Struggling to find the motivation to workout over the festive period? You’re not alone. In fact, a report shows that 76% of people in the UK don’t exercise in the winter. We get it; it’s cold, you may have overindulged on one too many mince pies and motivation to hit the gym is lacking. The good news is, you don’t need to. This full-body resistance band workout from Fitness Coach, Patrick James, will leave you feeling stronger, more energised and your muscles may even have a cheeky pump afterward.
While the humble resistance band often gets forgotten about amongst the iron and machines that dominate the gyms, it shouldn’t be underestimated. Even the likes of Arnold Schwarzenegger highly rates them, publishing several resistance band workouts in his Pump Club newsletter. What's more, research shows it can deliver similar strength gains to conventional resistance training, while another study found that resistance band push-ups built similar strength and muscle activation to the Smith machine bench press.
As well as a resistance band, you're going to need a chair or sofa for this workout. It consists of supersets, where you perform two exercises back-to-back with no rest. You'll perform three rounds of each superset, but instead of giving you a set amount of reps, James wants you to aim to complete as many reps as you can, with two left in reserve. Rest for 90 seconds between exercises and then take a two minute rest before moving onto the next superset. Here's your workout:
- A1. Split squats 3xAMRAP -2
- A2. Push-ups 3xAMRAP -2
- B1. Single-leg hip thrust 3xAMRAP -2
- B2. Banded bent over row 3xAMRAP -2
- C1. Banded curl 3xAMRAP -2
- C2.Banded tricep extensions 3xAMRAP -2
We bet you've got a different opinion on resistance bands after completing that. Ready to take on more? Give this 7-move full-body workout a try next from Sweat app Founder, Kayla Itsines. If it's an upper body workout you're after, then this 15-minute workout is good for when you need something quick, but it'll leave you with a tremendous pump.
