Bands are one of the most useful tools in our facility, the Institute of Human Performance (IHP). We use three major lines of equipment when it comes to band and pulley training; the Free Motion line from Ground Zero, the Versa Pulley from Heart Rate, Inc. and the various Lifeline tubing products. We use these lines because of their dedicated efforts to designing state-of-the-art equipment and staying on the front of research and development.The Free Motion Line offers a full line of resistance training equipment. Free-Motion offers the club owner a “machine-per-body-part” format that is familiar to all users and user friendly in terms of utilization and exercise execution. Due to the pulley design of most of the equipment, it also offers unlimited exercise capability to any trainer well versed with this training approach; one can perform over 30 different exercises from the chest unit alone.The Versa Pulley works on the rotary inertia principle. In essence, this piece permits one to pull on it with maximum concentric effort, winding up like a yo-yo. As the flywheel spins, it winds up in the other direction providing the equal force on the eccentric contraction as the individual provided on the concentric portion of the exercise. The Versa Pulley provides various levels of resistance along the FORCE / VELOCITY spectrum by training light and fast movements, as well as heavy and slow movements – all with a turn of a knob. Finally, the Lifeline bands provide three basic products I designed for them; the JC Band, the JC Traveler, and the JC Quad. We have broken every single band product on the market within 3 months of use – all except the Lifeline. Some bands are still going after 6 years of work.Below I will introduce a pure band / pulley workout. The purpose of this article is not to suggest that band and pulleys are all you need for comprehensive training. It is to provide various exercises we use to train various body movements. You can perform the entire workout or substitute any of these exercises with more traditional exercises. Experiment with this program and don’t be afraid to think outside the box.
5 Minute Warm-upWarming has become an unimportant ritual for many club exercises. However, it may be the most important part of the workout. We turn our warm-up session into a mini conditioning, biomotor skill acquisition workout. It sometimes lasts as long as 15-20 minutes. We use these longer sessions to teach running mechanics and go after neural components of reaction and power. Stationary running, or other skills, can be used to train individuals to be faster on their feet. Examples of drills would be: 5dot drills, jumps, and biomotor drills such as running or skipping. This warm up is a general warm up in that it does not significantly involve upper body large resistance. But, it will increase core and muscle temperature so that you can go to a more specific warm up if you wish. Here is one of my favorites.
Instructions
Use a weightlifting belt (or other appropriate method of securing the band /pulley to the waist)
Attach the band or pulley from a low attachment point behind you. This will not only add resistance to forward locomotion, but will add to the pull of gravity.
Walk forward to add appropriate resistance
Notes:You will be moving in a stationary manner – so use cones or other markers to stay within a safe area. You have to play around with this a bit before you become comfortable with how much resistance to use – be patient.
Protocol
Stationary Walk for 10 seconds and rest for 10 seconds X 3 – 1 minute
Stationary March for 10 seconds and rest for 10 seconds X 3 – 1 minute
Stationary Power Skip for 10 seconds and rest for 10 seconds X 3 – 1 minute
Stationary Run for 10 seconds and rest for 10 seconds X 6 – 2 minute
Notes:Make sure you use high knees and stay on the balls of your feet whenever possible. The more powerful you make these movements, the more they will transfer to your everyday life.
EquipmentWe use the Free-Motion low pull or heavy JC Bands for this exercise. If you don’t have either use a low pulley from any high quality pulley or cable system.
LUNGES - Lower bodyWhen working the lower body, lunges are one of my favorite exercises. They are particularly effective at training deceleration and changes in direction. Since the warm-up section focused on going forward, the lunges provide excellent deceleration training.
Instructions
Use a weightlifting belt (or other appropriate method of securing the band to the waist) or use handles and hold the resistance with the hands (shown in picture).
Attach the band or pulley from to a low attachment point in front of you. This will add to the forward momentum and to the pull of gravity.
Holding onto the handles, walk back to add appropriate resistance and space for forward lunging.
Stand straight and take a long step forward. Keep the body erect and core tight.
Land with a full foot and lower your body to a lunge position.
Explode back to a standing position. Repeat with other foot.
We perform anywhere from 3-7 sets X 20 reps of this exercise within a single workout.
Notes:There are several types of lunges you can perform. One of our favorite advance versions is the reaching lunge. Follow the above instructions but reach forward as you lunge to the front.
EquipmentWe use the Free-Motion low pull (i.e. any machine with a low pulley), the Versa Pulley or JC Bands for this exercise. If you don’t have any of these items, use a low-pulley from any high quality pulley or cable system.
Standing Pulls – Upper bodyStanding pulls are an excellent way to work the total body while emphasizing the posterior back musculature. They provide balance and stability training while pulling. In real life we always pull from our feet, therefore, the standing pull is one of the most functional exercises we perform.
Instructions
Attach the band or pulley to a low or mid attachment point in front of you. We prefer the low orientation since it is the most functional.
Holding onto the handles, walk back to add appropriate resistance and space for the pulling motion.
Stand straight and keep the body erect and core tight. Keep knees slightly bent and center of gravity lower then normal.
Pull the cables or pulley handles to you as if you were doing a cable row.
You can use simultaneous or alternating pulling patterns.
We perform anywhere from 3-7 sets X 20-40 reps of this exercise within a single workout.
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