost your self-confidence, but strength training will itself help to energize you and increase your potential for maintaining a positive attitude. It boosts your immune system and makes it harder for you to catch a cold or come down with the flu. If you suffer from back pain, or if you have trouble walking, weight training is a low impact way to tone muscles in the lower and middle back where backache often begins – but make sure to check with your doctor first to find out if anything else is wrong.

How Resistance Bands Help with Strength Training

The easiest way to convince yourself that resistance bands help with strength training is by doing a couple of exercises with one. Basic resistance band exercise involved stepping in the middle of the exercise band squarely, so it runs underneath both feet. Now hold a handle in each hand and pull up as you would if you were doing bicep curls with a set of free weights. I guarantee you will feel the effect of this exercise right away. By the way, keep your back straight, so you don’t put stress on the back. If it’s too easy and you are not feeling the resistance, move your feet further apart to shorten the length and increase the resistance on the band.

Suitable for everyone, whether you are young, old, or somewhere in between

Weight training with resistance bands is suitable for everyone, whether you are young, old, or somewhere in between. What’s more, if you are a little advanced in years or still recovering from an injury, you don’t have the common danger associated with weight training of inadvertently dropping a weight on your foot or your chest. All in all, resistance band strength training is a simple, cost-effective way to counteract the natural aging process.