I’m sure you’ve noticed fitness experts worldwide adding the use of resistance bands to their workout routines. But what makes the use of resistance bands so beneficial? Why are so many people using them to enhance their workouts? If you’ve asked yourself any of these questions, you’re in luck. Here, we’ll give you the top seven reasons you should use resistance bands in every workout.

What are resistance bands, and what do they do?

Before jumping into the benefits of using resistance bands, it is essential to know what they are and what they can do to elevate a workout.

The most common types of resistance bands are the flat, round ones, also known as strength or exercise bands. There are six different levels of resistance bands, with level one being the easiest to stretch. As you move up the levels, they become harder to stretch and provide more resistance.

Resistance bands are incredibly versatile and can aid in helping people meet several different types of fitness goals. They are great for

Improving Mobility – Fitness experts often recommend using bands to improve flexibility and joint mobility.

Weight Training – When it comes to weightlifting, athletes can make their workouts more challenging by wrapping resistance bands around the ends of a weight bar.

Strength Building – The resistance created from stretching the bands makes your muscles work harder to maintain control, making resistance bands perfect for strength training.

Rehabilitation – Resistance bands have become a valuable tool for physical therapists, especially with patients recovering from knee, hip, and shoulder injuries.

7 Benefits of Using Resistance Bands

It doesn’t matter if you’re a beginner or a seasoned pro when it comes to exercising. Resistance bands provide unlimited benefits for all fitness levels.

1. They are great for warm-ups and stretching.

Bands are often used during warm-ups to help loosen the muscles being used in the upcoming workout. For example, athletes use them for shoulder rotation exercises to warm up their chest and upper body. This particular use of resistance bands also improves shoulder stability. However, the use of resistance bands for warm-ups isn’t just for the upper body. Fitness experts recommend warming up with lateral monster walks with a resistance band around your feet before a glute and leg workout. If stretching is problematic from a lack of flexibility, then you may want to consider making resistance bands your newest best friend. For example, if you struggle with grabbing your heel during a hamstring stretch, you can wrap a resistance band around your foot to help you through the movement.

2. They help you keep control through the entire movement.

When lifting weights, especially free weights, it can be challenging to control the entire movement. When you implement resistance bands, they force you to maintain your control through the whole exercise because the goal is to gradually release the tension instead of just letting the band snap back into place. Doing so takes an incredible amount of concentration and discipline but will ultimately bring your workouts to the next level.

3. They promote better form and target stabilizing muscles.

Resistance bands help your form by making it almost impossible to use momentum to make it through an exercise. Maintaining tension throughout the activity forces you to focus and make sure each rep is a quality movement. When used the right way, resistance bands ensure your muscles are continuously working, which will ultimately help you meet your fitness goals sooner. By making it harder for you to maintain proper form, resistance bands target your stabilizing muscles. Stabilizing muscles are important because they protect joints and other tissues through shock-absorption, keeping your movements from jolting or jerking your body in the wrong ways.

4. They are incredibly beneficial for functional fitness training.

Functional fitness teaches your muscles to work together. It makes them stronger for everyday tasks by simulating common, daily movements—the versatility of resistance bands aids in this process by helping you develop more substantial motor control and coordination. Also, resistance bands offer more planes of resistance than free weights, which allows you to do a wider variety of exercises. Free weights only provide resistance on a vertical plane because they rely on gravity. On the other hand, bands do not rely on gravity for resistance, which allows them to be more beneficial in mimicking everyday movement patterns.

Additionally, the extra plane of movement offered by resistance bands is great for athletes because it enables them to practice sport-specific movements with added resistance.

5. They can help modify a workout to fit your fitness level.

Bands assist you in exercises you struggle with while also building your strength to do the movement independently. For instance, a lot of people struggle with completing a full pull-up.

Instead of squirming and fighting to complete a rep, you can tie a long loop resistance band to your pull-up bar and step into it. The band will assist you in fully controlling your movement by stretching as you lower yourself to the ground, then as you pull up, it recoils and helps in pushing you back up to the top of the bar.

On the opposite side of that spectrum, resistance bands also aid in intensifying a workout. For example, if you have limited weights or are looking to push yourself to the next level, you can use a long loop resistance band to make the activity more challenging. All you have to do is step onto the center of the band and loop the ends over two dumbbells. The extra resistance from the bands is sure to crank up the intensity of several different workouts, from deadlifts to chest flies.

6. They are safe to use, no matter what your fitness level is.

Lifting with weights can be extremely taxing on your muscles, ligaments, and tendons. With free weights, it’s also extremely easy to lose your form and forget to control the movement through its entirety. Resistance band training forces you to stay in control, protecting your ligaments and tendons in the long run. Also, when exercising with heavy barbells or free weights, you run the risk of your muscles giving out before you’ve safely completed a full rep, which could lead to severe injuries. You eliminate that risk when you work out with bands instead.

7. They are compact, easy to afford, and easy to transport.

On average, dumbbells cost about $2.00 per pound, and a complete 50lb set can cost over $100. In comparison, a five-piece set of resistance bands that can reach a resistance of up to 150lbs will only set you back about $30. Not only that, a full set of weights takes up a significant amount of space and it can be challenging storing them somewhere they won’t be in the way. The compact design of resistance bands makes them easy to store, and you can easily transport them, so you’ll never have to worry about missing a workout again.

Finding the Perfect Set of Resistance Bands

Shopping for resistance bands can be stressful, especially if you are buying your first set. Because of their growing popularity, it seems every fitness brand has multiple types of resistance bands. And, just like with anything else, certain brands and types don’t work as well as others.

To save you from hours of endless searching, we’ve found the resistance bands that put all the others to shame. The Resistance Band Belt from ThickFitt elevates band exercises to an entirely new level. The latex bands are attached to an adjustable waistband, which makes them highly ergonomic. They also have adjustable foot straps to match your shoe size and keep the bands from slipping out of place. The bands are specifically designed to workout the six main areas of your lower body – glutes, abs, quads, calves, hamstrings, and inner and outer thighs. Finally, the Resistance Band Belt is so unique because it allows you to get creative with your workouts and design a routine specific to your fitness goals.

Check out our video (here) on how the belt works and how it can benefit your fitness plan.