Have you ever had a shoulder or chest injury? Quite often a physiotherapist will hand you an Xertube Resistance band and show you a bunch of exercises to help get the shoulder back to full health. These bands are fantastic because you can take them anywhere, attach them to almost any door and perform the exercises without getting sweaty or tired. They are a gentle method of exercise and that is why this resistance band is often used on surgical patients to build up strength after an operation.

Benefits of using a resistance band
Resistance bands are not just for people with surgery wounds and injuries. In fact, the Xertube is so heavy duty it is used by professional athletes around the world. With this band you can:

• tone muscles
• strengthen hard to work areas
• build muscle mass
• give muscles better endurance for sport
• create a new type of workout for plateaued muscles

If you are a sport player, bodybuilder or pilates enthusiast you will benefit greatly from the Xertube resistance band. It is a best seller and has been getting rave reviews from experts all over the world for its ability to shape and tone muscles and revitalize boring workouts. When you buy the Xertube brand you also get a door attachment, a choice of different strengths (green, red, etc.) and an exercise chat to show you how to do the resistance band exercises.

The best thing about this resistance band, however, is the price. For under $10 you get a piece of workout equipment that is going to last you a long time while giving you a workout that is constantly progressing and challenging your body.

If you would like to purchase or price the Xertube resistance band with door attachment please click here. Or you can see there are any available in our second hand gym equipment store.

The Xertube Resistance Band with Door Attachment is a perfect piece of equipment to own if you are looking to workout at home, on the road or at work. This fantastic rubber invention is also the equipment of choice for those people looking to build strength back into an injured muscle or joint or after surgery.

The Xertube Resistance Band is made of a very durable rubber that allows you to pull it to great lengths and tensions without there being any snapping, breaking or tearing. This particular set comes with a door attachment so you can attach it to almost any door in the world and do your workout. Some exercises you can do include:

• rows
• curls
• shoulder twists
• lateral raises
• etc.

I highly encourage all gym goers, whether novice or advanced, to own a resistance band. It is the perfect way to supplement your workout and it really builds a type of strength that weights and body weight exercises can’t.

If you would like to price or purchase the Xertube Resistance Band with Door Attachment please click here.

Recently my girlfriend bought one of these armbands for her iPod so that she didn’t have to keep holding the thing when she was working out. It has some good elements some bad.

What is the Aztech iPod Armband?

These things are designed with rubber and velcro to hold your iPod on to your arm so that you don’t have to hold your music player while you are running, riding, lifting weights, etc. They are designed for maximum comfort and to repel sweat so that you don’t end up with a soggy iPod.

What are the disadvantages?

The major disadvantage of this armband is that it does not seem to be made for maximum ease of use. By this I mean that the holes for the buttons at the top do not line up perfectly. This can make it difficult to turn your iPod on and off the hold function.

You can get a price check and see other brands here.

When it comes to martial arts, strength and power training almost nothing beats the kettlebells. These funny little weights were popularized a few years ago by a Russian Kettle Bell expert and ever since then they have taken off and positioned themselves as a fitness force not to be messed with.

What are Kettlebells?

Kettlebells are round weights with a handle on the top. The idea is to use these weights in a more fluid and moving style than normal weights and as such it is said to help you develop strength and power without impacting on your speed.

Who can use Kettlebells?

Kettle Bells are best for:

• Sports people
• Martial artists
• Gymnasts
• Boxers
• Strength trainers

They are good for anyone who wants to supplement their normal weights routine with a workout that is hard, fast and very good for your body.

What exercises can you do with Kettlebells?

Kettle Bells can be used for almost every bodybuilding and strength training exercise as well as many more. Most of the exercises you see people doing on kettle bells have been specifically designed to be done with a kettle bell.

However, you can still do exercises such as: bicep curls, squats, military presses, lateral side raises, abdominal crunches, tricep extensions, etc. All of the regulars are still easily done.

Where to buy a kettlebell?

If you want to buy a kettle bell you can look to your local martial arts supplier or take a look at the Amazon store here. They have lots of kettle bells at much better prices than retail.

This was hard.

So I took the rest and my ankle seemed better. However, after a few slips on the martial arts floor the ankle was right back where it was weeks ago. Sore, swollen and very stiff. I needed a brace.

The Ankle Brace that works

A lot of other braces I have used aren’t that good. They don’t really stabilize anything and it seems as though they just cut off the blood flow. This Futuro Ankle Stabilizer, however, is magic. It sweats really well and it keeps the ankle tucked in tight without feeling uncomfortable and painful. It does what it is supposed to do.

The ankle is one of those things that need to be taken care of. If you push through ankle pain you will end up with a chronic ankle that ever heals and is always painful – much like a tennis elbow.

Do yourself a favor and buy yourself an ankle brace now.

What is a healthy resting heart rate? How do you know whether yours is healthy? How do you measure it? Is it really that important to know? In this post we will look at all of these questions as well as some top notch equipment that you can use to keep your most important muscle healthy.

What is a resting heart rate?

The resting heart rate is the number of times your heart beats per minute when you are at rest. Rest here usually means as soon as you wake up in the morning before your heart rate has a chance to be influenced by coffee, tea and movement.

What is a healthy resting heart rate?

A healthy resting heart rate is different depending on many factors. For example, men’s heart rates are often a lot slower than a female’s.

Therefore it is better to look at the top end of the scale as opposed to giving you one figure that is healthy. Most health professionals will agree on the fact that anything over about 83 beats per minute is unhealthy. You should see a doctor if your heart rate is anything above this just to make sure everything is normal.

How to measure your resting heart rate

To measure your resting heart rate you should get a stop watch and sit up in bed first thing in the morning. Place your index finger and middle finger on your neck under your jaw line and press until you find a pulse. Hold this position and count how many beats there are in one minute.

Never use your thumb to measure the rate because it has its own pulse and you may count incorrectly.

Polar heart rate monitor watch

These good quality heart rate monitor watches are a very good investment if you are interested in keeping your heart healthy. More important than the resting heart rate is your recovery rate which is how quickly your heart recovers after some intense exercise. Having one of these watches makes measuring much easier.

This watch measures how many calories you burn, your optimal calorie burning heart rate zone, energy expenditure, how faster you need to move, and much more. This is one of the best heart rate monitor watches I have seen.

Get a price on the Polar Heart Rate Monitor Watch.

When I started adding some additional weight to my wrists and ankles for my martial arts training I really noticed some fast improvements. These Valeo Ankle and Wrist Weights are the perfect thing you need to take your growth to the next level.

What can you do with ankle / wrist weights?

These type of weights can be used for almost anything.

Abs
Put them on your ankles while you do your abs workout. They provide extra resistance for your reverse leg raises and they make it harder to hold your legs up when you are doing your abs crunches.

Punches
A lot of old school boxers used weights to make it harder to punch during training. They claimed that when the weights came off they could punch faster after a few weeks of training. This is a principle that originated in the Shaolin Temple when monks used to punch whilst holding bricks.

Legs
Try whacking the weights on your ankles and doing some jumping squats. This really makes the jump a lot harder and you will start to see a lot faster muscle growth.

Valeo Wrist and Ankle Weights

The thing I really like about these weights is that they are sturdy and comfortable. The material is not rough like a lot of weights so you will not get chaffing when you are using them. As far as I am concerned they are the best brand by far.

Get a price or order the Valeo Wrist Weights.

As far as medicine balls go this is just about the heaviest you’ll need. 12kg is a really good weight to use for an advanced abs workout or a really good martial arts strength training session.

PVC heavy 12kg medicine ball

This ball is tough. It is made for smashing against the floor or the wall in your hardcore abs or martial arts workouts. It is designed to be thrown across the room to your partner to workout your back and abs. This really is a medicine ball that will challenge you in your workout.

I use the medicine ball all the time to add extra resistance to my abs workouts by placing it on my chest and doing crunches or by getting a partner to throw it at me while I do sit ups. After a workout like that your abs hurt like never before.

Every martial artist, boxer and abdominal athlete should own one of these bad boys. It will really take your core training to a new level.

Get a price on the 12kg medicine ball.

Everybody wants big biceps. One of the best ways to achieve them is to work with the preacher curl on a quality preacher curl bench. Deltech has the perfect thing.

The Deltech Preacher Curl Bench

I am a big fan of the preacher curl. It isoltes the biceps amazingly and really allows you to master the curling technique so that you use your biceps without getting help from your shoulders. It also prevents you from using a lot of momentum to hoist the bar up to the top position; another flaw in the technique of bicep lifters.

This preacher bench is made from heavy steel and has the bicep plate on a 45 degree angle which is perfect for the curls. You can also adjust the height of everything to make sure you are in the best position.

How do you do a Preacher Curl?

The reason you buy this bench is because it puts your arms in the perfect position to isolate your biceps. All you do is sit on the seat and reach down and grab the barbell. You then place your triceps firmly on the slope part of the bench and begin to slowly curl the weight up to your face. Tense your biceps and then slowly lower the weight back down. The gravity will try to take the weight all the way to the bottom which means your biceps have to work extra hard to keep it up. It is a brilliant exercise.

Get a price on the Deltech Preacher Curl Bench.

Some things to look for when buying second hand gym equipment

Whether you are buying from a pawn shop, second hand retailer or a private person you should have a look for these important things.

1. Is there any rust?
If there is rust on a piece of metallic gym equipment I would steer clear of it. I once bought a second hand bench press for about $50 that had some rust down the side. One day I went out there and the whole arm had collapsed and the weight had come crasing down and dented my floor. It was lucky I wasn’t underneath it when it happened. Rust seriously weakens the structure so you should not purchase anything that has any signs of it?

2. Is the price accurate
Don’t always accept the price that they have written down. If you are buying something second hand then the price should be less than half. If you bought a brand new bench press today and then sold it tonight without ever using it the price should still go down by at least 50%. Why? Because you have no warranty and no manufacturer guarantee. This is important.

Also, if you are buying second hand gear you can usually haggle. If you show interest in a product and then tell the guy it is too expensive they will always come down. If they don’t come down then tell them “forget it” and walk out the store. 90% of the time they will make you an offer. I learned this trick when I went on holiday in India where everything is haggled, even toothpaste.

The trick is to find a fault with it. Any fault. If it has padding look for scratches. If it has a stand look for a wobble. These are the kind of features that cut the price.

3. Are they throwing in a bonus item or two?
If you buy something second hand you need to milk the opportunity. Just remember, these guys want the sale as much as you want the item so ask them for a bonus. If you are gonna spend $300 dollars buying a punching bag then why can’t they throw in a pair of boxing gloves? They can.

Again, the trick is to make it seem like you need that extra item in order to make the main purchase worthwhile. For example, say something like “I can’t afford to buy boxing gloves and the bag and I can’t use it without the gloves to forget it.”

They will normally throw them in.

4. Are there any warranties or assurances
Make sure you know whether the used item has a warranty. Normally it won’t but quite often you can get a warranty from the original owner if there is still time left on it. This is handy if it breaks. You should also be aware of you return rights. If you are buying from a pawn shop they do have to meet certain sale standards. Just because it is second hand it does not mean they can sell you a broken product knowingly.

Conclusion
These are just some of the things you can look out for but there are scores of others. Make sure you do your research before buying anything second hand.