NEW YORK: Dumbbells, medicine balls and skipping ropes have once again taken centre stage on the gym floor as the newest workouts drive a revival of the oldest fitness tools, experts say.
Even step aerobics is getting a second wind as workout trends turn back to the tried and true.
The popularity of back-to-basics workouts such as CrossFit and High Intensity Interval Training classes have lent new cool to old-school fitness tools, says Colleen Logan, vice-president of marketing for the exercise equipment manufacturer and marketer Icon Health & Fitness.
“They’re always in the mix, but they haven’t been used in a class setting.”
The company, based in Utah, said sales of skipping ropes and kettlebells were up.
“Sales of kettlebells, dumbbells, medicine balls and jump ropes, we feel, (are) attributable to huge growth in CrossFit,” Logan said of the hugely popular workout of constantly varied, high-intensity, functional movement.
Running was also growing in popularity, Logan added, pointing to Running USA’s yearly report, which showed there were a record number of marathon finishers last year.
“People are perpetually short on time and money and (are) looking for something that’s working.”
In his book Dumbbell Training, Allen Hedrick extols the virtues of fitness tools so old that their antecedents were lifted for strength training in ancient Greece.
“I think traditional dumbbells have been viewed as an accessory rather than as a primary tool,” said Hedrick, who is head strength and conditioning coach at Colorado State University at Pueblo.
That is something he’d like to change. For general fitness, he recommends making at least one day a week a complete dumbbell day.
“I’ve always used traditional tools,” said Hedrick, who also uses medicine balls and even water-filled kegs in squats and presses.
The pendulum had swung away from the weight machines that dominated the gym floor in the 1970s.
“Lifting two dumbbells develops co-ordination, motor skills, balance, and certainly recruits the stabilising muscles.
“Trainers are putting a greater emphasis on balance.”
Exercise physiologist Jessica Matthews said old-time exercises such as squats, lunges and push-ups were tried and true precisely because they delivered what they promised.
“It’s great to see people recognising the value of things that have been around for a while,” said Matthews, who teaches exercise science at Miramar College in San Diego, California.
She is especially pleased to notice the reappearance of step aerobics group fitness classes, about 15 to 20 years after their heyday.
“A lot of people enjoyed them then and they’re kind of gaining popularity again,” Matthews said.
While some useful modalities were lost to the cyclical nature of the fitness business, others were abandoned as the science evolved.
It was discovered that hand weights, a popular addition to running and walking routines, altered the gait in a way that could predispose exercisers to injury. “We learnt that little (aerobic) boost comes at a cost,” Matthews said.
For runners seeking to add more load to their run, weighted vests have been found to be safer than backpacks, as they distribute weight over front and back.
Medicine balls and stability balls were gaining ground because they got the job done. “These pieces have stood the test of time. Sometimes you don’t need to reinvent the wheel.” – Reuters