Suspension training guide

 What is suspension training?

Suspension training is a revolutionary form of body weight exercise - it involves natural moves which leverage your bodyweight with the use of a suspension trainer to offer a scalable form of exercise intensity for people of all abilities to develop elite fitness. 
 
Suspension trainers are essentially length adjustable straps which can be fixed to an anchor point (a door / or any other stable object) to allow you to harness your body weight against gravity and carry out exercises in a suspended state. 

Suspension training is an excellent form of functional training which maximises strength development, stability, and endurance and over time will tone and define the body. Combined with cardiovascular and dedicated strength training it offers a well-rounded complimentary routine. 

 The benefits of suspension training:

• Can train the entire body and build total body strength
• Excellent core conditioning and abdominal workout
• Hundreds of possible exercises
• Easily adjustable for all fitness levels
• Easy to setup and portable, great for travelling
• Build functional strength

Suspension training is great for anyone that wants to develop definition and tone up and is perfect for anyone with limited room or money - as it provides a complete body workout in the form of a 2lb package that can be fixed to a door (without the need for mountings and can be taken down in seconds). 

One of the major benefits we have found is that suspension training is great for incremental developments that make seemingly impossible exercises such as the one legged squat accessible. Pistol squats can be performed easily with a suspension trainer and by altering your body weight over time you can work your way up to performing this impressive exercise equipment free.

As we have described, one of the benefits of suspension training is its ability to workout the entire body, with a huge array of exercises to choose from. However, it is a particularly effective method of core conditioning and affords some of the best abdominal exercises possible. 

Consistent and dedicated suspension training will help build a functional body that not only looks good but can perform. You don't only exhibit strength but are actually demonstratively strong. 

 What exercises can you do using a suspension trainer?

Suspension training offers hundreds of exercises that challenge every part of the human body. You can use a suspension trainer for basic exercises such as biceps curls, triceps extension and chest flys but also for exercises that wouldn't be possible without a trainer like the suspended crunch or supine pull-through.

Here are just a few example suspension training exercises:

Exercise: Hamstring curl

Muscle: Hamstrings

Exercise: One legged squat

Muscle: Quadriceps

Exercise: Suspended crunch

Muscle: Abdominals

For a full list of suspension training exercises please visit our exercise directory. 

 What do you need for suspension training?

All you need is a suspension trainer and an anchoring point from which to fix it. The anchoring point can be a door or beam of some kind, or any stable structure from which you can safely wrap the trainer straps round. 

 Suspension trainers, a breakdown:

There are various suspension trainers available but they are commonly made up of the following components:

• Handles / foot stirrups: To support use of both hands and feet based exercises
• Straps: The core component to the product, a quality webbing material
• Buckles: Attached to the straps, the buckles allow you to adjust the length of the straps to accommodate for the various exercises
• Anchor: This is the part of the trainer that is fixed to the anchor point. It can be a loop that is thread round something and fixed in place, or a door anchor which sits over the door and the door is then pulled shut to fix in place.
• Anchor point: A solid, safe structure from which the suspension trainer is fixed. This must be capable of supporting your bodyweight. It is typically a standard household door, or beam of some kind.

 Where can I buy a suspension trainer?
The best suspension trainers on the market today are made by Fitness Anywhere who offer a product called the TRX. It was developed by a former US Navy SEAL who needed a way to stay in shape when on missions and it began life as a few lengths of parachute webbing hand-stitched together. Today the TRX is a club quality complete training system and is helping to establish suspension training as part of mainstream fitness. 

The TRX is available to buy now from Fitness Anywhere.