WSBB Blog: Guide to Westside Minibands
Tag: Speed-strength, Squat, Grappling
Initially introduced to the athletic training world by Coach Dick Hartzell, Louie Simmons quickly realized the value of this tool which he then began to use to increase strength and speed amongst the members of Westside Barbell. Since then, Westside has become well known for its use of accommodating resistance. The use of bands in the training of a strength athlete is one of the best ways to produce rapid results in speed, strength, and endurance that will quickly translate to increased levels of performance in sport.
For this reason, we advise all strength coaches, to use bands, in the training of their athletes on a consistent basis. Below, we will cover the different bands we have available for purchase on our website, including how much tension they provide the average user, along with a few tips so you can begin including your Westside Barbell bands in your programming immediately.
Minibands
The red minibands, commonly referred to as minibands, are one of the most popular bands in the strength and conditioning world. You will see these bands used in a variety of ways on social media, but at Westside, these bands are used primarily with the deadlift or the bench press. For deadlifts, we will double the band, which means attaching one point, going over the bar, looping around another point, and coming back across the bar, and attaching the band to the point of origin. This setup will offer 180-200lbs of added resistance at the top of the lift for the average lifter.
When performing rack pulls, we will have the band around the lower rack support, which creates around 150-180lbs of tension at the top For even heavier rack pulls, we will halve the band a second time and loop it around the rack and attach it to the bar. This is called a quad miniband, and it will offer even heavier lockout tensions of 200-220lbs depending on the height of the lifter.
When benching with red minibands, we double them, this time having the band around a 4x4block and attaching both band loops to the barbell. This setup will offer around 80-100lbs of resistance at the top of the lift for most lifters. You can also floor press against quad minibands by setting the bands up as mentioned with deadlifts above.
When used for a floor press, quad minibands will offer 120-150lbs of tension at the top of the lift depending on the setup and arm length of the lifter.
Monster Bands
The monster bands are often misunderstood when you hear the name, given the fact that the monster band is really just a heavier version of the miniband. These bands are used similarly to the red minibands, often being used as a replacement for the red minibands amongst our stronger lifters at Westside Barbell. This band can be used during deadlift exercises the same as the red minibands can. You can halve them, or quad them depending on the band tension you are looking for.
When looped around a floor deadlift setup, monster bands will offer 200-220lbs of tension at the top. When halved for rack pull, they will offer 180-200lbs of tension at the top. When made into quad minibands for a rack pull, you will be experiencing lockout tensions between 220-250lbs. When used for the bench press, the monster bands will create 120-150lbs of band tension at lockout.
You can also use monster bands for floor press, either halved or quad monster bands. Halved monster band floor press will offer around120-150lbs of tension at the top, while quad monster bands will have you in the 180-200lb range at lockout
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