Many people add resistance bands to their weight training workouts…
Some people do a superset with a free weight exercise first followed by a resistance band exercise.
A lot of people gain incredible benefits from adding resistance bands to barbell exercises like the Big 3...
or kettlebell swings...
Not to mention, bands are great for mobility as well.
However, a lot of people don’t consider combining resistance bands with steel mace exercises or various other kettlebell exercises.
The exercises between bands and these unconventional training tools don’t have to be mutually exclusive. And we are going to show you this with examples of people adding resistance bands to kettlebell and steel mace exercises.
In this article, we are going to talk about the benefits of combining resistance bands with kettlebell and steel mace exercises AND we are going to show you many different steel mace resistance band exercises and kettlebell resistance band exercises from a few personal trainers and SFS athletes on Instagram.
This is going to be a lot of fun as you are going to see some exercises that you never saw before (at least not combined with bands) and you are going to wonder, “why didn’t I think of that?!”
BENEFITS OF COMBINING RESISTANCE BANDS WITH KETTLEBELLS AND STEEL MACES:
Here are numerous benefits of adding resistance bands to steel mace and kettlebell exercises and workouts...
Added Level of Resistance
For example, if you only have a 10LB mace, adding a resistance band to your mace movements will make the movements more challenging. You will really feel the time under tension.
Moreover, a band doesn’t take up really any space and it’s easy to take with you to where you are going to workout. Let’s say you want to do a workout at the park, grabbing a 10LB mace and a band or two will be much easier than taking multiple maces of different weights.
This is great as sometimes certain movements will be perfect with a 10LB mace, while others you will want a heavier mace (like a shoulder press). So instead of having to utilize multiple maces, you can simply strap a band to the mace and wrap it around your feet and you’ve just turned that 10LB movement into a 15 or a 20lb.
Overall, combining free weight and resistance bands during the same exercises allows you to increase the intensity.
3D Strength/Multiplanar
Of course, by pairing your training tool with a band, you have added resistance, but what’s really complimentary about resistance bands is that it’s a different kind of resistance. The resistance increases as you stretch the bands, and it can create resistance from any angle, unlike a steel mace or kettlebell, which is providing resistance purely based on gravity. With a band, you can add resistance at different angles and from all directions, thus allowing you to develop more “3D” strength.
This means you can work all planes of motion and different exercises to greater effect, such as rotational/anti-rotational/anti-lateral movements. Ultimately, you will improve athleticism, reaction time, and strength through multiple planes of motion.
Added Core Stability Factor
With steel maces and kettlebells alone, you are going to working core stability with many of your movements due to the nature of these training tools…
But, with an added resistance band, you are doubling down on stability training. The bands will increase the difficulty of these offset, unilateral movements, requiring you to recruit your core strength and stability much more.
Furthermore, the band will provide a different kind of stability training. When the band goes from loose to tight, you will get a different kind of feedback that challenges your stability in a very unique way.
Works Stabilizer Muscles More
Just as it works your core stability, it’s going to work the stabilizers muscles of your shoulder and hips much more than without the bands. We love this as it really strengthens your joints for when it comes time for bigger lifts and sports. It makes your joints more resilient to injury and increases your overall strength both isometrically and dynamically.
Increase Power and Explosiveness
One of the great things about combining resistance bands with kettlebell and steel mace exercises is that you will be developing more power and explosiveness.
With the added band, you will need to learn to absorb more eccentric force and redirect it. This will promote a much quicker and more powerful concentric contraction, which is great for sports as you can explode through or outmaneuver your opponents (acceleration and deceleration).
Resistance Through The Entire Movement/Constant Tension
You’ve probably heard of the “movement curve” before. Essentially, with most lifts, there is a point where tension decreases and increases, so the resistance is not the same throughout the entire movement. With bands, you will be adding resistance to the portions of the lift where with just the training tool alone your tension would decrease. This goes back to our point on feeling time under tension, by having resistance through the entire movement curve, you will maintain constant tension, which is ideal for maximizing muscle growth and endurance.
All in all, adding bands to your kettlebell and steel mace exercises will shock your muscles in a new way. It may require some practice but if you get it right, the benefits are well worth it. This type of training will lead to superior sports performance and injury prevention.
Plus, simply buying a band to provide this new type of challenge and technique is fun, more cost-effective, it saves space, and it’s safer and easier on your joints.
The Types of Resistance Band We Use With Steel Maces & Kettlebells
We use continuously looped bands rather than the band with handles.
First, looped bands have a wider range of resistance (5-170lbs), they are more heavy-duty and they are easier to utilize when pairing them with other training tools.
You can get our Set of Resistance Bands for a great price. Use BAND15 for 15% OFF at checkout.
HOW TO ADD RESISTANCE BANDS TO KETTLEBELL AND STEEL MACE EXERCISES?
It’s not difficult and the more you play around with the combination of bands and steel maces or kettlebells the easier it will be to create effective exercises.
Simply loop the band around feet or an anchor point and then loop the other end to the handle of your mace or kettlebell.
You can also add the resistance band to your movements in a different way. For example, wrap a resistance band around your waist and tie it to an anchor point behind you or have someone hold it and do tire slams with the resistance band pulling you backward. There are many ways to go about adding resistance with bands, the point is, you don’t necessarily have to directly loop the band around the training tool.
Safety
Just makes the band is secure. The last thing you want is for the band to fly off and hit you straight in the face. That’s never happened to us or our clients but we can see how that could be a possibility.
Final Note:
Get creative and try new things. There are countless exercises that you can add resistance bands to…or the other way around.
We could pretty much find a way to combine a resistance band to almost every steel mace and kettlebell exercise!
Resistance Bands with Steel Mace Exercises:
Here are examples of resistance band steel mace exercises that you can try out…
Resistance Bands with Kettlebell Exercises:
Here are examples of resistance band kettlebell exercises that you can try out…
These are just a small sample of exercises that can be done. As you can see, Kelly Manzone and Hacksaw get very creative with their banded kettlebell and banded steel mace exercises.
Oblique Sling Exercises Using Resistance Band & Steel Mace
Where to buy Resistance Bands?
Shameless plug - We sell Resistance Bands at a great price. Get a set of resistance bands from us. We appreciate the support!
Where to buy Steel Maces?
We also sell steel maces ranging from 7 to 30lbs!
Here are 16 Awesome Steel Mace Exercises that you can try to add bands to!
Where to buy Kettlebells?
We sell kettlebells ranging from 18 to 53 pounds!
If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to email us, leave a comment below, or get in contact with the people we featured in the videos above!
Sam Coleman
Author