The TRX refers to total body resistance exercise. It is a revolutionary exercise method that uses gravity and bodyweight resistance to increase balance, strength, flexibility, coordination, joint stability, and core.
The TRX suspension trainer is one of the versatile pieces of a home gym or gym equipment. You can carry it anywhere, and it provides several bodyweight exercises to help you get the best results.
Whether you are new to the gym or a regular gym member, you are likely to see colorful straps hanging around. The TRX suspension trainer was not created by someone with a fair interest in suspension exercises.
It was created by Randy Hetrick-Navy Seal Squadron commander, as a type of happy mishap.
Randy unknowingly packed his exercise belt for a trip overseas and while training, he and his friend’s group were at a loss to find how to strengthen their muscles for climbing. He tied a knot at the end of that belt, secured it above a door, raised his body weight, and voila, born was an exercise for the complete body using less equipment that is easy to carry.
Suspension training workouts are in a different category from different bodyweight workouts because they allow you to do different exercises that strengthen back muscles, but that is hard to do without using the equipment. They include balance challenges that wake up each muscle, such as the core. They use your body weight, most TRX workouts are easily changeable for every fitness, from beginners to RX workout pros. While beginning with a TRX trainer might seem intimidating, we promise it is very good access and the best way to work out and grow muscle. We have some good exercise content under to help you begin, but you always ask a personal trainer for help. How that you understand what it is, what it helps, and why it offers good strength training, go ahead and try it. The total body exercise below will help you begin with all total resistant exercises.
Upper body
Table of Contents
TRX push-up
Targets: chest, arms, Shoulders
Difficulty: Beginner
How to do it?
Hook your toes from the TRX stirrups so the tops of your feet face the floor. Raise your body so the weight rests over the palms.
Keep your core tight, and flex your elbow to drop your chest between hands. You will feel your shoulder and chest working as you press back upward to the beginning point.
TRX Chest Press
Targets: Arms, chest
Difficulty: Beginner
How-to:
It is different from a typical chest press. Stand facing away from the anchor, with feet at shoulder distance. Grab the handle with an above hand grip and stretch your arms in front of you at shoulder height. Lean forward to make a slight angle in the body.
Flex elbow and drop chest between hands. You will engage your arms and chest as you push your back up.
TRX Inverted Row
Targets: Biceps, lats
Difficulty: Beginner
How-to:
Lie directly underneath the TRX. Flex knees and keep feet over the floor. Reach upward to grasp the handles, palm should face each other, and arms keep stretched, as you raise your body some inches above the floor.
Keep your elbow near your sides, and flex your elbow to pull the body upward the handles till your body create a straight line from shoulders to knees. Drop to return toward the starting point.
You will keep your biceps and back to work as you increase and drop your body, gently with control. You can also do this workout with straight legs and grounded heels over the floor and your body in a tilted position.
Kneeling triceps press
Targets:Â Triceps
Difficulty:Â Beginner
How-to:
Target that triceps using the no-frills move. Kneel facing the anchor and hold the handles with an underhand grip. Stretch arms straight outward in front of you and hold them shoulder-width apart. Flex elbow to drop your upper body toward the floor till your hands are in line with your ears. It is when you will begin to feel those triceps burn. Go back to the beginning point.
Low row
Targets:Â Back, abs, shoulders, biceps
Difficulty:Â Beginner
How-to:Â
This move is essential for a strong back. Hold the handles with palms facing each other. Lean back till weight is over your heels, stretched in front, arms, and body forms a diagonal. Squeeze shoulder blades together and keep your core tight as you flex elbows and pull the body upward to meet hands. Drop down to return to the beginning position.
Single-arm row
Targets:Â Back, abs, shoulders, biceps
Difficulty:Â Advanced
How-to
If you are a pro at the normal low row, challenge yourself by row with one arm at one time without dropping your form, and get ready to feel the burn.
Three-Way Row
Targets:Â Back, abs, shoulders, biceps
Difficulty:Â Intermediate
How-to:Â
If anyone knows one or two about carving rock-solid shoulders, it is an expert swimmer, Natalie Coughlin. And as it turns out, she is a fan of TRX, she even shares some of her easy moves, including this 3 in 1 exercise.
This move has 3 different grips to keep the mind and body guessing. Your plant of action: Row using palms up for some reps, switch to rowing with palms facing upward for some reps.
Alligator
Targets:Â Shoulders, back, obliques
Difficulty:Â Intermediate
How-to:Â
This move helps to strengthen the shoulder also known as a reverse fly. Stand facing the anchor and hold the handles with an overhand grip. Lean back till your body creates a diagonal line and the TRX straps are taut. Pull your body upward as you pull back and upward with your right arm and back and down with your left arm.
Rotate your body to the right as you do it, you will keep shoulders and back-to-back work as your oblique muscles help to balance your movements. Return to the beginning point and repeat for another side.
Triceps extension
Targets:Â Triceps
Difficulty:Â Beginner
How-to:Â
Work that triceps using this simple but challenging move. Set yourself up like you do push up and facing away from the anchor point and keep your feet at shoulder width.
Hold the handles with an overhand grip. Change weight to the balls of your feet as you stretch arms outward in front of you at eye levels. Flex elbows till hands are back your head, elbows framing either side of your face.
Go back to the beginning point. The move is small but super effective, and you will fire up your triceps using each rep.
Atomic push-up
Targets:Â Chest, arms, shoulders, abs
Level:Â Advanced
How-to:Â
You might look like a frog in motion, but you will surely feel the burn in your upper body and core as you bring your knees to meet the elbows. Slip your feet into the stirrups, therefore the tops of your feet in front of the floor. Drop your body into a push-up. As you press back upward into plant point, get knees in toward elbows, making legs draw apart. Hold for some seconds, then return to the beginning point.
Chest fly
Targets:Â Chest, arms
Difficulty:Â Advanced
How-to:Â
If there is any workout that will make you feel like wings, this is it. Stand facing distance from the anchor with feet shoulder-width apart. Grab the handles with overhand grips and stretch your arms in from of you at your should height. Lean forward so the body is at a diagonal. With control, spread your arms out to a T as your lower chest is near to the floor. It is where you will activate those chest muscles. Reverse the move to return toward the beginning point.
Bicep’s curl
Targets:Â Abs, arms
Difficulty: Intermediate
How-to:Â
Stand facing the TRX anchor point and hold one handle in each hand, palms facing upward. Lean back till your arms are stretched, and the strap is taut.
To stimulate your biceps, flex elbows without dropping till hands frame your temples, and slowly pull your body upward as you do so. Go back to the beginning point and then ask for two tickets to the gun show.
Push-Up With Pike
Targets: Chest, arms, shoulders, abs
Difficulty: Intermediate
How-to:Â
The pike and push up. Each is stellar on its own, these two moves are better when they are together. Form a plank position, do one push up and then raise your hips into a pike. Your body should look somewhat upside-down V. The abs will work overtime to get up and out of this motion. Ensure to keep legs straight and feet together from the move.
Y fly
Targets:Â Abs, back, biceps
Difficulty: Intermediate
How-to:
Stand facing the anchor with feet at hip distance. Hold the TRX handles and stretch arms overhead into one Y, palms facing forward.
Lean back over heels until the body forms a diagonal line. Pull your arms down on the front side till palms touch. Leading with hips, pull your body back upward to standing, stretching your arms back into a Y as you perform. You will feel back muscles working as you move from the down point to the Y position, and your abs will help you manage stability from the movement.
Clock press
Targets:Â Abs, back, shoulders, biceps
Difficulty:Â Advanced
How-to:Â
Hold the handles with an above hand and lean front till your body create a diagonal line, weight over toes. Engage your core and flex elbows, keeping them near to the body, and stay in a down position all-time during the workout. Keeping left arm flexed, stretch right arm toward the side till right elbow and wrist are almost level with the shoulder. It is when your back, shoulder, biceps, and back will begin to burn. Reverse the move toward a return to the beginning point. Repeat with left arm and keep alternating.
Power Pull
Targets:Â Â shoulders, upper back, abs, obliques
Difficulty: Intermediate
How-to:Â
Power pulls make for strong bodies particularly this move has a rotation to fire up obliques and abs in addition to the upper body. Stand facing the anchor using a wide stance. Hold one TRX handle in your left hand at your chest height, keep your left elbow high, and point back your body. Stretch the right arm to it is in line with the TRX. As you lean back, stretch your left arm and rotate your body toward the right to reach your right arm outward and lightly behind. Reverse the move to go back to the beginning point.
Standing Fallout
Targets:Â Chest, shoulders, abs
Difficulty: Intermediate
How-to:Â
This move keeps your abs on fire. Form a chest press position.
As you fall front, reach your arms upward till they are level with the remaining body. It is where your shoulders and abs come in handy. Reverse the move to go back to the beginning point.
T Deltoid Fly
Targets:Â shoulders, Back
Difficulty:Â Intermediate
How-to:Â
This move suits the fitness requirement to a T, with a flying move that helps the upper back and carves the shoulder perfectly. Facing the anchor, tilt your position and hold the one handle with each hand.
Lean back so that weight is over your left foot and the TRX straps are bent, arms stretched in front of your chest. Pull against the total resistance exercise, and change weight toward the right food as you open your arms into one T position. Return toward the beginning point.
Side-Straddle Golf Swings
Targets:Â Back, shoulders, chest
Difficulty:Â Beginner
How-to:
This move involves a swinging motion that challenges your upper body in a new way. Facing the anchor point, imagine a wide move and hold one TRX handle in each hand using an overhand grip. Keeping weight over heels, flex forward at hips, and reach arms forward at chest height.
Look forward all the time to the move. Turn your body, stretching your right arm back of you while you stretch your left arm in the front direction. Go back to the movement to repeat over the side.
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Lower body
Lunge
Targets:Â abs, Legs
Difficulty:Â Beginner
How-to:Â
If regular lunges have got one piece of cake, upward the ante with this movement. Additionally giving a workout to the lower body like a traditional lunge will test your stability and balance. Facing away from the anchor point, keep the left foot in both TRX stirrups and plant the right food strongly over the floor. Lower into one lunge, stretch your left leg behind you, without dropping the flex in your knees. Return to the beginning point and repeat for the other leg. You will feel your abs and lower body working hard to complete the movement and balance your body at a similar time.
Squat and fly
Targets:Â Quads, calves, glutes, hamstrings, abs, hip flexors, shoulders, delts
Difficulty:Â Intermediate
How-to:Â A truly fantastic total-body move, this workout will work from head to toe.
Stand and keep your legs at shoulder width and hold the handles in front of you. Lower into a squat as you stretch your arms upward in front of you. Burst up to standing, stretching arms to create an overhead V.
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Squat
Targets:Â Abs, glutes, quads, hamstrings
Difficulty:Â Beginner
How-to:Â
Regular squats are important to develop a strong lower body. Include a TRX to the combination to help enhance your form or even to provide you with some support and stability. Stand facing the TRX, holding both handles on the front side of the waist with elbows flexed by your sides. Drop into one squat, and stretch your arms in front of your eye level. Push yourself back upward to the beginning point.
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Hamstring pull-in (hamstring curl)
Targets:Â glutes, thighs, hips
Difficulty:Â Intermediate
How-to:Â
Lie faceup with arms stretched by your sides. Keep heels in the stirrups and press down to save them. Keep your core tight, and raise your hips over the floor. Pull heels into hips in a controlled and smooth motion, there is no swinging. Straighten your legs to get back to the beginning point.
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Spiderman push-up
Targets:Â triceps, chest, obliques, lower back, shoulders, quads, core
Difficulty: Advanced
How-to:
Regular Spiderman push-ups are not for the faint heart. Include destabilizing elements, that would be getting your feet suspended back of you, and you have got one amazing shaping move over your hands.
Begin with plank position with one foot in every TRX stirrup. Lower body into one push up, getting knees to right elbow, it is when you are firing up your obliques. Go back to the beginning point and repeat with the left leg.
Crunch and curl
Targets: Biceps, abs
Difficulty: Beginner
How-to:
With the TRX, you completely sit facing toward the anchor and hold the handles with an underhand grip. Lie down keeping flexed knees and flat feet over the floor, and arms stretched up in front of you.
Manage your core tight and raise your shoulder and back off from the floor, simultaneously curl your hands near your shoulders. Lower and get back to the beginning point.
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Atomic pike
Targets: Shoulders, abs
Difficulty: Intermediate
How-to:
Assume the plank position and keep your feet in the stirrups and raise your body into one plank. Keeping arms and legs straight and core tight, raise your hips into an inverted V. Drop back to your beginning point. You will feel your abs working on your shoulders struggling to keep you upward as you raise and lower down hips.
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Single-leg hamstring pull-in
Targets:Â Thighs, hips, glutes
Difficulty: Intermediate-advanced
How-to:Â
Isolate the strength-training move to one leg at one time and boom, you got more variation over the regular hamstring exercise. Start as you would do the hamstring pull-in. Instead of pulling both heels to the hips at the same time, change legs. Isolating each leg will make this move more challenging.
Begin as you would do the hamstring pull-in. In place of pulling both heels toward the hips similar time, alternate legs. Isolating every leg will make this move more challenging.
Curtsy lunge
Targets:Â Quads, calves, glutes
Difficulty:Â Intermediate
How-to:Â
It might seem to have a good name, but this is one difficult leg workout. Stand toward the anchor and grab the TRX handles, managing elbows flexed by your sides. Lift right knees till thigh is parallel toward the floor.
Squat low, at a similar time, swinging your right leg back and across your body till you can keep your right toes over the floor toward the left of your left foot. Go back to the beginning point. You will fire up completely and drop your body as you move from this move.
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Lateral Lunge
Targets:Â Glutes, quads, hamstrings, adductors
Difficulty:Â Beginner
How-to:Â
Do not lower lunges toward the typical back and forward varieties. The side move engages hip adductors, which help quads and glutes move properly.
Stand facing the anchor, and feet shoulder-width apart. Grab a TRX handle in every hand in front of your waist, elbows flexed by your sides. Plant your right leg firmly on the floor and take a big step toward the side with your left leg, flexing your left knee as you drop your body into a side lunge. Push back toward the beginning point and repeat over the other leg.
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Curtsy Lunge To Lateral Lunge
Targets: Quads, hamstrings, glutes, calves, adductors
Difficulty:Â Advanced
How-to:Â
It is challenging, and these two moves make an even more strong pair. Do the crusty lunge quickly followed by the lateral lunge. Now is the time to multitask for fitness.
Single-leg plié
Targets:Â Quads, calves, glutes
Difficulty:Â Intermediate
How-to:Â
This move is more like the crusty lunge but with a bonus: a knee-up movement that helps you feel the burn in your legs. Stand in front of the anchor. Grab the TRX handles out on the front side of you, palms facing each other. Flex your elbow and point them by your ideas.
Get right knee upward on the front side till the upper leg is at a 90-degree angle. Drop into a squat, getting the right leg behind the left, without allowing the right leg reaches the floor. Reverse the movement and return toward the knee-up point.
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Suspended Plank With Abduction
Targets:Â Abs, shoulders, hips, obliques
Difficulty:Â Intermediate
How-to:Â
Do a suspended plank a little push by having your hips and legs in on the action. Bring into normal suspended plank position. Manage your core tight and separate legs as wide as you can without lowering your type. It is when you are keeping your hips to work. Pause for some seconds before going back to the beginning point.
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Squat And Fly
Targets:Â Quads, calves, glutes, hamstrings, abs, hip flexors, shoulders, deltas
Difficulty:Â Intermediate
How-to:Â A truly fantastic total-body move, this workout will work from head to toe.
Stand and keep your legs at shoulder width and hold the handles in front of you. Lower into a squat as you stretch your arms upward in front of you. Burst up to standing, stretching arms to create an overhead V.
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Knee Drive
Targets:Â calves, glutes, Quads, outer thighs, lower back, hamstrings, abs
Difficulty:Â Intermediate-advanced
How-to:
Include knee drive in your routine. You will fire up the complete lower body and utilize your core strength to balance yourself from the movement. Stand facing the TRX anchor and hold the handles in front of the chest.
Lean forward, changing weight toward the balls of your feet till the straps get taut. Flex your left knee on the front side. Keep core committed and drive right knee front till right thigh is parallel toward the floor. Pause at the top, then go back to the beginning position.
Single-leg burpee
Targets:Â chest, arms, legs, Shoulders, abs, glutes
Level: Advanced
How-to:
This workout is loved by all and very challenging for some serious benefits of a strong body. Balance the TRX strap so that it hangs at mid-calf.
Keep your right foot in the stirrup behind you. Drop your body into a plank pose but keep free left food suspended next to your right foot. Drop into a push-up and as you lift your back, pull your left foot toward your chest as you back to standing.
Glute Bridge
Targets:Â hamstrings, glutes, back
Difficulty:Â Beginner
How-to:Â
If regular glute bridges are important for the superior posterior, think about what included instability can do for the rearview. It will make your glutes and hamstrings work even harden and pull back muscles into the equation.
Lie over the back and keep heels in the stirrups. Get heels near to hips till your legs are from a 90-degree angle. Stretch your arms out beside you, and your raised hip upper body is at a diagonal. Drop back toward the beginning point.
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Mountain climber
Targets:Â Â glutes, upper back, Abs, quads, shoulders, hamstrings, chest,
Difficulty:Â Intermediate
How-to:Â
Walking or even running on air is not only science fiction anymore. Flying through this movement will increase heart rate, burn some serious calories, and keep your muscles on fire. Slip your feet into the stirrups and settle into the trusty plank position. Just as you would do with feet on the floor, change getting each knee to the chest. Speed up without lowering control with your movements, a much bigger challenge when your feet are dangling.
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Benefits of TRX Exercise
Everyone Can do a TRX Workout
TRX exercise for everyone with your fitness levels. The best thing about suspension training is that there are more modifications for all exercises for beginners to users with advanced TRX.
Don’t be intimidated by the hanging straps or the thought of body suspending. There are several levels to the TRX trainer, making you suspend your work or body from a standing position.
For example, this is the workout progression for the TRX sprinter start. You have three options depending on TRX fitness levels from beginning to advanced.
Unlike different exercises, where you are continually raising the reps or weight, with the TRX slight changes to body point dramatically boost workout intensity.
Modify and Progress Workout
There are many TRX workouts, and with several levels of progressions, you will always get a fresh exercise. Working out never gets boring with the TRX. There is always a new way to challenge yourself.
Throughout your TRX exercise, you will balance your TRX straps to several lengths. You will also change body positioning. That helps to create various angles with the body and make the workouts more or less challenging.
When you exercise with core strength fitness trainers, you can try adjusting straps and modify workout based on your fitness levels.
You can also utilize the candles in many ways. In the Sprinter begin exercise above, you keep your hands in the cardless. With another workout, you keep feet or heels in the cradles.
For the TRX hip press, you can also use the cradles in different ways. In the Sprinter Start exercise above, you keep your hands in the cradles. With other exercises, you keep your feet or heels in the cradles. For the TRX hip press, your heels go into straps.
Build Your Core
With the TRX, you are always working on your core. Research tells higher abdominal muscle activation in every workout with the TRX suspension trainer.
Who doesn’t wish for ripped abs? You will have that 6-pack with the TRX
The TRX provides one of the good core exercise routines because you are always working mid-section with each TRX workout.
If you are experiencing core problems, your foot strength may be a problem. Your feet may be responsible for lower back pain. Try these short foot workouts to link the ground to the core so you are more balanced and you finally get back pain relief.
Lower Risk of Exercises
TRX exercise benefits lower the risk of exercise. It also provides traditional training benefits. According to TRX training research shows there is less potential for injury compared to free weight training because it is easy for joints. You work on flexibility and mobility with several exercises while growing strength. Therefore, if you are trying new exercise routines, try the TRX.
TRX Muscle Building
TRX exercise also helps to gain muscles of the glutes and core.
Research shows the same growth hormone response after exercise compared to traditional resistance training, so you will get the similar muscles you have from another exercise.
You will do all types of non-favorite and favorite workouts you have always done, only you will utilize the suspension trainer to give you a good exercise.
The TRX develop your muscles in ways you have never worked them before, while still being easy over the joints and having low injury risk.
This 30 minutes TRX upper body exercise shows you all the ways you can work your arm muscles in new ways.
Burns More Calories
Who doesn’t wish a workout to burn extra calories? It is the best benefit of TRX training, you do not have to spend extra time in the gym to burn those more calories.
Research proves more testosterone to cortisol ratio. As a result, you will see improved muscle growth and calories burn after one TRX training session.
Here is a TRX exercise that will get your sweat on.
It has a TRX mobility workout for a 5 minutes warmup, a 30 minutes total body TRX exercise, and a TRX cooldown.
Get More Results in Less Time
If you are strapped for time, the TRX is a good choice for you. You can exercise in less time.
When you don’t get more time suspension training can provide you the best total body exercise in a fraction of the time that a regular weight lifting session would take, and you get exactly similar benefits.
The TRX Work on Balance, Strength, Flexibility
The TRX helps strength, balance, core stability, and flexibility all at once. According to research published in the Journal of-Exercise-Science-Fitness, research analyses the effectiveness of four unstable devices, including the stability disc, wobble board, TRX suspension trainer, and fitness dome. Physically fit males did push-ups over all the fitness tools and the research analyze their muscle activation.
Muscle activation was highest when utilizing the TRX to do a push-up, compared to results seen using different unstable equipment and providing regular push-ups.
Doing it on short notice still be challenging. It’s five workouts long and takes 5 minutes. It has the TRX low row, the RX hamstring curl, TRX atomic push-up, TRX squat hops, and TRX hip press. Do every workout for 10-reps and repeat the exercise 5 times without stopping.