It’s no secret that I love resistance bands. I began toting a few around in my gym bag years ago when I went to commercial gyms. They are a good investment and far more reliable than what you may find hanging around your gym’s weight room.

Since building my home gym I am always thinking of new ways to add resistance bands to my workout routine. They can substitute for cable exercises, add some extra pump to your glutes routine, and help with your warm-up, mobility, and stretching exercises.

It’s easy to think of resistance bands are beginner or remedial exercise tools. Many view them as what you use in physical therapy to recovery from an injury. However, adding them to your routine may be the ticket to improve your overall strength because they allow you to tap into muscles in a whole different way.

If you aren’t quite sold on using resistance bands, here are 5 convincing reasons to love them.

1. Get primed during your warm-up. Adding band exercises...

Hey, it's coach Kellie Davis with another quick at-home workout. This one targets your butt and core in a short, intense circuit routine.  Break up your day with this 10 minute quickie workout that targets your glutes and abs like no other. You won't need much space, but may want to grab a yoga mat along with your favorite mini band.

This workout targets your hips in extension, abduction, and flexion-- you know, because I love hitting you from multiple angles. I think it's an all around great workout for your core and hope you love it as much as I do.

Mini Band Butt and Core Circuit

You are going to do 4 rounds in this circuit with 1 rest between rounds.

1a. Quadruped hip extension: 4x15 each side

1b. Fire hydrant: 4x15 each side

1c. Supine psoas march: 4x10 each side

1d. Scissor kicks: 4x15

This week's Workout Wednesday will have your shoulders rounded like boulders by the time you finish. Grab your favorite resistance band with handles and get ready to pump up.

I recommend using a single resistance band with handles-- preferably one that is lighter in weight. The shoulders are a quick-recovery muscle group, so you can get a good burn out session with this routine and feel good tomorrow. 

Grab a water bottle, find some space, and let's go! The video below does a quick walk through of each exercise. Remember to protect the shoulder joints by keeping everything nice and controlled throughout the duration of the exercise. There is no need to rush through this. The more you slow it down and control the concentric and eccentric portion of the movement, the better you will feel. 

It's never too late to get bendy. Today's Fit Friday session goes over two of my favorite flexibility moves to help work on middle splits. Even if you aren't keen on mastering your splits, these are both great tools to add to your cool down after a good gym session. 

The first is a ramped up version of the butterfly or goalie stretch. Here you will go through a 2-minute series that begins with the goalie stretch and moves into straight leg versions of the same move. 

Take your time with each segment, rocking back into the your hips to open up the hip flexors more. Be your best judge with how long you spend in each position, with the of spending 2 minutes total in this stretch. Take a 2 minute rest and repeat the process. 

The second flexibility movement involves PNF (proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation) stretching. This occurs when you work through a period of passive stretching followed by a period of active contractions. In this particular stretch I...

This week's Workout Wednesday routine is all about that bass as the Glute Goddess Kellie Davis takes you through this booty burner workout! All you need for this quick home workout is a mini band and a little floor space.

We're going 4 rounds here. Be sure and rest 1-2 minutes between rounds and get ready to feel the burn!

Band Booty Burn Out Session

1a. Band squat with side-to-side step: 4x10

1b. Glute bridge with slow eccentric: 4x10

1c. Band hip hinge: 4x10

1d. Band fire hydrant: 4x10 each side

Give this workout a try after your normal workout or on an off day for a little extra pump.

We'd love to hear what kind of workout you'd like to try next, so send Kellie Davis a quick email at [email protected] and you could see your workout featured soon!

We're going back to basics this week with this Full Body Dumbbell Blast with Kellie Davis.  All you need for this quick home workout is a pair of dumbbells, a little floor space, and about 10-15 minutes to complete.  Ready to get moving?  We're going for 4 rounds here with one minute of rest between rounds.

Single leg Romanian Deadlifts can be a little challenging, so don't worry if you need to put down your dumbbell and brace onto a chair or table.

Full Body Dumbell Blast

1a. Dumbbell thruster: 1x10

1b. Dumbbell SLRDL: 1x10 each side

1c.Bent over dumbbell row: 1x10

1d. Russian twist: 1x10 each side

Give this full body workout a try and let us know what you think!  

This week Kellie Davis hops on herr suspension trainer for a quick circuit. Want to join?

We are sticking with 4 exercises and 4 rounds in our circuit with a 1-2 minute rest period in between rounds.

If you don't have a suspension trainer you can sub rear lunges, bodyweight jump squats, regular inverted rows on a Smith machine or other apparatus, and push-ups.

Suspension Trainer Circuit

1a. Sprinter lunge: 4x10 each side

1b. Prone squat: 4x10

1c. Inverted row: 4x8

1d. Chest press: 4x8

Have fun and let us know what you think! We love hearing from you.

Grab your sliders as Kellie Davis glides you through this fun workout routine. If you don't have valslide sliders, you can use gliders, furniture movers, or even towels on a slick floor.

We are sticking to the 4 rounds with 4 exercises routine, resting 1-2 minutes between each round.

Fat Blasting Circuit

1a. Alternating skater slides: 4x10 each side

1b. Sliding lunge: 4x10 each side

1c. Kneeling slider plank: 4x4 each side

1d. Bridge into sliding leg curl: 4x 5 each side

Have fun and let us know what you think about this workout. We love hearing from you!

Pull up a seat, but don’t sit down because we are about to start this week’s Workout Wednesday challenge.

This week’s workout is all bodyweight with the added bonus of a chair, which works well if you are traveling and need something to do in your hotel room.

4-Square Chair Combo

4 rounds, 4 exercises, rest 1-2 minutes between rounds.

1a. Side step-up with front hip flexion: 4x10 each side

1b. Plié squat: 4x20 total

1c. Incline push-up with leg lift: 4x5 each side

1d. Incline mountain climbers: 4x20 total

Have a blast and let us know what you think about this workout. We love hearing from you!

Today's Workout Challenge sticks to the 4-square routine where I give you 4 exercises that you complete as a 4 round circuit. Rest 1-2 minutes between each round.

This one requires a bench. However, you can use a chair, coffee table, or step stool if you aren't in a gym setting.

4-Square Workout: Full-Body Challenge

4 rounds, 4 exercises.  Rest 1-2 minutes between rounds.

1a. Alternating step-up: 4x10 each side

1b. Lateral bound: 4x10 each way

1c. Incline push-up: 4x10

1d. Seated knee tuck: 4x10

This workout is great when you are in a time crunch or want to add a finisher to your lifting session.

Try it out and let us know what you think. We love hearing from you!