Squats with Resistance Bands

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If you’re stuck trying to get past a plateau and looking for alternative and unique methods to dig yourself out of a workout rut, you might want to keep reading.

With the explosion of the modern internet and growing number of experts giving you rehashed but slightly twisted fitness information, we’re all way past fitness overload.

Getting past a plateau can be a huge hurdle if you are trying to continually make some type of progress in your workouts.

This means that you should use every option at your disposal and be as efficient as possible in the gym in the time allotted.  Even more important, sticking to the basics with slight overload variations can get your past your sticking points without resorting to insane high intensity workouts or crazy exercises that are better suited for a circus performance.

One small note before we get started …

with a little help showing off squats with resistance bands as help from above.

Remember what 4 time Mr. Universe Bill Pearl said … “Does the muscle really care what mode is used to stress it past capacity? The important thing is to successfully stress the muscle past capacity – the mode is of secondary importance.”

Since squats seem to be always touted as one of the few exercises you should do, you might as well learn some variations on them to get past sticking points or at the very least, to make them more interesting.

Here’s just a few exercises I’ve used heavy duty resistance bands on:

lying leg curltricep pushdownlat pulldownsingle leg smith lungesseated leg press

A few experts have been touting the importance of using resistance bands for some time.  Here’s just a few reasons why you might want to consider investing in a set of high quality bands for some of your free weight exercises:

Take an old school, mass building, quad hobbling movement like the traditional barbell squat and using resistance bands, you can change it into a concept called Variable Resistance.

Resistance training can take one of two possible paths.  Constant and Variable.

Constant:

In a constant situation you take a free weight and at times the weight being resisted against will change.  For example, the number of fibers used at the top of a squat is significant different from the bottom.  That’s why most people have a sticking point at the bottom because you are pushing 100% of the weight.  As you rise, you push less and less as your skeleton takes the brunt of the weight.

Variable:

In the same example if you were to do squats with resistance bands as Scott demonstrates in the video above, at the top, the bands are pulling down with force.  As he gets to the bottom, the bands are adding nearly nothing and it’s all free weight.  As he rises, where it normally would be easier as you rise up, the bands now add resistance.

Depending on the bands, the length at which they are stretched, the force applied can change.

I like to make my workouts as brief as possible.  And I don’t just mean in terms of time.  Getting more work done with each set, making it harder and progressive is the key to growth.

“It’s not how short you make it; it’s how you make it short.”

Sometimes creativity pays off in the gym.

It’s a simple fact of life that in order to progress, one must change.  In terms of building muscle, this means progression.

You could add more and more weight to the bar.  But once you hit sticking points, this is where creativity comes into play and using resistance bands might help you get past a stuck point by making the exercise progressive in some shape or form.  Even if it’s just a bit harder at the top to stand straight as more weight pulls down, that can be progressive overload, enough to force adaptation.

I’m all in favor of taking breaks, or taking a break from training.  But in order to progress and take it to the next level, you must work harder over time on a semi-consistent basis.

There are no real long-term lasting shortcuts to building muscle except hardwork, dedication and time.

The next time you are in the gym, you might want to learn more about using resistance band specifically applied to free weight exercises.  I’m not talking about rubber tubes here folks.  I mean the REAL heavy duty bands!  Here’s the two brands I’ve used with great success in the past.

One major benefit to using resistance bands is an adjusted mechanical load.  When you lift a free weight object thru a range of motion, the load does not change during the movement.  It’s a constant mass and provides different stimulation at various points within the movement.

To use “muscle heads” who want to build the most muscle, it means that half of the movement of any given exercise isn’t providing optimal stimulation and maximum overload.  I take this to mean 50% or so is not optimized.

Think of the squat.  You are stronger in a quarter squat than a half.  And stronger in a half than a full.  The sticking point of most squats is at the bottom.  As you get higher, the load transfers off the muscle and onto joints.  But what if there was a way to make the load variable?

By using a combination of resistance bands and free weights at the same time, you can overload the whole range of motion!  The free weight will provide the greatest overload the initial point while the bands provide resistance at the finishing portion.

There’s been chatter about the eccentric (stretching portion; fighting against gravity) as being the real growth simulator in a given movement.  Without giving into that conclusion, the bands offer more resistance in the eccentric portion than free weights alone.

In the example of the squat, as you come down, the bands add to the acceleration.  They are pulling down with great force.  Gravity + the bands.  As you fight against that to stay in control, you are overloading the eccentric portion of the lift vs. free weights alone.  This puts tremendous stress in the eccentric portion of the lift that gravity alone does not provide.

We can all use help getting more results from our workouts.

I’m a fan of resistance bands used for specific portions of the workout.  I know that they work because it simply adds variable resistance to a exercise to make it harder.  Making it harder is the formula for improvements.

Do you have more suggestions for getting results? Drop them in the comments.

Scan Me!

Marc David – CPT
“The NoBull Muscle Guy”
Author of NoBull Bodybuilding

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Free Weights vs Resistance Equipment

Bodybuilders, athletes, and strength trainers have been using heavy objects provided by what ever nature had to offer dating back to the times of the ancient egyptians as seen on tombs, pictures showing different forms of exercise using sand and stone swinging. The Greek Olympic games began in 776 B.C., but in 393 A.D., Emperor Theodosis the Great abolished the Olympics, claiming it was a religious pagan festival.

Well, the Olympics are back and have been entering weightlifting events since 1896, and women have been entering since 2000.

Weightlifting and strength training didn't become popular until an easily adjustable barbell was created in 1910 by Alvin Calvert, allowing the user to conveniently remove or add more weight. More and more people were now training at home and this also encouraged athletic and physical education departments to utilize the new, effective, easy to use barbell, causing an even bigger surge in strength training popularity.

The industry really got a boost in the early 1970's when the Nautilus machine was introduced, that was an upgrade from the earlier Universal machines. These weighted, cable and pully variable resistance machines enabled the user to get natural human movement and precise resistance necessary for a quality full body workout.

Aerobics also became popular about this time and women were now joining the men at gyms for both weight control and strength training. Today, most if not all athletic sports training facilities utilize both free weights and resistance equipment.

I personally used free weights up until I joined The Chicago Health Club (Bally's) in 1973, straight out of high school. After I used the Nautilus, it was nearly all I used for bodybuilding. My routine was to build symmetrical cut muscle in the least amount of time and maintain it with the least amount of effort, so resistance training was perfect for me then and still is to this day with 40 minute intense, quality workouts, 3 times a week.

Of course, today there are numerous companies manufacturing resistance types of equipment, and some work very well if you don't mind forking over a large sum of money for a large piece of equipment.

I also discovered the use of free weights can be dangerous, unlike resistance training, once you begin a set, you are at the mercy of the weight and can cause torn muscle and ligaments if you aren't conditioned or have the weights fall off or on you, which happened to me more than once.

Resistance bands have also become a part of many peoples fitness program, including myself. With the careful and clever use of bands or tubes you can adjust the resistance by simply adding or removing bands that are color coated for different ranges of resistance. The resistance will depend on your fitness goals.

I've been using a personally designed total body resistance band workout system for almost 15 years now and I have experienced great success by duplicating the nautilus equipment regimen.

To be successful with a band workout, the bands need to be strategically anchored so you can get the proper movement for the muscle group you are working on. You should be able to comfortably perform ten to twelve repetitions of any exercise.

Bands are also very inexpensive compared to other workout devices and equipment. When used properly and consistently you can achieve the same results as free weights or expensive resistance equipment.

As with free weights the results will depend on the proper resistance, smooth fluid movement and frequency of the workouts.

Resistance bands can be safely used by kids and teenagers, men and women, boomers and seniors, and can be used for bodybuilding and strength training, weight management and flexibility, physical therapy and fitness conditioning, or to enhance athleticism.

Research has shown that resistance exercise (RE) can produce positive changes in muscular strength, endurance and power; bone mineral content; body composition; cardiovascular function; metabolism; and phsychological well-being. Also, conclusions were made that regular structured RE may prove beneficial in a weight-management regimen.

If you are looking for a inexpensive but effective way to get and stay fit, resistance bands should not be overlooked since some form of strength training should be on everyones to do list.

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Anti-Aging Resistance Training

Resistance training is the best form of exercise you can do for the anti aging process.

Contrary to what many people mistakenly believe resistance training is suitable for people of all ages. Even elderly people can get a lot of benefit from resistance training although as expected they will be using a lot less resistance than their younger counterparts.

Resistance training helps to increase muscle mass. Women often show concern when this is mentioned fearing that they will look like the female equivalent of Arnold Schwarzenegger but there is no fear of that happening. The average women will never be able to add bulk muscle without extreme weight lifting and considerable supplementation of specific muscle building products. The women who compete in the professional bodybuilding competitions use steroids to get their extreme muscles mass.

The amount of muscle mass that the average women will gain from resistance training will be sufficient to tone the body and reduce the percentage of fat in the body that will benefit overall health and give a more youthful appearance.

Men will be able to gain more muscle mass and they will also benefit from the fat loss associated with more muscles but they too have no fear of gaining excess muscle.

When working out with weights and other resistance training machines all the muscles of the face are also constantly being tensed and relaxed and this helps to tone and lift the muscles of the face having the effect of a mild face lift.

Obviously this will have an anti aging effect as the face 'lifts' and looks more youthful.

Energy levels will also build over time as the effects of the resistance training exercises help to improve the functioning of the body and the skin will also look better and 'younger' as the exercise stimulates blood flow and improves circulation to the skin.

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