I carry all sorts of interesting things in my gym bag from Band Aids for blisters to band aids for my warm ups.

My training team at Precision Nutrition suggested using bands during dynamic warm ups prior to each workout. These little training aids have proven to be a great addition to my training program. Instead of rushing into my workout, now I begin with 5-7 minutes of stretches to warm up the muscle group I’m about to work.

This 5-7 minutes is time well spent. Warming up with stretch bands prepares my body to work, helps with range of motion in movements like bench presses and squats, and it improves flexibility. In addition, this time eases me into my workout and helps me prepare mentally for the session ahead.

Here are a few video examples of some lower and upper body movements to give you an idea of how bands can be incorporated into a warm up:

Band Stomps: Great for warming up the entire leg and activating the glutes

Band Squats: Great for warming up the entire lower body and opening up the hip flexors

Band Pull Apart: Excellent for stretching out the back, shoulders and lats. This video shows the movement preformed behind the shoulders. Band pull aparts can also be done in front of the body to open up the chest and shoulders, too.

Single Arm Band Shoulder Press: Perfect for warming up the entire shoulder

Band Assisted Pull Ups: The band is also a great tool to help master pull ups and chin ups without the aid of a machine or spotter.

You can buy these bands online at Iron Woody Fitness where they cleverly call them Woody Bands. I like the 41 inch mini and super-mini bands for upper body warm ups and the small band for lower body stretches like the band stomp for instance.

The good people at Iron Woody generously agreed to give Fitness & Spice readers a 10% discount on orders by clicking here.

You can buy the other type of Band Aids at your local drug store, or better yet, hit the sporting goods store for some gloves or some really cute (I mean, better fitting) shoes.