Home Gyms: Resistance Bands Complete the Home Gym

Resistance Bands Complete the Home Gym - Here is Why

Home Gyms:

There are plenty of benefits to working out at home. The convenience of being able to out on your terms and turf goes a long way -- wear what you want (or wear nothing at all), listing or watch whatever you want without having to worry about someone complaining to the manager. But the largest set back to working out at home is the amount of money you will have to put to properly equip your home facility. Of course, there are ways around this, but you will still want to make sure you have the right tools.
For home-gym beginners and veterans alike, one of the necessary weapons in your home-gym arsenal must include core-strength training equipment. Most people immediately think of the balance/exercise/Swiss ball. While this piece of equipment certainly has its merits, core is by no means all-inclusive. With core training becoming more and more vital to proper weight loss and fitness workouts, home-gym afficionados would be wise to invest in body bands which enhances strength in other areas.
Almost all bands on the market (bands are also known as tubing) allow different resistance levels. With the most common types of bands, however, several sets are recommended so that different resistance types can be had. Usually, resistance levels are dictated by different colors depending on the brand, but the true reasons resistance levels exist is that the bands' tubing come in varying degrees of thickness. Sill, it would be wise to invest in several sets so that you have more than one resistance level around, otherwise the bands will join the dusty exercise ball.
Luckily, some of the more advanced brands of band allow multiple bands on a single handle. You can accomplish this by clipping additional bands to the handle and thereby increase the resistance level (e.g. add a 7lb to your existing 5lb band). This alone doesn't eliminate or reduce the cost, it does allow for consistence with the handle, but this might be a personal preference more than anything else.
When weighing resistance bands against free weights, consideration should be given to the joint pain that free weights cause. Since momentum doesn't exist with bands they way it does with free weights (it is this momentum that leads to injuries), the bands provide a safer alternative. In fact, as the elastic tubing stretches, the resistance increases and this also helps to reduce injury.
When evaluating bands to bow machines like the Bowflex, consider that elastic resistance is more direct than bow resistance. Should this influence a decision? Probably not, but for the same reasons a bodybuilder might prefer free weights over Nautilus-style machines, most prefer elastic over bow. This may be nothing more than superstition or personal opinion, but the one thing the bow machines share with conventional exercise machines is that they both rely on fly wheels and pulley systems. Purists believe that this prevents a direct workout. So, as some would prefer free weights over machines, some would prefer bands over bow machines.
A third and final comparison can be drawn to gravity workouts and systems. While gravity provides great resistance whether with pull-ups, sit-ups, etc., the weight is consistent. In other words, your body weight does not change throughout your set and you will be pushing or pulling the same weight regardless of your range. With bands, the more the tubing stretches, the more the resistance increases. This means that your muscle encounters greater resistance at its weakest point; when it is fully stretched. As a result, with bands you can improve strength and build more muscle.
At FitChimp.com, we endorse the Bodylastics systems. Their packages start as low as $45.95, which includes four bands and is good for up to 44 lbs per side. Their most-expensive package will run you $99.81 and includes two pairs of handles, seven bands and is good for 127 lbs per side. This is a great package if you don't want to share your handles with a partner.