Fitness Fads and Their Results

[Fulmen]

I need some people to enlighten me on the things I'm going to talk about. One thread on here made me think about the fads found in the fitness industry. The most recent one that comes to mind is a quirky "Postural" fad. With that, the other fads I've noticed is rubber bands (a.k.a. stretch bands), kettlebells; medicine (or swiss or balance) balls, electrode stimulation, vibration training, or the "Fat Burning Zone" (the chart and shit that people use when doing steady state cardio involving your heart rate).

Now I'm not a fool and won't spend a whole post saying that these fads were/are stupid and the related. Rather, I would like to know something. If you have used one, more, or all of those-Kettlebells, Medicine or Balance Balls, Rubber Bands, Postural Training, Electrode Stimulation, Vibration, or "Fat Burning Zone", then I have some questions.
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If your goal was hypertrophy:

• How many inches did you gain on specific body parts and in what amount of time did it take you to achieve it (e.g. Using a routine based on kettlebells and Swiss Balls, I gained a half inch on my biceps in five weeks)?

If your goal was fat loss:

• What was your body fat percentage before and after, and how long did it take you to achieve the result?
• How many inches on your waist did you lose, and in what amount of time did it take you to achieve it?

If your goal was speed, strength, and/or endurance:

• Did the amount of weight you do can do for 1 rep increase and if so, how long did it take to achieve the result?
• Did your muscular endurance increase and if so, how long did it take to achieve the result?
• If trying to increase sprint speed, was your speed higher after using the aforementioned techniques, and if so, in what amount of time did you achieve the result?
• If trying to increase endurance speed and/or length, did the aforementioned techniques increase it, and if so, how long did it take to achieve the result?

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I will be suprised if any of this gets answered, but it's a worth a shot. With kettlebells, I won't be suprised if someone actually does give out some positive results they recieved from using them. As for everything else...


..Time will tell.

[Frank.S]

By using bands, I increased my max squat. Who knows if it had anything to do with the bands, but the training while using them did brind my squat up significantly.

So many fads out there I agree, this recent posture thing is nuts, or my favorite, the whole 'Fast Carbs PWO' thing.

[Fulmen]

Originally Posted by Frank.S

By using bands, I increased my max squat. Who knows if it had anything to do with the bands, but the training while using them did brind my squat up significantly.

That's another thing that keeps my skepticism. The majority don't know if it was thing or another, since training is a culmination of exercises. Then again, you could find out what causes what if you do the same exercises, find the results, and then add in bands, and see what any extra results you can get.

Thanks for replying.

[bipennate]

Originally Posted by Fulmen

The most recent one that comes to mind is a quirky "Postural" fad.

I'm not sre whatyou're referring to: are you talking about joint positioning/mobility and muscle balance as a focus of corrective exercise selection?

[Leigh P.]

If your goal was hypertrophy:

* How many inches did you gain on specific body parts and in what amount of time did it take you to achieve it (e.g. Using a routine based on kettlebells and Swiss Balls, I gained a half inch on my biceps in five weeks)?

Muscle gain and size isn't just relative to equipment, it is also relative to nutrition in use of that equipment. Give a guy a log and excess calories and he can grow.

If your goal was fat loss:

* What was your body fat percentage before and after, and how long did it take you to achieve the result?
* How many inches on your waist did you lose, and in what amount of time did it take you to achieve it?

Same principal as above. Give a guy a log and take away calories and he will lose.

I am not going to keep going. I get what you are saying, why all the "fads".

If you can honestly say that improving postural movement isn't going to help you increase your squat, then I am not even going to waste my time.

The simple truth is that balance and mobility training incorporated with your goals (be it fat loss, muscle gain, etc) primarily leads to less injury and better performance and function. To me this spells that you will be in the game longer, in less pain and making improvements faster because you aren't setting down on your 2nd set of lunges because you knee hurts.

Do you need a kettlebell to grow inches? No, of course not.
Does kettlebell training invite the use of more stabilizers and increase the balance challenge of a workout? Yes.
If someone is used to doing bicep curls in a squat rack, then is kettlebell work going to whoop their tail more? Damn right.

You have to take into account all the variables.

[Fulmen]

Originally Posted by Leigh P.

The simple truth is that balance and mobility training incorporated with your goals (be it fat loss, muscle gain, etc) primarily leads to less injury and better performance and function. To me this spells that you will be in the game longer, in less pain and making improvements faster because you aren't setting down on your 2nd set of lunges because you knee hurts.

Good points. However; I believe that balance is a derivative of specific maximal strength (e.g. once you reach a specific level of leg strength, you can do one-legged squats-an exercise that incorporates balance, yet that doesn't mean that a powerlifter could do one). What is your opinion?

Then again I try my best to not include the general public into the equation-something of which I should've stated. My apologies. Also, I want to make clear that there are those that need such corrective exercises (but once again that concerns mainly the general public), and I have nothing against that. I consider it a "fad" to those who don't need it.

It just annoys me to hear that kettlebells to bands to swiss balls are some type of miracle to your exercise regimen. I'm sure everyone can understand.



*I forgot to add that in my original post that all the questions should be answered with nutrition having been the control group, thus leaving any changed results stemming from the use of the supposed "fads".

[bipennate]

Originally Posted by Fulmen

I consider it a "fad" to those who don't need it.

I have yet to meet anyone, be it normal, athlete, or other that doesn't have an issue in posture, proprioception, or muscle activation. In fact, athletes sometimes are the worst perpetrators of this.

Besides Leigh's points, it's a simple matter of length-tension: poor arthrokinematics and delayed muscle firing will directly lead to weaknesses in the kinetic chain...I've fixed people's movement and seen strength increases jump almost immediately (within weeks).

[Irishdazza]

So when are you coming to Jersey to help me out? My back twinge came back suddenly when I thought I had it fixed...with no discernable cause! It's a spasm, relieved by stretching...so I know the cause is elsewhere but damned if I can find it!

[RobLL]

Rubber Bands: I bought a few because if I work out at home they take the place of seated cable pulls, shoulder exercises, needed for one of the MagMob. Great tool to have in the home, travel gym.

[Jean-Paul]

I can sort of understand this gripe with regards to trainers who use gadgets they don't fully understand. I went through my "Paul Chek phase" (to steal a phrase from Bill Hartman) many years ago, and frankly deserved the crap I caught for it.

However, many of these things are simply tools. K-bells are really nothing more than a D-bell will a different shape. I liked Dos's comment at the summit about the RKB certifications... It's like being certified in Dumbbells. But that doesn't mean that K-bells are stupid. It's still a weight. It's the hype built up around it that appears to be turning you off.

Rubber bands are great if you know how to use them and why you're using them. There are some very practical applications to using them.

Stability balls reached the point of being ridiculous with all the ways people were using them, but that doesn't mean that they don't have a place in a routine. Balancing on one foot while juggling Russian K-bells is not one of them.

Once nautilus was all the rage. Machines have dominated bodybuilding routines for a long time. As you may have observed in this forum, most of us are pretty set on doing ground-based fitness programs, but that doesn't mean that all machines are bad. I have a client that I will ocassionally use leg extensions/curls on because he has drop foot, and it really helps add a dimension to his workouts.

Regarding vibration training, I think before you throw it out as a useless fad you need to look at the research.

Again, I think it sounds to me like your complaint is more based on the droves of trainers who use stuff they don't really understand.

[Fulmen]

Originally Posted by Jean-Paul

However, many of these things are simply tools. K-bells are really nothing more than a D-bell will a different shape. I liked Dos's comment at the summit about the RKB certifications... It's like being certified in Dumbbells. But that doesn't mean that K-bells are stupid. It's still a weight. It's the hype built up around it that appears to be turning you off.

Great points, and it is the hype built around all them that annoys me; hell, even if they're hyping up machines it makes me shake my head. Its as if people want to replace hard work with empty miracles.

Once nautilus was all the rage. Machines have dominated bodybuilding routines for a long time. As you may have observed in this forum, most of us are pretty set on doing ground-based fitness programs, but that doesn't mean that all machines are bad.

I completely agree, and I personally believe that machines have a specific place in my bodybuilding career (e.g. using leg extension to bring out more definition of an already well-built quadricep base).

Thanks for all the replies; now I get to look at things from a different perspective-and that's how ya learn.

[John Izzo]

Speaking of machine "fads"...here may be the next one....

http://www.abcoaster.com/

[kingkop182]

Originally Posted by John Izzo

Speaking of machine "fads"...here may be the next one....

http://www.abcoaster.com/

Price/Unit: $1495

[cdkrug]

I'm using bands to bridge the gap between, "I can Lat Pulldown our entire weight pile for reps" and "I can do 10 pullups."

It's the most portable tool I can use to get me across that progressive resistance gap, until such time as the detachable leg is invented.

[richarddoughtyfitness]

just wanted to post my feelings on the postural fad thing

for anyone short of competive bodybuilders posture should be one of the main concerns when lifting, for the average person does it really matter if they can bench an extra ten lbs or gain a fraction of an inch on their chest if they did it at the cost of causing their humurus to rotate internally and adventally causeing a rotator cuff tear due to scupla disfunction all due to not consdiering functional musclar balance
this is most likely a bad example but i just wanted to prove a point

i think we see alot of people in therapy for suff they could of avoided by doing some mobility work pre work out and programming better

[Luke Denley]

I have used bands, I have used chains, I currently use kettlebells, I use rocks, a tire, a wheelbarrow that I load up, a sledgehammer, and traditional barbells and dumbells. I use everything that I think will help me in my training. I don;t exclusively use one thing or another, and I don;t think that one thing is the be all, end all of training. Limiting yourself to only one type of implement if others are avilable to you is a self defeating action in my opinion.

[Steve-O-68]

Originally Posted by Luke Denley

I have used bands, I have used chains, I currently use kettlebells, I use rocks, a tire, a wheelbarrow that I load up, a sledgehammer, and traditional barbells and dumbells. I use everything that I think will help me in my training. I don;t exclusively use one thing or another, and I don;t think that one thing is the be all, end all of training. Limiting yourself to only one type of implement if others are avilable to you is a self defeating action in my opinion.

Agreed. Just because something is a fad or the hot thing at the moment, doesn't mean it's not effective. The obvious exception here crappy, high dollar machines that stick you in a fixed plane of motion.