The Single Piece Of Fitness Equipment That Builds Strength & Blasts Calories Like Crazy
By admin
Hello and Happy Monday!
I couldn’t be more excited about this week. In just 3 days, I’ll be on my merry way to California! Kettlebell training here we come!
While I LOVE kettlebells, it’s not the only piece of fitness equipment I’ve been playing around with lately.
I say playing because fitness is play… I wish that instead of calling exercise a workout, it was called playtime. But that’s a topic for another day.
Today, I want to talk about a piece of equipment that has really made a difference in my training lately.
A single piece of equipment that can really serve as your complete at home gym.
And no… it’s not THE Total Gym.
It’s a sandbag…
How To Use A Sandbag To Build Strength & Blast Calories
1. Its customizable.
What I love that you can tailor your bag to you. If you’re doing an exercise like squats where you can use a pretty heavy weight… just add more filler bags. If you need it to be lighter, then take some bags out. One weight that can be adjusted. I love that I don’t have to load up several sets of dumbbells in my car for boot camps!
2. Increase muscle activation & calorie burn.
Because the sandbags are not evenly distributed, your body had to work a bit harder to stabilize the weight. Your core will be activated more as well as smaller “stabilizer” muscles. The more muscles that are working means the more calories you’ll be burning!
3. Safety First.
Weights can be a bit scary for some people. And intimidating. What if you dropped it?
The sandbags, while heavy, take some of that pressure off. I’ve dropped mine several times on my foot (to test this theory) and can say with 100% confidence it was really not a big deal. If i had dropped a 30-lb kettlebell on my foot now that’s a different story.
4. Take your workout anywhere.
I love working outside! It’s common for Dan and I to drive out to a local park to knock our workouts out. So much better than being in a stuffy gym. We got pretty used to bringing our kettlebells with us, and we still do, but sandbags travel so much easier. Just toss it and go. Plus, people don’t give you weird looks. We get weird looks all the time when we unload some of our other equipment.
5. The workout never ends.
It kind of reminds me of a kettlebell in the sense that once you get moving, you can progress from one exercise to another without having to stop.
Moves get linked together creating compound exercises. Before you know it, your heart rate is up, muscles are burning, and you’re having fun playing around and trying to move from one exercise to another.
It’s hard but that kind of intensity helps to not only tone muscles but improve your cardiovascular health as well.
6. Price savvy.
Dumbbells are pricy, kettlebells aren’t so friendly on the wallet either. And in order to get a great workout in, you really want a nice selection of weights, right?
Sandbags are great when it comes to getting a lot for a little. Basically you’re getting a whole set of weights for a fraction of the cost. The bag in the video along with the filler bags cost around $ 50… and sand is only around $ 4 for 60-pounds!
The Moves: Sandbag Exercises
Now that I just typed the headline I can’t get “Moves Like Jagger” out of my head.
I could probably make an entire DVD of sandbag moves! As I was putting the video together, Dan finally had to stop me and tell me that I had enough.
A few others I wanted to include will have to be for another show 
These are great moves to get started and comfortable when using a bag. Trust me, it is different! And it takes practice.
- Squats
- Lunges
- Shoulder To Shoulder Pass Squats
- Behind Head Prisoner Squats
- Rotating Lunges With Clean (Make sure to swing the bag over the leg that is in front)
- Sandbag Snatches
- Cherry Pickers aka Twisties (Sit the bag all the way down before picking up for the other side)
Make sure to watch the video above on these exercises for proper form!
The Details: Where To Find Sandbags
Our personal collection is composed of 2 different brands and we are pleased with both.
The sandbag in the video was purchased from Rogue Fitness. The small bag can carry up to 45-pounds and cost us $ 45. Dan also got a bag that carries up to 80-pounds which cost $ 55. Compare that to dumbbells, and that’s a huge difference.
We also purchased these filler bags and additional sandbags off Amazon for around $ 50… that includes the filler bags and we found it to be great deal.
I had a blast making this equipment spotlight video! Sandbags are awesome and I strongly suggest if you’re looking to expand your personal fitness collection to look into them.
Our clients are loving them and feeling like beasts throughout the workouts as they swing, lift, and rotate these bags around. It’s a lot of fun to watch!
Before signing off let me say this… I have no ties to either company above. Dan and I purchased our own sandbag collection. I simply think it’s an awesome piece of gear that deserves more attention!
Ok, now that that’s done…
–>Have you ever worked out with a sandbag? If not, would you want to? If so, did you like it?<–