Top Mini Band Exercises

Mini Bands (also known as Resistance Bands or Loop Bands) are one of our favorite pieces of equipment and honestly, something that we recommend everyone should own! They are easy to transport, great for activating muscles, capable of delivering a full body workout and let’s be honest, relatively cheap.

That said, as amazing as Mini Bands are, we more often than not find that people don’t really know how to use them and for that reason, here is our guide to the Top Mini Band Exercises we think you should have up your sleeve.

How Mini Bands Work

Mini bands work similarly to free weights, but there are a few key differences. Like dumbbells, barbells, or any other free weights, mini bands provide external resistance that your muscles have to work against. When you’re pushing against a mini band during an exercise, your muscles have to engage to fight the tension.

The biggest difference, though, is that mini bands do not rely on gravity the way that free weights do. Instead, you’re working against the force of just the band. That might sound easier, but what it means is that you’re working against resistance throughout the entire range of an exercise, not just during the portion where you’re moving against gravity.

Our Top Four Mini Band Exercises

We’ve put together our top mini band exercises and whilst we could provide a list the length of our arm, we’ve picked just four power packed moves to get you started. These mini band exercises can be used as either activation exercises before a bigger training session, or if mixed with other body weight moves, can be an awesome workout by themselves.

Split Squat Pulses

Great for both lower and upper body activation, especially around the trunk and hips, is split squat pulses.

Technique:

1. In a half kneeling position, raise your back leg slightly off the ground 
2. Place the mini band around your hands and reach out in front of you
3. With your hands far enough apart to feel tension, being doing small pulses movements
4. For extra challenge you can reach out further, or above yourself

Mini Band Walks

Having the mini band around your wrists means you get a great workout for your shoulders whilst also challenging your core.

Technique:

1. Put the mini band around your wrists and then get into a push up position
2. Aim to keep your body in a straight line
3. Walk to the side, going opposite hand and opposite foot
4. Three steps to the the left and then three steps to the right  

Split Stance Bent Over Rows

We love this exercise because it challenges so many different areas of your body.

Technique:

1. In a half kneeling position, raise your back leg slightly off the ground 
2. Place the mini band around your foot and maintain your weight in your front foot whilst hinging forwards from your hips
3. Perform a row motion, trying to feel your shoulder blades come together
4. Hold the motion at the top for extra burn!

T Touch

Another exercise that will hit multiple parts of your body is the T Touch.

Technique:

1. Put the band around your ankles and place all of your weight onto your left foot
2. Hinge backwards, setting your hips back
3. Tap your right foot backwards, to the side and forwards
4. Maintain your weight on the planted foot 

With the above exercise, you should make sure to keep balance between sides, so repeat with similar technique on opposite sides of your body.

These mini band exercises are great to activate or as a workout. If used for activation, we would complete fewer sets, say 2 or 3 and for 30 seconds at a time. If you incorporate them with other exercises into a full workout, perhaps do 3 to 5 sets but again for 30 seconds each time.