By Michael J. Rudolph, Ph.D.
Elastic bands present a novel type of resistance that places appreciable stress on muscle tissue, inflicting appreciable beneficial properties in muscle mass and energy that’s corresponding to free weights.
I’m at all times on the lookout for distinctive methods to boost my coaching and alter it up a bit bit. Properly, surprisingly I got here throughout a couple of nice articles that spotlight the distinctive muscle-building qualities supplied by resistance coaching with elastic bands. These research clearly reveal that elastic resistance coaching produces a essentially totally different coaching stimulus when in comparison with free weights or machines, making it a wonderful different for lean muscle development and energy.
Extra Muscle Is Activated
Free weights and elastic resistance essentially differ as a result of free weights present fixed resistance all through the whole vary of movement, whereas elastic bands present better resistance all through the motion. This happens as a result of the band is stretched all through the motion, inflicting elevated stress inside the band that generates better resistance because the vary of movement will increase. This type of dynamic resistance from elastic bands supplies advantages over free weights that may be clearly demonstrated in workouts such because the bench press. Since better muscular power happens within the preliminary part of the bench press, better momentum is generated all through the remainder of the motion when utilizing free weights. As soon as the load has constructed up momentum within the preliminary part, the muscle fibers don’t have to be maximally activated to proceed transferring the load all through the remainder of the motion, thus diminishing the coaching impact. Nonetheless, the rise in resistance generated from elastic bands negates the manufacturing of momentum – disallowing the momentum-driven propulsion of the bar by way of the remainder of the motion and creating a requirement for better muscle exercise that in the end stimulates better muscle development. This impact from elastic resistance was clearly demonstrated in a research by Jalal et al.1 that confirmed a 15% improve in muscle exercise throughout elastic resistance coaching when in comparison with free-weight coaching. Furthermore, the comparability between elastic coaching and free-weight coaching additionally confirmed a significantly larger stage of muscle activation within the later phases of the motion – supporting the concept the ascending power from elastic bands diminished momentum, inflicting muscle activation all through the whole concentric part of the motion.
Larger Muscle Stress
Elastic resistance naturally produces a better quantity of stress on the muscle in comparison with free weights as a result of, as beforehand said, it has the capability to attenuate momentum – inflicting better muscle exercise all through the whole motion, which successfully will increase the period of time the muscle is beneath stress. As well as, elastic bands additionally produce resistance unbiased of gravity, which fails to supply stress on the muscle throughout particular phases of sure lifts. For instance, free-weight biceps curls produce little or no muscle stress on the high of the concentric part because of the distinguished horizontal motion of the load that now not creates gravitational resistance. However, the exactly positioned use of elastic bands – that causes the elastic materials to be stretched for the whole motion – locations resistance on the biceps all through the whole vary of movement. The continual stress from elastic resistance coaching ought to stimulate better muscle development, because it has been nicely documented2 that better time beneath stress potently will increase mechanical stress on the muscle cell. Elevated mechanical stress on the muscle cell produces extra muscle cell harm and/or elevated metabolic stress, which powerfully enhances lean muscle mass. Clearly demonstrating the power of elastic bands to construct lean mass, a research by Colado et al.3 discovered that elastic resistance is as efficient if not higher than free weights or resistance machines at rising each lean physique mass and energy.
Muscle Injury Promotes Lean Muscle Progress
Train-induced muscle harm stimulates many various mobile and molecular mechanisms that trigger the muscle cell to develop and develop into extra highly effective.4 For instance, muscle harm prompts the inflammatory response – inflicting totally different immunological cells, such because the macrophage, emigrate to the broken muscle tissue, consequently facilitating muscle cell restore and development.5 Moreover, exercise-induced muscle harm stimulates IGF-1 activation of the enzyme mTOR, which triggers muscle cell protein synthesis6, enhancing the hypertrophic response to resistance coaching.
Whereas muscle harm following eccentric contractions and bouts of unaccustomed train has been nicely established7,8,9, solely lately has a research seemed on the affect that elastic resistance coaching has on muscle harm. This research by Aboodarda et al.10 confirmed that elastic resistance coaching induced an identical quantity of muscle harm when in comparison with Nautilus machine resistance. Whereas the underlying mechanism of those findings is unknown, a possible clarification for this consequence could have been uncovered in one other research by Cronin et al.11, which demonstrated a substantial improve in muscle exercise inside the quadriceps muscle in the course of the eccentric part of leg extensions whereas utilizing elastic resistance. As a result of the pressured lengthening of the muscle cell that happens in the course of the eccentric part creates probably the most intensive muscle harm12,13, this better stage of muscular contraction in the course of the eccentric part whereas utilizing elastic bands almost certainly encourages appreciable muscle harm. Curiously, this better stage of muscle exercise in the course of the eccentric part of the leg extension could also be because of the huge recoil power generated from the totally stretched elastic band that happens proper originally of the eccentric part. Taken collectively, these outcomes reveal comparable potential between elastic bands and free weight/machine coaching to create adequate muscle pressure that induces muscle harm and in the end muscle development.
Elastic bands present a novel type of resistance that places appreciable stress on muscle tissue, inflicting appreciable beneficial properties in muscle mass and energy that’s corresponding to free weights. As well as, as a result of the elastic resistance power is so essentially totally different from free-weight resistance, each approaches might be concurrently used throughout your exercise to create a mixture of forces that place better preliminary pressure on the muscle whereas sustaining maximal pressure on the musculature all through the whole motion – producing exceptional beneficial properties in energy and measurement.14
References:
1. Jalal FY, et al. Resultant muscle torque and electromyographic exercise throughout excessive depth elastic resistance and free weight workouts. EJSS 2013;13(2): p. 155-163.
2. Pinto RS, et al. Impact of vary of movement on muscle energy and thickness. J Power Cond Res 2012;26(8): p. 2140-5.
3. Colado JC and Triplett NT. Results of a short-term resistance program utilizing elastic bands versus weight machines for sedentary middle-aged girls. J Power Cond Res 2008;22(5): p. 1441-8.
4. Schoenfeld, B.J. Does exercise-induced muscle harm play a task in skeletal muscle hypertrophy? J Power Cond Res 2012;26(5): p. 1441-53.
5. McGinley C, Shafat A, and Donnelly AE. Does antioxidant vitamin supplementation shield towards muscle harm? Sports activities Med 2009;39(12): p. 1011-32.
6. Guillet C, et al. Impaired anabolic response of muscle protein synthesis is related to S6K1 dysregulation in aged people. Faseb J 2004;18(13): p. 1586-7.
7. Clarkson PM and Hubal MJ. Train-induced muscle harm in people. Am J Phys Med Rehabil, 2002;81(11 Suppl): p. S52-69.
8. Linnamo V, et al. Neuromuscular responses to explosive and heavy resistance loading. J Electromyogr Kinesiol 2000;10(6): p. 417-24.
9. Newham DJ, et al. Ultrastructural modifications after concentric and eccentric contractions of human muscle. J Neurol Sci 1983;61(1): p. 109-22.
10. Aboodarda SJ, et al. Muscle energy and harm following two modes of variable resistance coaching. J Sports activities Sci Med, 2011;10: p. 635-642.
11. Cronin J, McNair PJ and Marshall RN. The consequences of bungy weight coaching on muscle perform and useful efficiency. J Sports activities Sci 2003;21(1): p. 59-71.
12. Clarkson PM, et al. Muscle soreness and serum creatine kinase exercise following isometric, eccentric, and concentric train. Int J Sports activities Med 1986;7(3): p. 152-5.
13. Gibala MJ, et al. Myofibrillar disruption following acute concentric and eccentric resistance train in strength-trained males. Can J Physiol Pharmacol 2000;78(8): p. 656-61.
14. Anderson CE, Sforzo GA and Sigg. The consequences of mixing elastic and free weight resistance on energy and energy in JA athletes. J Power Cond Res 2008;22(2): p. 567-74.
