Why We Love Training With Resistance Bands

Once upon a time, resistance bands were a tool primarily used for physiotherapy and injury rehab. How times have changed! Now it’s common to see people using them in gyms as part of their strength training workouts, and they’re one of the most popular pieces of equipment for any home or on-the-go gym set-up.

With Kelsey Wells’ PWR Bands program now available in the Sweat app, it’s no secret that we love training with resistance bands. They’re portable, affordable, easy to use and incredibly versatile, but with so much going for them, you might be wondering just how effective theyare.From their effectiveness to how you can make sure you’re getting the most out of your resistance band workouts, here’s your need-to-knows.

What types of resistance bands are there?

Resistance bands differ in terms of their thickness, shape, material, stretch and handles.

• Thickness: A resistance band can either be flat like fettuccine pasta or a small round tube like spaghetti.

• Shape: They can also be looped or unlooped (great for holding each end with your hands or standing on with your feet). Looped resistance bands can also differ dramatically in size, with the big loops designed for assisted pull-ups and the small loops (aka booty bands) designed to loop around your legs.

• Material: Although most resistance bands are made of rubber, you can also find many booty bands (the small looped ones) that are made of stretchy, thick fabric.

• Stretch: When shopping for a looped resistance band to go around your legs for example, you’ll find there are different levels of stretch or resistance - the more stretch in the band, the easier the workout.

• Handles: Most resistance bands don’t have handles, but you can also find some round tube, handled resistance bands.

Different bands are better for different exercises, which is why Kelsey’s PWR Bands program calls for three different bands to help you get the most out of your training - a small looped band or booty band, a large looped band, and an unlooped recovery band.

How do resistance bands work?

To build strength and muscle, you need to challenge your muscles with resistance training. This can be in the form of your own bodyweight (everyone knows a bodyweight pull-up ain’t easy), lifting free weights like dumbbells and barbells, using gym machines, or adding resistance bands.

With a resistance band, rather than working against the resistance of additional weights, you’re working against the tension of the band. The thicker the band or the more you stretch it, the more tension and force required from your muscles.

If you’re doing a resistance band workout and thinking, ummm this isn’t hard at all, then you’re probably using a band with too much stretch! Although resistance bands are easy to use, they can make for a seriously tough workout if you choose the right band.

Different bands for different exercises

No matter what selection of bands you have access to, there are plenty of resistance band exercises you can make a lot spicier by adding a band:

• Small looped bands are great for wrapping around your shins for crab walks, or move them up to your thighs for clam shells, glute bridges, squats or glute kickbacks. You can also use small looped bands alongside a barbell for an added challenge when performing exercises like hip thrusts and squats.

• We love long looped bands for working on pull-ups and chin-ups, or you can get creative and use them for squats (looping the band under both feet and around your shoulders) or donkey kicks (placing the band under both hands and around your kicking foot).

• Unlooped recovery bands are our go-to band for upper body exercises like banded pull-aparts, bicep curls and rows.

Are resistance bands effective for getting results?

While it depends on your fitness level and goals, resistance bands can be a great way to assist with building strength and muscle. They’re also an awesome tool for strengthening all the smaller stabiliser muscles that don’t always get such a workout when lifting heavy weights (so even if you love lifting, supplementing with resistance band workouts will benefit your other training!), as well as strengthening your mind-muscle connection and helping you master advanced exercises such as pull-ups and muscle ups.

To make improvements in your strength and muscle mass, the key ingredient is progressive overload, meaning you’re progressively challenging your muscles more and more over time. Sure, this can be easier to achieve with weights by simply lifting heavier, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible with resistance bands. Progressive overload has four components, so there’s a range of ways you can level things up!

• Intensity: Use bands with less stretch or stretching the band further than you usually do to challenge your muscles more

• Volume: Increase the number of reps or sets to fatigue your muscles more

• Frequency: Increase your number of weekly workouts

• Density: Reduce your rest periods

So, what does the research say when it comes to the effectiveness of this versatile piece of equipment? A 2019 systematic review looked at the effects of training with elastic resistance compared to conventional weight resistance such as machines and dumbbells, and the results suggest that, yes, bands can provide similar strength gains.

Research from 2017 published in The European Journal of Physiotherapy also explored the effectiveness of elastic resistance bands compared to conventional resistance training equipment, concluding that bands can be an effective training tool for many exercises such as rows, lat pulldowns and deadlifts.

And if changing your body composition is another one of your health and fitness goals, 2022 research has found resistance band workouts are also an effective option for improving body composition, reducing fat and increasing muscle mass.

Tips for training with resistance bands

• Before you start, make sure the band has no cracks or tears. You don’t want it snapping mid-workout!

• If you’re doing an exercise with your band looped around a bar or other object, make sure it’s stable and strong.

• If your exercise involves looping your foot into a band, take a second to make sure it’s in the right place - as funny as it sounds, the last thing you want is your foot slipping and the band flying towards your face.

• When performing any exercise with a band, move with control and make sure the band has tension in it at all times, rather than letting it go slack in between each rep or using momentum. This will keep your muscles under tension, fatigue them and work to build your strength much faster. If you’ve chosen a band so thick that you’re struggling to stretch it to achieve a full rep and are limiting your range of motion, switch to a band with more stretch.

• The last few reps should feel difficult, so choose a band that will be challenging, but make sure you can still complete the exercises with good form. If you need to switch to a different band after your first set, do it!

• Planning on doing several different exercises with a band? It can be good to have a few different bands varying in width and length.

• Try not to use momentum or big swinging motions - you’ll feel the burn when you move slowly.

• If you’re performing a banded lower body exercise such as clam shells or crab walks, it can help to place your hands on the muscle you want to engage to feel it squeezing with each rep.

Whether a resistance band is your only piece of equipment and you’re following Kelsey’s PWR Bands program, or it’s something you use to keep your routine interesting or add extra challenge to your strength training, it’s a great tool to have in your kit.

Perfect for any fitness level, portable and low-cost (and low injury risk, too), resistance bands are great for a challenging strength workout wherever you are.