Ellenbecker's book on resistance bands.

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Product Description

Maximize your strength, speed, and power through the use of resistance bands and tubing. As a complete workout on their own or a supplement to free weights and machines, strength bands are the ultimate tool for customizing workouts and isolating muscles. And the portable bands and tubing make the perfect travel workout.

Strength Band Training shows how to use resistive bands and tubing in 106 exercises addressing every major muscle group. These exercises have been used by strength professionals and many top athletes because the bands and tubing allow you to add resistance in multiple directions—something free weights and machines can’t do. As a result, your resistance routine can simulate sport demands, strengthening core and supporting muscles or targeting specific rehabilitation needs.

Easy to adjust, bands and tubing are designed to provide resistance for users at any level of strength and ability. Add Strength Band Training to your conditioning program for the most complete and versatile workouts possible.

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #191772 in Books
• Published on: 2004-11-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 224 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780736054935
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review
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""I attribute a large part of my durability as an athlete to my resistance band exercise program. It's a perfect way to target and strengthen muscles. Strength Band Training is loaded with extremely effective exercises and programs to help you get the most out of this type of conditioning.""

Meghann Shaughnessy
WTA Tour Tennis Professional

""Strength Band Training is a must for anyone who wants to safely enter the portable, affordable, and versatile world of resistance band training.""

Mark Verstegen, MS, CSCS
President and Founder, Athletes' Performance

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From the Publisher
"I attribute a large part of my durability as an athlete to my resistance band exercise program. It’s a perfect way to target and strengthen muscles. Strength Band Training is loaded with extremely effective exercises and programs to help you get the most out of this type of conditioning."

Meghann Shaughnessy WTA Tour Tennis Professional

"Strength Band Training is a must for anyone who wants to safely enter the portable, affordable, and versatile world of resistance band training."

Mark Verstegen, MS, CSCS President and Founder, Athletes’ Performance

From the Author
I would like to address several issues in Mr. Abraham's review and present the facts:

1. The lack of "documentation" was because this book was written as a "how to" rather than a "why". We specifically state in the first chapter that more scientific information and documentation is available in our textbook, "The Scientific & Clinical Application of Elastic Resistance", rather than burden the reader with scientific details in an practical book.

2. The bibliography in the book is provided to recognize the origin of some of the exercises from Europe (which happen to be German books), as we stated in the preface. These references are NOT citing "original research", which as stated before, is not included in this practical book, but instead included in a separate text.

3. Hygenic (not "Hygienic") Corporation is an American company based in Akron Ohio, not Germany.

4. Phil Page's position with Thera-Band products was noted in his bibliography. We also recognize the support of Hygenic Corporation in the Acknowledgements.

Phil Page

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Customer Reviews

good idea, poor execution
I bought this book hoping it would serve as a one-stop resource for dozens of strength band exercise ideas. That is, afterall, what this book attempts to be. However, I quickly found that this book falls far short of that mark.

On the positive side:
1) lots of exercises
2) generally well-organized by body part

On the negative side:

1) Their picture of "proper" athletic posture is seriously flawed. The guy's head is jutted forward, his abdominals aren't contracted, and his shoulders are rounded, among other things.

2) Photos are limited to 2 shots per exercise - the 2nd shot usually shows a variation of the first. While I was glad they showed the variations, this book would have been far clearer and more useful if they'd included at least enough pictures to show each exercise's 'start' and 'finish' positions.

3) I have to agree with the reviewer from Portland Oregon - the models in the exercise photos look bored to tears most of the time. I'm not advocating cheesy grins, but since these types of exercises are usually more effective if one (the exerciser) focuses on the specific muscles you're using, it'd be nice if this book showed models who at least look like they're actually doing the exercises - not just assuming a certain position and sleeping with eyes open until told to do something else.

4) As another reviewer mentioned, very few (if any) of the exercise pics show how one might attach the strength band to doors, table legs, or other attachment points the typical "at home" exerciser is likely to have available. In most cases, it matters significantly how high you attach your band, the angle of resistance you create, etc.

In summary, I will be returning this book. If the negatives I listed above are important to you, a far better book selection for you to consider would be "Therapeutic Exercises Using Resistive Bands" by Caroline Corning Creager. Although that book's title specifies "therapeutic" exercises, what you'll find inside is actually much broader in scope. It includes 275 exercises (pictures depict 'start' & 'end' positions :) ) plus a whole lot more.

good product (bands); not such a good book
As someone who has used the Hygienic Corporation's Thera-Band brand of elastic resistance bands, off-and-on, for several years, I know that this type of training can have real benefits, particularly for people who prefer to exercise at home. Bands can, though, be difficult to use for some resistance training (particularly those involving the legs and lower back), may take more time to set up than it takes to prepare to use a machine or free weights, and can't match the greater resistances offered by heavier weights or machine settings. Lacking the physical restrictions of machines and the need to rely on gravity for resistance, any explanations of their use must be especially well-written and illustrated. The ones in this book are not. The written instructions are much briefer than they are, in, say, the excellent "Strength Training Anatomy," while the illustrations are considerably worse. They have at least three shortcomings: (1) generally they don't indicate what the start *and* the finish look like; (2) it's sometimes hard to tell exactly how the band(s) was set up and is being used in relation to the body; and, (3) the models appear uninterested in, and unfamiliar with, the exercises. (Something else worth noting, they are all photographed amongst exercise machines, which are often used to anchor the bands, while you are more likely to have to use a door, or even furniture, for the same purpose.) A really good exercise publisher will go to the trouble of having an artist illustrate a book's verbal descriptions, generally from photos taken for that purpose. (Drawings can be clearer than photos, and the reader is never distracted by the models.)
Another problem with this book is an almost complete lack of documentation. Claims about the benefits of using elastic resistance for fitness are made which should be referenced--even if only informally. They are not. A brief bibliography may indicate why--all of the original research cited there is in German, about five or six such sources total. That's no coincidence, as the Hygienic Corporation is a German company and it appears that it sponsored the research leading to the works listed. In fact, Phil Page works for it; the section of Hygienic Corporation's website illustrating how to use Thera-bands for fitness is largely his work, and he was the expert who answered peoples' questions regarding using the bands when I had a few. I don't remember if this was mentioned in the book or not, certainly it should be. The text and graphics on the website illustrating the use of bands for fitness are, IMO, often more helpful than the ones in this book. Of course, there are far fewer of them, and the book provides more general information. That said, the Hygienic Corporation's Thera-Band website, Frederic Delavier's "Strength Training Anatomy," (or other well-done resistance training or fitness book(s)), and a little patience and imagination should get you quite far with elastic bands. Try that prescription (and a knowledgeable friend or consultant, if possible), before you buy this book.

Great Practical Tips
Elastic Resistance therapy has long been a tool for a therapist in rehabilitation without a solid knowledge base to support its use. Page and Ellenbecker have done an outstanding job at providing not only a synthesis of research in this area but they have also provided great practical tips. It is a great balance between research synthesis and practical application. I highly recommend this resource if you utilize elastic resistance in your therapy.