Best Basic Resistance Band Exercises for Beginners + Videos

If you have a resistance band, there’san endless list of exercises you can do with major benefits. Whether you’re infor strength, flexibility or even just warming up your body for a majorexercise routine like martial arts, resistance bands can give you exactly whatyou need.

As a beginner, the basic resistance bandexercises you can do include band bent-over rows, band good mornings, bandglute kick-backs, band lat pulldowns, band kneeling crunches, band lyinglateral leg raises, band pull-aparts, band thrusters, band lateral leg lifts,and band choppers.

You may already be aware that some ofthese exercises can be performed either on their own or with gym weights.However, a resistance band is great for starting off as a beginner or after aninjury with low risk and varying the difficulty as you advance.

At the end of this guide is a list ofthe best resistance bands for whatever level of exercising you are at. Aftergetting yourself one or several of these bands (they’re quite affordable), youcan start with these ten exercises:

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1. Band Bent-over Rows

The arms are a great place to start yourworkouts with your new band, and bent-over rows are the perfect exercise. Theband bent-over rows work your biceps and triceps at the same time and are doneas follows:

Stand with your feet shoulder width apart.
Loop the band under your feet and hold the endsin both of your hands.
Slightly bend your knees and lean forward whilekeeping your back flat and your arms straight downwards.
Pull up on the band’s ends until your upper armsare parallel to your back then release until your whole arm is perpendicular tothe ground again.

That makes up a single rep. Start with10 reps and do three sets of 10 reps each as you advance.

2. Band Good Mornings

A good morning is basically a bendingexercise and there are many ways to perform it. However, the one we’reinterested in is the one we use bands to increase its difficulty. The startingposition for this exercise is almost similar to the one above and it’s done asfollows:

Start with your feet being shoulder width apartand the band looped below your feet and the ends of the band held by both ofyour hands. Your arms should be straight besides your body. The band should beits most tight in the starting position.
Very slightly bend your knees for stability andlean forward while maintaining the position of your arms relative to your feetand the ground. The bend should go as far down as possible and should only beat the hips. The back and the rest of the upper body should remain as they werein the starting position as you bend.
Slowly return to the starting point for acomplete rep.

You should feel a stretch in yourhamstrings and the back and, with time, you’ll bend lower and with morestability. This exercise should also be performed starting with 10 reps in 3sets.

3. Band Glute Kick-backs

This exercise is done when you’re on allfours and kicking back like a donkey does. Only that you won’t be kicking upwardsbut straight backwards as follows:

Go on all fours with your hands and upper legsbeing perpendicular to the ground. Your back should be parallel to the ground.
Loop one end of the band under your right footand the other end around your right hand.
Push the right leg straight backwards until youform a straight line from the back of your head through the back to the heel ofthis foot. Restore the starting point to complete the rep.

Perform 10 reps on each foot and in 3sets for a start.

4. Band Lat Pulldowns

The band lat pulldowns are performedwith an anchored band. If you’re not in a gym with the anchor points, you can useyour window grill or door frame as the anchor.

The rest of the exercise is as follows:

Anchor the resistance band at a point that’s afew feet above your head. Preferably, lift up your hands and measure thehighest point you can reach then use that point to anchor your band. Hold theends of the band in your hands.
Stand with one foot in front of the other for stability.Stand such that your front leg is perpendicular to the ground up to the kneewhile the back leg is straight but the foot is still flat on the ground.
At the resting point, your hands should bestraight up with the anchor point.
Pull the band towards your body until yourforearms are parallel to the ground then return to the starting position for arep.

Perform 15 reps and repeat for 3 sets.

5. Band Kneeling Crunches

If you can’t do crunches for one reasonor the other, there’s still a viable method to work your core for abs or cuttingthe belly. The steps are as follows:

Anchor the band about your head’s height and holdthe ends in each hand.
Kneel down facing away from the anchor point withyour feet as flat as possible (not resting on your toes). The ends of the bandshould be going over your shoulders while the arms are close to your chest.
At the start of the move, you should be uprightfrom your knees upwards.
Lean forward as much as you can while ensuringthat only your core bears the weight of the resistance band then get back tothe upright position for a single rep.

Perform between 10 to 15 reps of thisworkout. If you can, perform 3 sets of it.

6. Band Lying Lateral Leg Raises

To work your inner thighs, a resistanceband is the perfect solution. It’s an exercise you’ll enjoy as you’ll feel theburn a few reps into it. It’s done as follows:

7. Band Pull-aparts

Band pull-aparts entail pulling apartthe band so that you tone your arm and chest muscles. It’s performed asfollows:

Start with your feet shoulder width apart andthe body straight up. Hold the band in both of your hands and ensure thedistance between your palms is about shoulder width as well.
Raise your arms straight before you untilthey’re parallel to the ground.
Without moving the rest of the body, move yourhands away from each other as much as you can then return to the startingpoint. This completes a single rep.

Perform as many reps as you can with therecommended being 10 to 15 for a start.

8. Band Thrusters

Band thrusters work many parts of yourbody including your glutes, biceps and the back. As the name suggests, you’llbe thrusting upwards and against both gravity and the resistance band. It’sdone as follows:

Stand with your feet shoulder width apart andloop the band below the feet while holding the other ends.
Go into a squat position with the band passingon the outside of your hands. Your elbows should point on the outside of yourbody. Maintain a straight back.
Press your heels into the ground as you raise upfrom the squat. As your body nears the upright position, push the band endsdirectly upwards until your arms are fully stretched.
Slowly return to the starting point to completethe rep.

Perform between 10 to 15 reps for eachof the 3 reps.

9. Band Lateral Leg Lifts

Remember the lying lateral leg raises?The lateral leg lifts are the standing version of this workout. While alsoworking on your inner thigh muscles, the standing one adds difficulty byworking the ankle of the stationary foot through balancing the body.

It’s done as follows:

Stand upright with your feet together and yourhands akimbo.
Loop the band around your ankles then, shiftingthe weight of your body to the left leg, lift the right leg away from the bodyand directly to the right as far as you can. Hold for 3 seconds then return tothe starting position for a single rep.

Perform between 10 to 15 reps on eachleg and perform 3 sets on each leg for a start.

10. Band Choppers

Band choppers highly mimic the motionsyou make when chopping down a tree with an axe. They work on your shouldermuscles.

They’re performed as follows:

Stand with your feet shoulder width apart withthe rest of the body in an upright posture.
Anchor the band above your head and hold theends in your hands. The hand should be together at the start.
Stand facing 90 degrees from the anchor point ofthe band.
Pull the ends of the band diagonally across yourbody and away from the anchor point as far as you can without moving the restof the body. If done right, you should do the axe-chopping motions.

Do between 10 and 15 reps and in threesets then turn 180 degrees to your left and do the same.

These are great exercises to start off your workout routine with resistance bands.

Best Exercise Bands for Beginners

The five best resistance bands for beginners includethe following:

1. Tribe Resistance Bands Set

2. REEHUT Single Resistance Band

3. Lim Resistance Bands Exercise Loops

4. FOMI 7 Ring Stretch and Resistance ExerciseBand

5. Koncle 11 pcs Resistance Band Set

These bands are affordable yet of a very high quality.

Best Basic Resistance Band Exercises for Beginners + Videos | Fitdeft (2024)