Crush Your Week: 5 Resistance Band Workouts to Target Your Core
Resistance bands are fundamental for functional training and are light enough to provide a solid workout wherever you are – even if you're traveling often. They teach control and promote better form, all while protecting your joints to prevent injury.
Bands are designed for use in the types of compound exercises in this week's Crush the Week workouts, courtesy of Spartan SGX Coach Jess Kidd. Choose your own resistance weight, but make sure it allows you to maintain proper form while still challenging you. These core-torcher exercises will strengthen various body parts by focusing on core engagement and recruiting your stabilizing muscles. Pro tip: Don't forget to breathe!
What are the benefits of core workouts?
Maintaining a strong, stable core is essential to not only crushing obstacle course races, but also in avoiding injury and staying mobile into older age. The following are great reasons to grab a resistance band and try this week's core workouts.
- Improving posture and agility
- Reducing back pain and injury
- Improving balance and coordination
- Reduced risk of falling
- Increased mobility into older age
Workout: Core Objectives
A 15-minute AMRAP (as many rounds as possible). Do 10 reps of each exercise with no breaks.
- Plank jacks (band around ankles)
- Scissors (band around ankles)
- Glute bridges (band just above knees)
- Hollow body crunch (band around ankles)
- Bicycles (band around tops of feet)
Workout: Ab Bandit
A 15-minute EMOM (every minute on the minute). Complete 20 reps of one exercise in under a minute and rest until the next minute begins. Repeat rounds until timer hits 15 minutes.
- Mountain climbers (band around tops of feet)
- Hollow rock (band around wrists and ankles)
- Plank push-ups (bands around wrists)
- Standing, 90º alternating knee raises (band around tops of feet)
- Alternating plank kick-backs (band just above knees)
Workout: Get Engaged
Perform 5 rounds of the following circuit, alternating between 30 seconds of work and 15 seconds of rest.
- Hollow hold (band around ankles and wrists)
- Right side lying leg lifts (band around ankles)
- (band around ankles)
- Squat jacks (band around ankles)
Workout: All 4s
A 20-minute AMRAP (as many rounds as possible). Do 10 reps of each exercise with no breaks.
- Alternating fire hydrants (band around ankles)
- Bear crawls (no band)
- Plank lateral toe taps (band around ankles)
- Crab crawl (no band)
- Alternating donkey kicks (band around midsoles of feet)
Workout: Banded Beast
A 15-minute EMOM (every minute on the minute). Complete 12 reps of one exercise in under a minute and rest until the next minute begins. Repeat rounds until timer hits 15 minutes.
- Alternating squat side kick-out (band around ankles)
- Star jump (band around ankles)
- Skaters (band around ankles)
- Alternating lateral side hops (band around ankles)
- Half burpees (band around ankles)
