One piece of exercise equipment which has been a pleasant surprise within my EA Sports Active 2 virtual training program has been the stretch band. I was somewhat incredulous when I first encountered this fitness accessory. How much resistance could a glorified runner band provide ?
I love the stretch bands for several reasons. First and foremost the bands are lightweight. I don't need to lug heavy dumb bells throughout the house. I also do not have to be concerned about tripping over a dumb bell.
Another elastic band benefit is you can not rock or contort your body to cheat with repetitions as is prevalent with weight training. I used to train at a gym where it was not uncommon for guys curling eighty pound dumbbells while emphatically rocking their bodies in a pendulum motion. In effect, they were swinging the weights back and forth instead of lifting them.
Another benefit is a more evenly distributed resistance curve. When lifting a weight, the most exertion is at the onset of the repetition to set the weight in motion. Once the weight is in motion, the effort is not as significant. Once you arrive at the apex of a repetition, you can 'park' the weights before you begin the negative or second part of the repetition. You are exerting the most force at the apex of a repetition with an elastic band.
My only misgiving with the elastic bands is I have not seen a great diversity in the elasticities available for the bands. I sometimes wish I had a band which was more difficult to stretch. However, my intent is not to add muscle bulk, but to merely tone my muscles.
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