Resistance exercises are one of the most important exercises that build muscle mass in the body and are key for toning the body, And of course, you know the benefits of muscle mass in the weight loss journey, So today we'll learn about resistance training tools, to use each one correctly, benefit from them, and also avoid some injuries that can come from bad use of the tools.
Free weights
Free weights include any piece of equipment not attached to a fixed body, This includes everything like dumbbells and sandbags. You can buy and use them at home, or replace them with a water bottle or backpacks filled with heavy weight, All these tools are considered free weights And they help you reach your goal.
Advantages of free weights
- Not expensive : Dumbbells and kettlebells aren't as pricey as other machines and don’t take up much space, so you can buy them and work out at home like many Fitness Garage members and they achieve their goals.
- Versatile and multi-purpose : You can use one set for many exercises, and target more than one muscle with it, unlike machines that only focus on specific muscles.
- Showing tangible results: When you train with dumbbells and free weights you feel clear results, and feel stronger than before, which motivates you to keep going.
Drawbacks of free weights
- Higher chance of mistakes: Because your fixed position on machines prevents mistakes, but free movement could cause injury or harm later. You need to make sure all your movements are done correctly.
- Causes confusion: Dumbbells can be used for many things, so they might confuse some beginners. You hold the dumbbell but don't exactly know what to do with it. Machines help you perform the exercise a bit.
- Easy to cheat: Some exercisers like to do exercises fast so they're easy and random instead of balanced, calm, and slow.
- Effort difference: Machines make the effort bigger and the muscle resistance higher. So lots of people prefer using machines instead of weights.
Types of free weights
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Barbells
These are the fixed-weight bars you see at the gym. They let you lift heavy weights and help activate both sides, increasing resistance effectiveness.
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Dumbbells
Weights let you train each limb separately, helping build muscle strength in a specific area and perform many single-side exercises.
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Kettlebells
Kettlebells are a relatively new tool, but they help you with a different kind of workout, along with dumbbells and iron weights. They help focus on many muscles and let the weight swing between muscles, making them easier to use and overall simpler than dumbbells.
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Medicine Balls
Medicine balls help with any workout using dumbbells and kettlebells. Usually, they are special exercises for you or for a certain condition. They weigh from about 1 kilo up to 20 kilos.
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Resistance Bands and Tubes
Cables and bands are one of the easiest tools to start with and have lots of exercises. Many trainers recommend them at first. Also, they are cheap compared to other tools. Band colors differ by their tension, Green means less resistance, red means higher resistance.
Advantages of resistance bands
- Not expensive: These bands are cheap and affordable for everyone.
- Small and light : You can store it anywhere or carry it in a travel bag.
- Versatile and multipurpose : This is one of the tools you can do many exercises with.
Disadvantages of resistance bands
- A hole or tear in the band can happen easily.
- It can cause a lot of injuries if not used properly.
- At first you don’t know how to move right, because your movement isn’t steady.
Weight training machines
Machines are what you usually see in gyms. They're set up to work on individual muscles. There are usually two common types of machines:
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Stack Machines
These are the most common machines where you insert a pin under the weight you want to lift. They're usually easy to use and don’t need much adjustment. So they're great for beginners and make it easy to set the weight you can handle.
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Plate-Loaded Machines
These machines are popular with girls who want strength and size. If you've ever been to a gym, you probably saw the hassle of unloading the plates and leaving it for the next person.
Advantages of weight training machines
- Easy to use, and easy to see which muscles these machines work on.
- It always gives full support to your body, so it helps you do exercises correctly and lowers the risk of injury.
- You can lift weights safely because of these supports.
Downsides of weight training machines
- They don't engage many muscles during exercise.
- Their movement is limited and restricted, and they don’t let you try many other exercises.
- Boring, you just keep repeating the same movement.
Examples of machine exercises
- Cable push
- Cable row
- Leg accessories
- Leg presses
- Chest presses
There isn’t just one option when you’re on a healthy body journey. You use all the tools and get all the benefits from everything above. So start now to make your healthy body dream come true.
