Weights or bands?

RoosterB

Hi All,
Looking at starting P90x. Do people prefer using weights or resistance bands for this?

RoosterB

RoosterB

I must be the only person here looking at P90X.

kouzzzz

I did P90X back to back with weights. I prefer weights but the bands are much cheaper.

Here is something I found in an article:

The resistance bands have different flexing points. You can make them harder to do by making a larger loop on the ground and then stepping on that loop. The bands will get to more areas around the muscle that you are trying to work out. With the way that it flexes it forces your surrounding muscles to work also. The only downside to the cords is that they can get in the way or you might not be able to do a certain workout. Tony Horton will show you a way to make it work but it does take some coordination. Another advantage of the cords is building up the muscles to do chin-ups. Most people starting out do not have the strength to do a chin-up. The cords come in handy because you can wrap the cord around your pull up bar and slowly start building your back muscles up. You are less prone to injury when using the cords because your muscles will tend to bounce back if you cannot get past the tension.

Using weights is how you are going to build muscle. Dumbbells focus in on the muscle you are trying to build. The surrounding muscles do get a workout but not as much as the bands. That is not as big of deal as you think. Your goal is to build up that specific muscle. The P90X routine is going to work those muscles eventually. Weight training is going to cut through the fat quicker than the cords. If you do not have a set of weights, I would suggest using the Bowflex Select Techs. They use a technology that lets use slide weights in and out very quickly. You will love this feature when trying to keep up with Tony Horton.

kouzzzz

I have the bowflex select techs, I hate doing bicep curls with them. I little bulky.

BobbyClerici

I love these discussions:
Weights or bands?

How about BOTH?
It's a good idea to do both in that changing up our resistance helps keep us all one step ahead of our bodies desire to down regulate the effects of our work in the gym. That's our body's job - make things easy for itself.

This stifles progress, so those who swear by weights, use bands for a few weeks, and when you cycle back to weights, you'll get better results. Then, go with machines, then cables, then dumbbells, ect....

Good Luck!

kouzzzz

I love these discussions:
Weights or bands?

How about BOTH?
It's a good idea to do both in that changing up our resistance helps keep us all one step ahead of our bodies desire to down regulate the effects of our work in the gym. That's our body's job - make things easy for itself.

This stifles progress, so those who swear by weights, use bands for a few weeks, and when you cycle back to weights, you'll get better results. Then, go with machines, then cables, then dumbbells, ect....

Good Luck!

Agree... I tried the bands for P90X, it just seemed a little awkward. That's why I stayed with the dumbbells.

RoosterB

Great feedback thanks guys. I'll wait till the package arrives at the end of the week and then see what weight bumbells are recommended as I do have a set but they're not huge. Hoping to just get a set of bands separately.