Strength training with an elastic band was already developed in the 1960s, when Erich DEUSER trained the national soccer team with bicycle inner tubes. In 1967 he developed the ring-shaped Deuserband. Although training with increasing resistance has many advantages, it has not really caught on in the past decades.
The Thera- Band
The Thera- Band ®, which comes from the company of the same name, is a 10 cm wide, flat and approx. 1-3 m. long rubber band, with different resistances. Because of the brand’s reputation, almost every latex band available on the market is called Theraband ®.
The individual thicknesses are indicated by different colors. Starting with the extra thin beige Thera- Band ®, up to the strong black band. For competitive athletes, the special colors silver and gold with particularly strong resistance are available.
The constant increase in resistance during the execution of movement ensures that the maximum pulling resistance is achieved with the highest efficiency of the muscles. Because there are no additional weights, training with the Thera- Band ® is one of the safest variants in strength training. In addition to muscle build-up, stimuli are set to promote movement coordination.
Since the training can be done at home, it is very cost-effective. Only the acquisition costs are incurred. Since the Thera- Bands themselves do not represent any weight, they can be transported without problems in comparison to dumbbells and can be used everywhere.
- Since the individual muscle groups develop different forces, different resistances should be used. Either stronger resistances can be chosen or the Thera- Band ® can be folded.
- TheTheraband ® should always be in perfect condition. In case of small tears, the tape should be replaced without fail.
- The execution of the movement should always be slow and controlled.
- The Thera Band ® should always be slightly pre-stretched.
