Whilst staying at home following the government advice, we all scrambled to try and find all of the dumbbells, kettlebells & barbells we could get. But, what about the lesser-known equipment that is just as effective at building muscle and strength?
In this blog post, we’re going to be looking through the brilliant but often ignored fitness equipment. This includes things such as balance boards, chest expanders, exercise mats and ankle weights. A lot of these can be used for strength training and most have adjustable straps. This ensures that they can be durable and versatile for the different types of exercise you can use them with.
Gym Balls
Gym Balls are large, inflated spheres used for exercise, they are also called ‘Fitness Balls’ Swiss Balls’ or ‘Yoga Balls’. They were first created by an Italian named Aquilino Cosani in 1963 primarily for the development of young infants, but the potential for aerobic exercise within it was quickly recognised. They are often integrated into yoga and pilates workouts.
They’re a brilliant piece of equipment, WedMD have listed numerous exercises you can undertake with a gym ball. These exercises include squats, press-ups, sit-ups, planking and more. They are also brilliant for core strength, slimming down legs, improving posture and balance. In fact, some people use them as a replacement for an office chair!
Although gym balls are mainly used for fitness, they are also popular with pregnant women. During a pregnancy, gym balls can be used to reduce the stress and discomfort in your spine, hips & lower back according to Care.
If you wish to improve your health and fitness and think you may benefit from one, we have plenty of in-stock and have different types to suit your individual needs. Most of our Ironman Gym Balls are under £10, you can choose one with handles or without handles. However, if this is the first one you will try we’d recommend going for one with handles and a ring, to keep you steady on the ball, this will help with maneuvering the many moves that are possible.
Our Ironman Gym Ball With Handles and Ring is A heavy-duty and sturdy exercise ball complete with resistance ropes & handles. This ball is specifically designed to give you a full-body flexible workout with over 30+ exercises that you can do to strengthen your core & your back. Whilst it also helps to tone your upper & lower body.
Chest Expanders
Chest Expanders or ‘Strand-Pulling’ is a chest based workout where rubber tubes or metal springs are attached to handles which offer a variety of exercises to boost strength.
Invented by Henry Cost in the mid-1850s, it has been used for medical rehabilitation since its inception. They were typically seen as a very luxurious item, often found in the homes of the wealthy throughout Europe. Livestrong mentions that chest-expanders reached their peak of popularity in the early 20th century, even though technology has come a long way, chest expanders have stood the test of time.
Whilst it shares a namesake with the chest, that doesn’t mean the only purpose is to build chest muscles – it actually has over 30 individual movements for your upper body. It provides excellent strength and rehabilitation and is usually a lot easier on your joints (elbows & shoulders) than the typical forms of resistance based training.
We currently have a few selections available, including our Grey/Black/Blue Chest Expander which is the strongest of the rubber tubes, the Red/Black Chest Expander which is just a bit easier than the previous and the Blue/White which is the least resistance tube chest expander, but still medium resistance.
If you want metal tubes however, they do offer the most resistance.
The Black/Blue Spring Chest Expander offers you the hardest workout imaginable and it comes with a 110mm wide handle to offer maximum comfort.
Body Weights
Body weights are extremely good if you are wanting to mix-up your workout and add extra resistance to areas you might not usually train.
We stock two different types of body weights here at SS Healthfoods, Weighted Vests and Wrist & Ankle Weights. Both are brilliant at adding a little bit of extra resistance to the area that they cover whilst working out, running or walking.
WEIGHTED VEST
Dick’s Sporting Goods outlined that weighted vests are very good at helping you develop strength, endurance and cardiovascular output by increasing the resistance that’s added to your body.
At first, you will lose energy much quicker and it can affect your breathing pattern and VO2 Max, but over time your body will adapt and will give you positive results. Weighted Vests can also benefit you in bodyweight exercises such as press-ups and plyometric movements as well as walking and jogging.
They’re so good in fact, a lot of professional sports teams and players around the globe use weighted vests before they put on extra weight such as Basketball & Tennis players.
We have five different types of weighted vests to help you with your training. We have a 5kg/11lbs version, one that weighs 9kg/20lbs, another that weighs 22kg/50lbs and the heaviest one we stock weighs 27kg/60lbs. You can also earn free delivery when you purchase either the 50lbs or 60lbs.
If you find that the vests are a little too heavy for you, they all come with removable weights. Just remember to make sure the weight is spread out evenly if you decide to remove some.
ANKLE WEIGHTS
Not only are they great for a leg workout, but they are also extremely versatile and they can be taken anywhere. Shape highlighted that ankle weights are brilliant for people who have desk/office jobs as they can easily target muscles which are inactive all day such as your glutes.
They also are great when used for physiotherapy. If you’re suffering from weak or injured hamstrings or knee problems, ankle weights can strengthen the affected area by growing the muscle around it.
Ankle weights can also train your abs, doing bicycle exercises, reverse abdominal lifts and knee-to-chest exercises all train your abs whilst you’re wearing ankle weights. Also, if you form on sit-ups aren’t very good, ankle weights can help keep your feet on the floor to correct form and posture.
Instead of doing sit-ups, wear ankle weights and perform bicycle exercises, reverse abdominal lifts and knee-to-chest exercises.
If you’re looking for ankle weights, we stock a pair of 2kg ankle weights which are soft, comfortable and adjustable for a perfect fit with velcro fastening to have a tight or loose as needed. You can also wear them around your wrist to turn them into wrist weights.
Balance Boards
Balance boards, or wobble boards as they are also often known as are boards which are balanced around a soft, rounded bottom made from plastic or wood. You stand on the flat surface and try to balance yourself as long as you can. Not only are they good for balance training, but they also improve your posture. It does this by building up your core strength and strengthening your back and shoulders.
FitAndMe lists numerous health benefits that balance boards can bring such as reducing injury, mind/muscle connection, reducing back pain and improving your coordination and awareness.
If you think you’re up to the challenge Ironman Aerobic Fitness Balance Board and Straps is perfect for beginners as you can opt to use the strap to get you started and improve your balance. It can do a full 360 degree, so using the handles will definitely keep you sturdy from the start.
Exercise Mats
Exercise Mats, Gym Mats, Yoga Mats, they’re all slightly different but one mat can fit all the other purposes no problem. They can help give you comfort when exercising when you’d otherwise be exercising on the gym floor, grassy surface or your own backyard.
The mats offer an extra layer of padding between you and the floor and are essential for those who are sensitive to hard flooring when working with heavy loads. They also offer a feeling of cleanliness when working out outside. Laying on a nice, clean mat in a park does have its perks.
If you’re looking for exercise mats. We have a 15mm thick exercise mat which will help you with all your aerobic exercises. Or we have some interlocking exercise mats which you can join together and form a bigger workspace
Honourable Mentions
As well as what’s listed above, there are also other types of fitness equipment that we sell that you might have never known you needed.
Power Twisters are used to exercise your chest, triceps, biceps, wrists, forearms & shoulders. You do this by applying pressure to the grips on the end of the bar then slowly bending the bar. Our Ironman Powertwister is a high-quality strength builder and resistance training bar. The power twister has handles on each end and a coiled spring in the middle where the tension of the bend will work against your muscles.
According to Healthline, sit-ups use your body weight to strengthen your core and abs and help promote your posture. However, for people who are new into their fitness regime, our Ironman Aerobic Deluxe Sit Up Bar has an oversized, non-damaging screw-on clamp, it attaches to any door and is adjustable to your dimensions. It is also fitted with neoprene-padded footrests to make every sit-up more comfortable on your feet and safer, it is lightweight and very supportive, offering fast release for portability so you can take it everywhere.
