RESISTANCE TUBING AND BENEFITS

There are many ways to incorporate movement, strength and toning exercises into the energy of flow in your life.  Whether it is to feel more alive in your body or to enhance muscle tone and definition, to gain strength and power, to improve cardiovascular endurance or engage in new ways of cultivating energy and creating more health and vitality. 

One very effective and versatile way to begin or enhance your workout regime is by using resistance tubing exercise techniques to achieve your health and fitness goals. Resistance band exercises are simply another form of weight (resistance) training which can build strength, muscular endurance and help tone your body.

To top it off, resistance tubing is affordable, transportable (great for traveling) and can train the whole body efficiently and effectively.  Tubing has the capacity to meet the needs of a beginner as well as challenge the hardcore pursuitist.  It also is a fantastic way to assist athletes in enhancing strength and efficiency in sport patterns that best mimic their specific movements while being able to vary the degree of resistance from the tubing.

Tubing is also very popular in rehab exercises because of the ability to create the amount of resistance needed in a natural movement pattern that best rehabilitates the joint or muscle imbalance or injury. This goal is difficult to accomplish with free weights because they require the direction of force to be vertical, due to the reliance on gravity for resistance.  All manufacturers of band-tubing exercise equipment color-code their products according to the levels of resistance. Depending on the manufacturer, these color codes may have some variation.

In essence tubing is a very durable elastic band with handles that can provide a wide range and variety of exercises that adapt to motion patterns that most mimic natural and dynamic movement. When using weight machines your body has to adapt to the path of motion that is given by the machine.  With machines, the movement is generally limited to one plane of motion with little to zero need of stabilizer and core muscles to assist resulting in a less functional and effective result.  Resistance tubing follows the way the body moves and adapts to your personal body structure and range of motion.

RESISTANCE TUBING VS

FREE WEIGHTS

Both tubing and free weight resistance training provide movement that allows for free range of movement, speed control, and allow for progressive resistance (ability to increase difficulty of exercise by altering weight or tension).  These are important factors in any exercise program yet despite the similarities there are also many differences that tubing allows for added benefit. 

One of the biggest differences between free weights and tubing resistance exercises is that free weights rely on gravity in order to provide the resistance they offer thus providing resistance only in the direction of gravity, whereas tubing resistance allows for resistance on any plane of motion. With the reliance on gravity for resistance the element of momentum is a factor that can diminish control and the speed of the exercise, which significantly compromises the effectiveness and possible safety of the exercise. With tubing the absence of gravity allows the user to create a broader variety of exercises that are natural movements common to everyday life or compliment movement in sport specific training.  Resistance tubing also offers the option to create smoother movement patterns, which allow for more effective isolation and focus on muscle recruitment. 

Another benefit provided by the fact that tubing resistance does not rely on gravity is that it provides continuous tension to the muscles being trained. When you lift a free weight like a dumbbell in any direction other than straight up and down, the tension on the muscle can actually be removed at certain points in the range of motion. For example, at the very top of the movement of a bicep curl the dumbbell is literally falling towards the shoulder. This means that the tension on the biceps has been removed because the dumbbell is no longer being lifted up against gravity by the biceps. When doing a biceps curl with tubing resistance, the tension is present throughout the entire range of motion because the elastic material provides resistance due to its own properties.  In fact the further the band stretches, the more resistance is provided.  This is useful because there will be the most resistance at the end of the range of motion of any exercise, thus the number of muscles fibers that are being used increase. This means the muscle is receiving greater resistance at its strongest point in the range of motion and therefore is receiving more adequate resistance to better stimulate strength adaptations.  This is not the case in free weight resistance training. 

The possibility of building up momentum when using free weights means the muscle fibers do not need to be maximally activated to continue moving the weight throughout the rest of the range of motion of the exercise. Tubing resistance does not allow the user to cheat by using momentum. This is because the resistance from the tubing comes from the stretching of the elastic material and not the mass of the elastic equipment. The only way to continue a movement while performing an exercise with tubing resistance is to utilize more muscle fibers in the exercising muscle to continue stretching the elastic material.   Also it is much easier to engage other muscles to compensate for fatigued target muscles when using free weights, which can be counterproductive. 

Ultimately, a program that uses tubing resistance provide benefits that are not offered by free-weight resistance programs, such as increased functional strength, more effective injury prevention, greater ability to change muscle emphasis during exercises, enhanced muscle power development and easier use.

GUIDELINES FOR PROPER USE OF RESISTANCE TUBING

•Before starting each exercise make sure that the band/tube is under slight tension throughout its length. There should not be any slack in the tube throughout the range of motion.

•Retain smooth form (not jerky) when working with band/tube products and to keep the band/tube under your control at all times. The return phase (eccentric phase) of the muscle movement is equally important as the outgoing phase (concentric phase) – be as mindful on the return phase and stay in form and muscle isolation.

•Always check equipment for rips or tears prior to use and discard any damaged ones.

•A good quality band/tube will increase in length during exercise by about 3 times. Once a band/tube exceeds 3 times its length it will start to stretch less smoothly and will risk breakage.

•Elongate and engage the spine throughout the entire workout.  Always be mindful of your posture.

•Do not over grip the tubing but rather think of hands as hooks.  Gripping too tight also takes some of the workload from the target muscles (like back and biceps) into the forearm for gripping.

•Keep the wrists neutral.  If you allow the wrists to open (bend backwards) the potential energy of resistance is weakened thus dissipating some of the tension from the target muscle.

. Life expectancy will decrease if tubing has prolonged exposure to sunlight, extremes of heat or cold, salt or chlorinated water.   

•Do not wrap tubing around the hands or body.

•Never tie two pieces of rubber together.

•Ensure proper warm up to circulate the blood into your limbs to loosen up your muscles and joints.  Always perform a general warm up before any kind of physical activity.

•Bad habits limit our range of motion.  Incorrect posture leads to blockages that interrupt the flow of movement to certain parts of the body which leads to loss of coordination, compromised posture and limited flexibility and balance.  Be sure to never compensate form.

These workouts are accessible, easy to learn, and grows as you do.  Whatever age or ability, these workouts deliver results, generates abundant energy, and creates an opportunity to experience the gift of being fully present in our bodies.  You will feel stronger, more vital and attain a lean, healthy body.  The better you feel physically the more confident and engaged you will be in all aspects of your life.   After all, the greatest wealth is health 

Whether you this is your first time exercising or your thousandth time, approach each time as the first time.  To have a beginner mindset allows for more opportunity to engage in the mystery of life and to be more connected to the moment while integrating the wealth of knowledge that you have accumulated with the innate wisdom of the body.