It’s time to wake up the gymnast who is sleeping in each of us. Ring training builds strength and muscle, strengthens joints and helps you get in shape quickly!
Gymnastic rings are those sports equipment to which the phrase “harder than it looks” is fully applicable. Movements that seem effortless during the Summer Olympics broadcast are insanely difficult to execute. In fact, just to keep the body motionless on the gymnastic rings, you need to engage muscles that you didn’t even know existed until now.
And yet, gym rings can be one of the best training tools for developing upper body and core strength for both novice athletes and experienced lifters. It is enough to understand how to handle them, and you can achieve high skill, even if not the level of Olympic champions. Here are five reasons why you should add gymnastic rings to your workout routine.
1. The mobility of the gymnastic rings contributes to the development of strength
Every time you add an element of instability to an exercise, your muscles have to work harder. For example, you can easily do push-ups from a bench or on parallel bars, but it will be extremely difficult to perform a similar number of push-ups on gymnastic rings. This is also true of pull-ups. The extra effort to stabilize the body contributes to a faster development of strength than exercises on a stationary apparatus.
Since the gym rings can be hung from the ceiling or even a horizontal bar in the playground, they can quickly complicate even the simplest exercise in your workout program. Anything that dangles freely in the air makes it very difficult to do exercises with body weight – and this makes training much more effective. For example, it may take time for you to re-learn how to pull up on a new apparatus.
2. The adjustable width of the gymnastic rings makes your workout safer
While parallel bars in gyms or outdoor venues are useful equipment, they are almost always too wide for the average person. If you experience pain in your shoulders or elbows while doing exercises on the uneven bars, this also applies to you. Just for reference, regular parallel bars are at least 25% wider than most people need.
The correct distance between the bars and other similar exercise equipment should be no more than the length of your arm from elbow to toes. With gymnastics rings, you can easily adjust the width to suit your body, making every exercise in your workout safer and less likely to get injured.
3. The height of the gymnastic rings is easy to adjust
All gymnastics rings come with adjustable straps that allow you to change their height for a variety of cool exercises. Shorten the straps for the ring version of the pull-ups or pull-ups. Lower them to waist height to do push-ups or a “corner” with an emphasis on the rings. Hang the rings off the ground to do more advanced push-ups or abs rolls.
The ability to adjust the gymnastic rings will also come in handy if your height makes it difficult to train on a standard horizontal bar in the gym. Tall people, whose feet usually touch the floor, can lift the rings higher; undersized athletes who do not reach the bar may lower the rings.
4. Gymnastic rings are compact
One of the main advantages of gymnastic rings is their compactness. The rings can be used not only in the gym, but anywhere, because they take up little space in a bag or backpack. You can take them on vacation for short workouts or exercise outdoors if the weather permits. All you need is something stable, through which you can sling the belts. For example, a horizontal bar on a playground, a tree, or even a basketball hoop. Chic training equipment is always at your disposal, even if you are just starting to train.
5. Gym rings strengthen the body
Because gymnastics rings are good at developing the strength of all the small stabilizing muscles around the shoulder and elbow joints, regular exercise with them helps prevent common injuries. Combined with strength development, this ring feature will help you create an unstoppable and bulletproof body.
Pull-ups and push-ups are still difficult? Unless you are a gymnast or acrobat, start your ring workout slowly. At first, use them while exercising at the gym. The muscles and tendons surrounding your joints take time to get stronger. Forcing events can result in a muscle strain or serious injury that will keep you out of your workout for a long time, so be careful!
If you’re new to training with gymnastic equipment, start with a basic emphasis on the rings to develop strength and stability in the shoulder joints. Hang the rings at a height that allows you to rise above them with outstretched arms. In this position, push up from your shoulders, tighten your core muscles, and rotate your elbows outward so that the ulnar fossa is facing forward. Hold this position for a while, do up to three sets of thirty seconds or longer.
