Band Work for Gains

High-Rep Band Work – It’s one of the most overlooked ways to supercharge results in minimal time. Band work places virtually zero stress on the nervous system, which means it can be done anywhere and at any time without robbing any of your training capacity. Throw band work into your warm-up, sprinkle it into your workouts, use it as a finisher, or get a pump in on your off days.

Remember, the purpose is to feel the working muscle, not to chase progressive overload. Focus on accumulating time under tension with sets of 20-plus reps. If your goal is to target a lagging body part or build a weak link, accumulate 100 total reps of a targeted exercise after you train and on your off days. If used as part of a warm-up, do 2-3 sets of 20-25 reps. Options:
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• Upper Body: Pull-aparts, face pulls, straight-arm pulldowns, tricep pushdowns, hammer curls, shrugs
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• Lower Body: Pull-throughs, single-leg curls, double-leg curls, good mornings, X-band walks
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Benefits:
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• Band work can build up weak links. Louie Simmons talks about how many of his lifters have seen their bench press numbers skyrocket after adding high-rep band pushdowns to their daily routines. Likewise, lower-body options like banded leg curls and pull-throughs can build your squat and deadlift.
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• It can be used to target lagging body parts. No rear delts? Hit 100 band pull-aparts on off days. Pancake glutes? Do 100 pull-throughs every night. (Swipe for vid.)
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• It strengthens the mind-muscle connection. Because of their unique strength curve – low resistance at the beginning, maximal resistance at the end-range – bands generally elicit a stronger peak contraction than free weights. This makes band work a useful tool to build a stronger mind-muscle connection.
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• It strengthens connective tissue. Strengthening connective tissue (tendons, ligaments, cartilage) can be a godsend for beaten-up lifters working around pain.
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• There’s practically zero risk of injury.