Last Updated On September 7, 2023
When building muscle, resistance bands are a great tool, whether you’re a total gym rat or fitness newbie. These large elastic bands can be flat or tubular and are versatile enough to work into virtually any exercise routine.
In this guide, I'm showing you how to build muscle with resistance bands, the best exercises to increase strength and tone your entire body, and the do’s and don’ts of resistance band training.
Can You Get Big With Resistance Bands?
Yes, if you’re looking to build muscle quickly, resistance band workouts can become an indispensable part of your fitness routine. These bands add tension to your movements, which means your muscles work harder and enter hypertrophy [1].
These simple fitness tools can do far more than tone those vanity muscles, however. When you use resistance bands, you also engage your stabilizing muscles. Plus the resistance bands training keeps the muscle under constant tension, which promotes muscle growth.
For example, during push-ups, your arms and chest are in direct use. However, your abdominals, legs, and back are also hard at work, keeping you stable.
Resistance bands, therefore, are fantastic tools to target those hard-to-engage muscles and build up full-body strength, and support muscle growth without weight training.
In fact, studies show that resistance band training can build comparable strength and muscle mass to using free weights or weight machines, with just 4 to 12 weeks of regular workouts [2].
8 Resistance Band Exercises For Muscle Building
Muscle building, or hypertrophy training, is done using high volume training to stimulate muscle fibers.
For the following exercises, aim for 2 sets of 20 to 30 reps total or per side, as applicable. Beginners can start with fewer reps and increase gradually.
1. Squats
Squats target your glutes and leg muscles but can also provide a generous challenge during cardio routines.
To use resistance bands in your squats, hold a flat one in each hand with your arms out in front of your chest. Do some pulses while lifting your arms overhead, keeping tension in the band to further engage your core.
2. Overhead Shoulder Presses And Leg Lunges
This exercise is very efficient, targeting both the lower and upper body at the same time, and training each leg separately. While lunging, perform a shoulder press movement with a flat resistance band held between your hands.
Draw your arms down in synchronization with each lunge. Your glutes, legs, arms, and abs will all feel a great burn from this exercise.
3. Abdominal Curl
Hold the ends of a resistance band in each hand and sit. Bend downward slowly, curving your spine, then proceed to move up and down by about an inch.
Keep your core engaged, and make sure your resistance band doesn’t go slack.
4. Oblique Twists
You can target your core muscles using resistance bands too. With one end of a resistance band gripped firmly in each hand, hold your arms directly out in front of your chest while standing.
Keep your feet parallel to one another, standing just a bit wider than your hips. Perform twists from side to side, but make sure to engage your oblique muscles.
This resistance band exercise is exceptional for those suffering from back pain, since weakened obliques mean less spinal support [3].
5. Bicep Circles
This upper body exercise targets the biceps very effectively. The resistance curve using bands is perfect for biceps.
Step on the center of your resistance band and wrap the ends around your wrists. Slowly raise and lower your arms, as if lifting a dumbbell.
6. Tricep Kick Backs
Resume the same position you would in a bicep curl. Instead of lifting your arms, move them behind you. This exercise targets your shoulders and triceps.
7. Rowing Sequence
Once again, stand on the center of your resistance band, but this time widen your stance beyond your hips.
Bend at your waist, with knees also bent, and hold the band’s ends in your hands. Remain in this stance while rowing your arms back slowly.
8. Straight Leg Deadlift
Another powerful exercise for building muscle in your glutes and hamstrings, a straight leg deadlift, is simple to perform with resistance bands.
Simply stand on your band, keeping feet shoulder-width apart, and hold one end in each hand. Bend at your hips and reach down until you feel your hamstrings stretch. Slowly come up and repeat.
Related Article - Should You Deadlift On Back Or Leg Day?
7 Benefits Of Training With Resistance Bands
If you’ve got an affinity for big machines and free weights, you might be wondering why so many people use bands.
Here are the benefits of building muscle with resistance bands and improving your fitness.
1. Inexpensive
Typically, resistance bands are far cheaper than weight systems or machines, ranging from $25 to $50.
2. Portable
Due to their shape, resistance bands can easily be rolled up and tucked away on a shelf or in a bag. They are easy to take with you when you're traveling, something that can't be done with free weights.
Related Article - Resistance Band Chest Workouts At Home
3. Adaptable
No matter what skill or strength level you’re at now, resistance bands can be incorporated into your routine. Yoga, bodyweight exercises, and cardio all see a boost when you add bands.
4. Rehabilitation And Stretching
If you’ve lost your strength due to illness or injury, don’t worry: resistance bands have a generous learning curve. Beginner bands provide less resistance so that you can build your muscles back up at your own pace.
5. Easy To Learn
With correct placement and usage, you’ll usually feel exactly which muscles are being targeted and be able to adjust accordingly. What’s more, because there aren’t any bells and whistles to learn, resistance bands have a lower barrier for entry than heavy-duty gym equipment.
6. Provide A Full-Body Workout
A varied set of resistance bands is virtually all you need to get a full-body workout. A basic set provides plenty of options to target your arms, chest, back, abs, glutes, and legs.
7. Muscle Tone And Endurance
Since resistance bands can target both primary “mover muscles” and stabilizers, you’ll not only see an increase in muscle tone: you’ll really feel a difference in your overall endurance.
Improved balance, decreased joint pain, and great core strength are all common benefits of a well-rounded, consistent resistance band routine.
6 Tips For Using Resistance Bands In Muscle Training
1. Use The Right Resistance Band For A Workout
Tubular bands are great for some exercises, while others call for a flat band. Size and tension should be given careful attention, as well.
Related Article - How Long Do Resistance Bands Last?
2. Know The Color Meanings For Each Resistance Band
Most bands are color-coded, so you can tell at a glance what resistance level you’re getting. This color system varies between manufacturers, but in general, red means light, green means medium, and blue means heavy.
If you aren’t sure how large of a set to buy, opt for three basic bands in light, medium, and heavy tensions.
3. Inspect Your Band Before You Use It
Worn, fading, or cracked bands will not provide proper tension for a good workout. What’s more, they could snap during use and cause injury.
4. Exercise Without A Band First
Not only is it helpful to make sure you’re using proper form before you add tension, but this will also help warm up your muscles for the tougher portion of your workout.
5. Take Your Time Before Using Harder Bands
Just as you wouldn’t rush to lift the heaviest weight in the rack, you also shouldn’t jump to the heavy-duty resistance bands right away. Build your strength up with easier bands first, increasing reps and sets gradually.
6. Buy Quality Resistance Bands
Poorly manufactured bands—which are usually the dirt-cheap variety—can snap more easily and cause injury.
4 Common Mistakes Of Resistance Band Muscle Training
1. Using A Very Tight Band
More tension doesn’t automatically mean faster results. If your bands provide too much tension, you can strain muscles or cause injuries, which can derail your fitness goals very quickly.
2. Don’t Let The Band Tension Do Your Work For You
When returning to starting position, avoid letting the band’s natural resistance pull your limbs. Doing so won’t properly engage your muscles, and can also result in injury.
3. Overstretching Your Band
Just like the rubber band on a newspaper, overworked resistance bands can snap. These can cost you more money in the long run, at best—and injure you, at worst.
4. Storing Your Band In Humid Or Sunny Areas
Elastic loses its structural integrity in bright, hot, humid conditions. This can lead to decreased tension as well as breakage. Store your bands in dark and cool or room temperature places, preferably loose and hanging.
People Also Ask (FAQs)
Yes, you can tone and add mass to your gluteal region with resistance bands. Squats, lateral leg lifts, and banded walks are all excellent moves to engage those muscles. Remember that diet, proper sleep, and stress management also play pivotal roles in gaining muscle.
While many bodybuilders opt for free weights and machines, resistance bands can also achieve progressive overload to build strength and mass. Furthermore, resistance bands are quieter, cheaper, and easier to transport.
Bands can target obliques, upper abdominals, and lower abdominals. Add resistance bands to sit-ups, bicycle crunches, or twists to intensify your usual ab routine.
Unless you are actively trying to bulk up and gain mass, resistance bands will not make your thighs larger. They might appear larger initially, however, as your muscles grow and push remaining fat out farther. You can also experience inflammation or retain water, so look to your diet first and foremost.
With proper storage and care, resistance bands can last two to three years with regular use.
A very heavy-duty resistance band can provide and withstand 150 to 175 pounds of tension. That said, it’s never wise to “test” the strength of a resistance band by hanging from it, over-stretching it, or even just hanging deadweight from one when you need a rest.
Conclusion
Resistance bands can be inexpensive, convenient ways to build strength and stimulate muscle growth, without the use of free weights.
While once dismissed as nothing but physical therapy tools, exercise bands have grown in popularity for everything from yoga to home gym setups, thanks to their versatility in full-body fitness.
References:
1.https://www.healthline.com/health/muscular-hypertrophy
2.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6383082/
3.https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20023346/
