Let’s think of a scenario.
If for some reason I was in a life or death situation, and I was told that I had to choose just one piece of equipment to use for the rest of my life, do you know what I would choose?
A resistance band.
That’s right.
Not a dumbbell, not a functional trainer, not even a kettlebell (as hard as that may be!).
The versatility of a resistance band is just too good to ignore.
Fairly recently, I wrote an all-you-need guide on how you can build muscle with nothing but a resistance band, which left us with the burning question on the other side of the fitness world…
Can you lose weight with a resistance band?
The resistance band is arguably one of the best methods for losing weight, with it providing an intense way of exercising to burn a ton of calories efficiently and conveniently.
In this article, we will discuss the best methods to use a resistance band to lose weight and the movements that will get the most out of your workout.
Let’s get into it.
Why Is A Resistance Band A Great Tool For Weight Loss?
There are a limitless amount of reasons that you should incorporate a resistance band into your fat-burning routine…
Cheap and Lightweight
Rather than spending a fortune on equipment to help you burn calories, and limiting yourself to only being able to work out in one place, you can purchase a resistance band.
This helps you escape the confines are a gym membership and allows you to lose weight wherever and whenever you want.
Time Under Tension
Using a resistance band is guaranteed to put your muscle fibers under more stress than any other workout technique.
This is due to the resistance being applied throughout the complete movement, meaning your body has to use more energy during the movement, as well as after your workout for recovery.
Intensity
We have already touched on this slightly, but the versatility of the resistance band allows you to up the intensity of your workout and burn more calories.
As we have the convenience of the resistance band, rather than having to change the weight on the dumbbell or the barbell, we can superset our exercises much easier, meaning we can reduce the rest time, and increase the period in which our bodies are burning calories.
Makes Working Out More Interesting
No one wants to be bored when exercising.
That’s why I always aim to put resistance bands into my client’s workout routines, and even my own.
It allows them to change it up from the norm.
They are usually losing weight via the typical avenues, such as jogging or cycling, but with a resistance band, we can make our exercises a lot more fun.
What Is The Best Type Of Workout To Lose Weight With A Band?
A High-Intensity Interval Training routine is the best method to lose weight with a resistance band.
By utilizing set periods of intense exercise, with brief recovery periods, we can exhaust our body with just a few resistance band exercises.
By doing this, we are burning way more calories than the conventional way of working out and using your fat stores, as opposed to the carbs in your bodies, to release this energy.
This makes HIIT an efficient method to lose weight while maintaining your muscle gains.
If HIIT isn’t your preferred method of working out, then you can still lose weight using a resistance band, and my recommended exercises.
While I believe it is the best method to lose weight quickly, it isn’t the only proven way.
4 Resistance Band Exercises You Should Do To Lose Weight
Banded Squat Jumps
Squats are one of those movements that do it all.
Build strength and muscle. Check.
Improve your posture and balance. Check.
Help you lose weight quickly and effectively. 100%.
Adding a resistance band to this exercise only improves it, putting our lower body under an increased amount of tension, meaning our body uses more calories throughout the movement.
And we don’t have to worry about loading a barbell with loads of weight and putting it on or back, potentially straining our knees.
The next aspect of this exercise is the jump.
Adding a plyometric to a squat escalates the intensity of our movement ten-fold, meaning we can lose that excess blubber a lot more quickly than just simply squatting our bodyweight.
I also love the wonders this exercise has done for my agility and sporting prowess.
How To Do It
- Start by wrapping a resistance band tightly around your legs, just above the knee.
- Stand shoulder-width apart, with your torso upright and hands kept close to your chest.
- Engage your core, and begin to squat by bending at the knees.
- Get your butt as low to the ground as possible, to increase the tension in your glutes.
- As you reach the bottom of the exercise, explode through your heels and extend your legs.
- When you reach full extension, jump off the ground as high as you possibly can.
- As soon as you land, repeat the exercise. Do this for around a minute for each set.
Overhead Press
Probably one of the simpler exercises on this list, there’s just something about a banded overhead press that always gets me sweating.
While it is primarily an exercise to tone your shoulders, if we incorporate it into our HIIT routine, and perform the movement with meaning, we can guarantee a lot of energy from our fat stores to be used up, helping to lose weight.
This exercise also has a lot of health benefits that we can take advantage of.
An overhead press is a brilliant exercise for improving our upper body strength, our flexibility, and reducing the risk of injury by reinforcing our shoulder joints.
We can also expect to notice an improvement in our posture and all-round balance with this exercise, due to it helping build our abdominal muscles, primarily the obliques.
How To Do It
- Start by standing on one end of the resistance band, with your feet shoulder-width apart.
- Grab the other end of the band with both hands, in an overhand grip.
- Stand up tall with your torso upright and engage your core.
- Push the resistance band until it is in line with your shoulders and taut, this is your starting position.
- Plant your heels and drive your hands up towards the ceiling, until your arms are fully extended.
- Pause for a second, then control the band back towards the starting position.
- Repeat this for a set interval, and make sure to do the exercise with full intensity.
Banded Pushups
A staple in the beginner’s calisthenic workout, the pushup is great for building muscle, core strength, and of course, losing weight.
I love to add the resistance band to this exercise to vary the load I am applying to my body, and increase the tension on the muscle throughout the whole movement.
This allows me to burn more calories as I resist the force from the band.
By adding this exercise to our routine, we can expect the muscle fibers in our upper body, or more specifically our chest and arms, to undergo a lot of stress.
This added intensity will enhance our Post Workout Oxygen Consumption in recovery, meaning more calories are used, even when we finish working out.
How To Do It
- Start by wrapping the band around your back, and connecting each loop to your hand, with the band spanning across your palms.
- Get into the plank position on the floor, and pin the resistance band underneath your palms.
- Engage your core and keep your back straight.
- By bending at the elbows, lower your body to the ground.
- When your chest is about an inch from the floor, pause for a second.
- Then, drive through your palms, pushing against any type of resistance from the band.
- Repeat for a set period of time.
Banded Bicycle Crunch
The closest we are going to get to cardio on this list is the banded bicycle crunch.
This movement has the perfect blend of resistance and anaerobic exercise for you to utilize in order to maximize the number of calories you burn, and lose that pesky belly fat.
Because you are raising your legs, whilst being in the sit-up position, you can fully activate your abdominal muscles with this exercise.
This makes it great for getting shredded abs and increasing the muscle mass on the lower-body muscles involved in cycling.
A few of the best health benefits that come as a side dish with this movement is the cardiovascular boost.
As this exercise gets the blood pumping, you can be assured that your fitness levels and cardiovascular health will be thankful in the long run.
Though it may not feel like it when you’re working out!
How To Do It
- First, find a comfortable surface to lie on your back.
- Wrap the resistance band around your feet, until it is as taut as possible.
- Then, with your core engaged, bring your knees toward your body, until your calves are parallel to the floor. Lift your upper back up slightly, so that you can feel the tension in your core.
- Bring one knee into your chest, while simultaneously extending the other leg.
- Then, alternate the legs, extending the opposite leg, and bring the extended leg into your chest. This is similar to riding a bicycle.
- Repeat for a set interval, such as a minute.
My Top 3 Tips To Losing Weight Quickly And Safely
Working out to lose weight is only the icing on the cake, unfortunately, and there are many other aspects in your life that you must change and control in order to lose weight quickly, but also in a healthy and safe manner.
Diet
It’s a commonly known fact that to lose fat, you need to be in a calorie deficit.
This means you are expending more calories than you consume.
The easiest way to do this is to reduce your calorie intake, by eating foods that are higher-volume, but lower in calories.
I have a guide for the best foods you can eat on a diet right here.
Sleep
Getting at least 8 hours of sleep a night is so important when you are on a fitness journey.
Your body recovers when you sleep, so whether you are aiming to gain muscle, or lose weight, you need your beauty sleep to make it happen.
Consistency
In life, nothing comes to those who do not work hard.
If you are trying to lose weight, but slowly begin to slack off with the workouts and your diet, you can expect to see less progress in your physique than those who are consistent with their routine.
Conclusion
Losing weight has always been a difficult task.
But hopefully, with this comprehensive guide to losing weight with a resistance band, you can begin your journey to that shredded physique you have always dreamed of.
With these exercises, you do not have to worry about taking the time out of your busy day to go to the gym and work out.
I truly believe that training anywhere is possible, and you do not need to fork out a chunk of your wage for a gym membership to reach your goals.
By picking up my free E-Book, “Train Wherever The F*ck You Want”, you can make this philosophy a reality, and save yourself time and money.
If you want to get yourself a set of the bands I’m using, go and see my friends at Dmoose! For $49.99 you can get a set of 6 bands!
So, what resistance band exercises do you incorporate into your routine when trying to lose weight?
Are there any of your favorites I missed from this list?
Let me know in the comments below.