Most things that intimidate us really aren’t all that bad once we understand them. If you’ve been too intimidated to try the TRX Suspension Trainer™, let’s take a moment to discuss some TRX myths versus facts, and why those black and yellow straps are actually so easy to setup and so easy to use for a full-body workout.
MYTH: TRX is too hard.
FACT: TRX is only as difficult as you make it.
The TRX Suspension Trainer is the most adaptable piece of fitness equipment you’ll ever find–it actually utilizes your bodyweight for exercise and for the level of intensity.
To clarify...
If you weigh 150 pounds, does that mean that every rep on the Suspension Trainer is loaded with 150 pounds? Absolutely not.
In most basic TRX moves, at least some part of your body will be connected with the ground, whether it’s your upper body or lower body. That connection means you don’t have to be 100% responsible for your weight when completing exercises. In fact, some exercises can be easier with the TRX than when you use bodyweight alone.
Let’s use a push-up as an example. In a standard push-up, your hands and feet are connected with the ground, and they have to support your bodyweight as you raise and lower yourself. With a TRX Chest Press, by contrast, you’re using the same form and muscles that you would with a standard push-up, but you can adjust your angle to increase or decrease the level of intensity, making the move easier or harder. In that TRX Chest Press, the closer you walk your angle forward to stand perpendicular to the floor, the easier it will be. The further you walk it back to parallel with the floor, the harder it will be.
The result is anyone can use a TRX Suspension Trainer: beginners, fitness junkies, young people, old people, adaptive athletes, professional athletes, and more. It is a universal tool that anybody can use anywhere.
MYTH: TRX is too easy.
FACT: TRX is only as easy as you make it.
Now we’re on the flip side of the difficulty argument. The Suspension Trainer serves different functions for different people. For most people—novices all the way to professional athletes—it’s the ideal strength and conditioning tool on its own. For athletes chasing gains, try incorporating additional equipment into a TRX workout. That could be adding a wall ball or slam ball to a TRX Lunge, or increasing your load by strapping on a weighted vest before your TRX Squats, Rows, or Chest Presses. Bodyweight is just the start, not the limit of TRX strength training.
Even if you’re into CrossFit or Olympic lifting, the Suspension Trainer is excellent for warm-up, recovery, and mobility work. For example, CrossFit’s Fittest American Woman, Kari Pearce, said she uses her TRX Suspension Trainer for both workouts and recovery stretching. In fact, she often keeps her TRX Suspension Trainer with her in her backpack. “Probably 70 percent of the time, I carry it with me around New York City. When I have a little break, I go to Central Park and hook it up on the pull-up bars,” she said. While Pearce’s training incorporates more heavy weightlifting, she regularly uses her TRX Suspension Trainer for muscle activation exercises.
MYTH: I don't know how to set-up a TRX Suspension Trainer.
FACT: Set-up is simple and can take less than a minute.
Even in your home, it’s easy to use your straps practically anywhere. The TRX Suspension Trainer can be set-up on any hinged door in your home, office, or hotel room, or using a tree or a sturdy pole like a street lamp or a jungle gym. The TRX HOME2 SYSTEM, your full-body and lightweight, portable gym, comes with a door anchor and a suspension anchor so you can set it up whenever and wherever you want, no tools or drilling necessary.
As part of the TRX HOME2 SYSTEM, you get both the Suspension Trainer, and one year’s FREE access to the TRX App, regularly $49.95, which includes unlimited workouts programmed by world-class trainers. (Yoga, running, HIIT—it’s all in the app!) It’s one of the smartest fitness purchases you can make.
Now that we’ve separated fact from myth, put that information to good use. This is the perfect time to get your TRX HOME2 SYSTEM and start working toward your goals, so what are you waiting for?
