Black Mountain ProductsUltimate Resistance Band Set with Starter Guide

EIGHT YEAR UPDATE: It's been eight years of regular use. The heaviest bands were finally showing signs of wear along their midpoints where they rub against the door anchors during pull-downs. I contact the company who asked just for pictures of the bands and then had replacements in the mail THE VERY NEXT DAY. We didn't even miss a workout. Meanwhile, every other exercise band I've bought from other companies have been tossed because they all dry out and crack in our dry desert environment. I never expected any resistance bands would last this long. I would definitely buy from this company again.______TWO YEAR UPDATE:Adding a two year update because, man, this set is still going strong. There's minor wear from weekly use but no where near needing to replace anything. Most impressively, the bands aren't yet worn where they fold through the door anchors--the first thing that went on my old bands. I think it's a combination of smooth rubber of the bands and the wide, smooth fabric of the door anchors. I love using it so much that I received a few more accessories for it this holiday--the heaviest, neon band and the protective sleeve so I don't need to keep finding my shoes to protect my feet. I also got a bionic bar--different company--to try. Very impressed with the quality and value of this set, and I recommend it to anyone wanting to swap the gym for an at-home workout.I've done resistance band workouts for a while, enough to wear out my old bands. This replaces them and more. I bought this set because it includes two heavy resistance bands, which makes it a bargin compared to buying a regular set and then buy those bands individually. With the extra two bands, I can do pull-downs with as much resistance as I need, and it saves having to double up bands for arm workouts.I originally thought having two sets of handles and door anchors was too much (and I still have the handles and anchor from my old set), but I do find it useful to have an extra pair to save time switching bands all workout long. The carabiner hooks can shift around in storage, and it takes extra fiddling to get them into position to change bands, compared to my old set where the clips were sewed into place. I find I have to prep everything ahead of time for a fast-paced workout, so having the extra handles and anchors helps. I do feel like I'm constantly fidgeting with things now, though it's getting better as I get more used to getting clips moved around and knowing which bands I'm going to need next. [2 year update: the fabric's all broken in and slides right into place. I'd forgotten I used to have so much trouble with it.]The handles have some room to slide. I like this, as it makes it easier to do hammer curls and tricep extensions. I actually wished they slid easier (my old pair of handles have a much thinner nylon strip so they slide easily), but I know some people don't like them to slide at all, so I think this makes for a good compromise between the two extremes. The door anchors work well. It feels like there is a rubber donut sewed into the end. Compress it, and it slides through the crack in the door and then pops back open to lock in place when the door is shut. I have not used the ankle straps yet. [2 year update: again, the nylon fabric's softened over time so it's easier to slide the handles into the position that I want. There's no sign of wear on the handles. There's some wear from the door squeezing the anchors but no where near worn out. I've used the ankle straps and they are comfortable.]It has taken me some time to adjust to all the band sizes and possible configurations. I will never understand why companies "color code" things but make the colors completely random, so I have to keep a sheet with all the colors and resistances written down next to them. The weight estimates seem fairly accurate--when I grab a band based on its resistance range, it seems pretty comparable to doing the same move with a free weight.The bag holds all the gear with room to add a jump rope. I love that can now carry equipment for an entire cardio and strength workout in one bag. That said, it's a big bag. It resembles a large college text book in size. My scale says it weighs around 3.5 lbs altogether. Alas, if you are looking for something to put in your carry-on while you travel, this isn't it, unless you pack really light or just bring the bands you'll need. It does fit in the bottom of my jogging stroller, so I can get a workout in at the park while the kids play.I have only used this for a couple of weeks, so I cannot vouch for how it holds up long-term, but I do not notice anything that would make me think it won't last.April 2019 Update: Five years and counting and still going strong. The nylon webbing on my purple and orange band had some minor fraying so I called the company and they sent out two free replacements absolutely no hassel. I am so impressed.)

I have been using these every day since I got them. Sturdy as can be, and tremendous work out options with these bands. I am almost to the point where 50 percent of the time I spend working out is with these bands alone. Here is the major difference between using a physical gym and these bands. These bands allow you isolate individual muscles and really dig in. Often times weights can be a bit clumsy and bulky for getting right to that area you are looking to improve. Although, i must admit, the gym, or a chest press machine is preferable to me for pure chest workouts, and I will explain why below.I have been spending alot of time working on my deltoids, especially rear deltoids, front deltoids, traps and biceps, and interior and exterior shoulder rotators. These bands do a tremendous job of getting right to the heart of building muscle in these areas, things that I simply cannot do as well with weights. Fora Chest workout, you would probably need to hook this up to a door (with the jambs provided) and you can get a good solid work out in. The other creative way I have found to do chest has been to sit up right in a sturdy chair and throw the bands behind me around the back of the chair, lean forward and do chest presses the same way you'd do it with a bench and straight bar or universal chest press machine. However, I prefer traditional push ups along with this, as I do not believe that the bands alone can replicate the pure type of chest work out you can do in the gym, although combining band work with push ups gets you pretty close. For those of you very serious about reclaiming your health and phsyique (I am down 31 pounds and have added several layers of muscle in part due to these great bands), I would target 100 reps on chest with bands followed 100-150 pushups. This is not easy, but it is certainly doable in sets of 20 or 25.For core exercises, and I have not even hit the tip of the ice berg with what one can with these bands for core exercises, I usually will use around 50 lbs in resistance, step on the bands and raise my arms out in front of me and hold, and then jerk my arms behind me and hold. 50 lbs of resistance is a lot and I cannot actually raise my hands to shoulder level, but rather only to just about lower chest level. It's not easy, but this targets the stomach, love handles, and front deltoids and rear shoulder muscles. I am sure there are like a million different exercises one could do here, but I am just inventing as I go along. There is a also a fairly helpful guide that comes with the bands that shows you how to do about 20 different exercises for the different muscle groups. With the core workout, due to the resistance of the bands, I find myself sweating and huffing like crazy, and raising your heart rate big time, which is all pure anaerobic cardio work. Cardio is absolutely critical for reclaiming your health.That's the other major difference with these bands. when I am doing an exercise with moderate resistance, my muscles start screaming and I actually start sweating and heavily raising the heart rate... the other component to getting healthy. It feels like an actual non stop exercise as opposed to just doing a set of weights. Best part, the whole thing fits in a bag the size of a large toiletry bag. Really well designed.I cannot recommend these bands enough. An absolute must have. Thanks

Short but not so sweet: I bought these because of so many positive reviews. Having had years of previous experience with resistance tubes, I set one up and used only the proper stretch for exercise (About twice its length.) The tube immediately broke at the handle end, a clean break as if it was sliced by a sharp knife. I sent these back, and got a quick refund.I have no idea what the problem was. Obviously my experience was not satisfactory. I only know I'm about through with resistance tubes. Bodylastics, my old favorite brand, are now producing improbable, and for me, unusable resistance ranges. (10, 20, 30, 50, 80). I have no idea what I'm going to use for my workouts anymore other than body weight, my imagination, and my stability ball.