Strengthen your body with Thera-Bands

In our last interaction with fitness trainer, Prem Mehta, we looked at training in the hot summer months and the precautions to be taken therein. In this issue, with the rains having set in with a vengeance, we look at an interesting way to exercise indoors with the help of a popular prop — Thera-Bands!

TTT: Hi Prem. Good to see you again. What interesting element of fitness are we going to talk about today? I’m guessing it won’t be an outdoor one considering the rains have extended their footprint across the country?
PM: Hi. You’re absolutely right. Today, we are going to talk about a very interesting way to exercise indoors with a prop. Of course, this can be done outdoors as well but for this season, this prop is an excellent way to stay fit with indoor workouts. I am talking about Thera-Bands or Thera-Tubes.

TTT: Sounds interesting. What exactly are Thera-Bands?
PM: Thera-Bands or resistance bands are latex bands or tubes that are used for physical therapy and light strength-training exercises. They are available at all sports stores and on online stores as well and are not very expensive.

TTT: That’s great. So how do Thera-Bands help us?
PM: With Thera-Bands you can do a variety of exercise routines. The good part is that you can do both upper and lower body exercise with these bands. In addition, Thera-Bands are also good for core-strengthening exercises.

TTT: So tell us, how do you use these Thera-Bands?
PM: Thera-Bands are extremely flexible and hence can be used to strengthen different parts of the body. Let me take you through these routines one by one. The accompanying pictures will help you understand how to do them correctly.

Let’s start with the biceps first.

1. Biceps Curl: The Standing Biceps Curl is the basic exercise for biceps. It is simple to do. You simply step on the elastic with one foot while you hold the handles with both hands and move your hands out and back towards your shoulder keeping your elbows close to the side of your body. If you wish to increase the resistance of the exercise, you can step on the elastic with both feet. You can choose to work each arm separately or both simultaneously.

2. Overhead Shoulder Press: Stand on the centre of the band with the arches of your feet hip-width apart. Hold the ends of the band, positioning your hands at your side and at shoulder level, elbows bent with palms facing each other so your thumbs touch your shoulders. Press straight up, rotating your palms forward as you fully extend your arms. Lower back down slowly and repeat. For beginners who cannot move their hands fully upright due to the tension in the band, you can raise your arms till the level of your shoulders so that they are level with your shoulders. As your stamina increases, you will be able to move your hands straight up.

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