Exercise equipment explained

Exercise equipment is any apparatus or device used during physical activity to enhance the strength or conditioning effects of that exercise by providing either fixed or adjustable amounts of resistance, or to otherwise enhance the experience or outcome of an exercise routine.

Exercise equipment may also include such wearable items as proper footgear, gloves, and hydration packs.

General strength training equipment

A broad range of different types of exercise equipment are available, including:

• Free-weight training

• • Dumbbells, preloaded or conventional
  • Barbells, preloaded or conventional
  • Kettlebells
  • Weight plates: bumper plates, steel plates, micro-plates
  • Collars
• Weight machines
• Cables
• Rower grip bars
• Head/neck harness
• Variable resistance training:^[1]
  • Elastic bands^[2] (resistance bands): monster bands, hip circles, floss bands, mini bands
  • Chain accommodation training:^[3] chains
• Lifting accessories:
  • Straps, wraps and sleeves:
    • Lifting wrist straps
    • Wrist wraps
    • Elbow sleeves
    • Knee wraps
    • Knee sleeves
  • Grip: Gym chalk, gloves (the use of gloves during weight training is controversial. Some believe gloves improve grip, while others believe the extra material between the skin and bar worsens grip. In either case, grip strength must be trained to improve performance.^{[4] [5]})
  • Sling shots
  • Shoes (specifically made for Olympic weightlifting, squats, deadlifts, overhead press, etc.)
  • Belts (10 mm, 13 mm; small, medium, large; prong belts, lever belts)
• Flywheel training devices

Strongman (strength athlete) equipment

• Yokes
• Training sleds
• Logs
• Axles
• Farmer's walk handles
• Stones

Atlas stone, stone of steel (hollow ball loaded with barbells inside)

• Kegs
• General grip strength: Torsion-spring grippers, wrist rollers, rubber grips (Fat Gripz), pinch blocks, pull-up spheres
• Power pins (kettlebell loaded with barbells inside), loading pins (aka. lifting pin, barbell holder for training with weighted pull-ups, et cetera)
• Hammers, slammers, maces, clubs
• Sandbags
• Bulgarian bag^[6]

Bodyweight training, calisthenics and gymnastics equipment

• Dip bar, U-shaped bar designed for being gripped by the hands while performing the dip exercise
• Exercise balls, often soft, elastic and filled with air, used in physical therapy, athletic training and exercise, and sometimes also for weight training
  • BOSU ball, an inflated rubber hemisphere ("half-ball") attached to a rigid platform, used for balance training
  • Medicine ball, a weighted ball whose diameter is about a shoulder-width, often used for rehabilitation and strength training
• Parallel bars (P-bars): high P-bars, low P-bars
• Parallettes
• Plyo box, a box used for plyometric exercises, which are a type of explosive power, like for example jumping
• Power tower or knee raise station, commonly with a backrest and forearm rests with vertical handles at the ends of the rests, used for abdominal exercises since little arm strength is needed and the movement occurs in the hips and torso.
• Push-up handle bars
• Pulling-related:
  • Pull-up/dip belts
  • Peg boards
  • Pull-up bars:
    • Free standing bar
    • Wall-mounted
    • Ceiling-mounted
    • Doorway (use leverage around door frame)
    • Extending door frame (extends out to fit between door frame)
• Pole dancing poles, vertical bars used for dance and acrobatics
• Resistance bands
• Rope

• • Jump rope
  • Rope climbing
  • Agility ladder, ground-laid rope ladder in which one can move the feet quickly across the squares to improve coordination and speed
  • Battling ropes
  • Climbing rope
• Suspension training

^[7]

• • TRX System ("Total Resistance Exercises"), a suspension training scheme developed by former U.S. Navy SEAL Randy Hetrick
  • Gymnastic rings
• Roman chair, mainly used for the lower back
• Training sleds, scrum machine
• Vault, gymnastic apparatus and exercise, with variations including the vaulting horse and vaulting table
• Wall bars
• Weights:
  • Weighted vest
  • Ankle weights
  • Wrist weights

• Elliptical trainer, a low-impact exercise machine claimed to decrease the risk of impact injuries
  • StreetStrider, an elliptical trainer on wheels
• Indoor rower or rowing machine, a machine used to simulate watercraft rowing
• Stepper, also known as mini stepper or stair stepper
• Stair machine, also known as stair stepper
• Stationary bicycle, also known from degenerated and non-degenerated brand names such as spinning, gamebike and PCGamerBike
• Treadmill, generally used for walking or running, but also climbing and cross-country skiing, while staying in the same place
  • Treadmill desk, a computer desk where one can work on office tasks while treadmilling

Myofascial release and recovery tools

• Massage rollers, e.g. foam roller with or without knobs
• Balls: lacrosse ball, spiky, dimple, rad roller or peanuts

Other

• Balance board
• Glute hamstring developers (GHD) for developing glutes and hamstrings^[8]
• Slant board
• Training masks

See also

• Communications Specification for Fitness Equipment, a fitness industry-wide communications specification
• Exercise machine
• Fitness (biology)
• Fitness trail, a path with exercise equipment along its length
• High-intensity interval training
• Hojo undō, conditioning exercises used in martial arts
• Indoor rower
• Outdoor gym
• Physical exercise
• Weight training

Notes and References

1. 4081144 . 25024910 . 10.7717/peerj.441 . 2 . Effectiveness of accommodation and constant resistance training on maximal strength and power in trained athletes . PeerJ . e441 . Ataee . J . Koozehchian . MS . Kreider . RB . Zuo . L. 2014 . free .
2. 3588619 . 23486257 . 10.2478/v10078-011-0043-8 . 29 . The Effects of 24 weeks of Resistance Training with Simultaneous Elastic and Free Weight Loading on Muscular Performance of Novice Lifters . J Hum Kinet . 93–106 . Shoepe . TC . Ramirez . DA . Rovetti . RJ . Kohler . DR . Almstedt . HC. 2011 . 2011 .
3. 4081144 . 25024910 . 10.7717/peerj.441 . 2 . Effectiveness of accommodation and constant resistance training on maximal strength and power in trained athletes . PeerJ . e441 . Ataee . J . Koozehchian . MS . Kreider . RB . Zuo . L. 2014 . free .
4. Web site: Williams. Brett. NASM. 2019-02-08. Why Guys Love Arguing About Weightlifting Gloves. 2020-10-28. Men's Health. en-US.
5. https://fitnesstrainingstar.com/grip-strength-importance-weight-lifting/ Grip Strength for Weightlifting
6. Thieme, Trevor. "How Bulgarian Bags Can Help You Get a Killer Workout",Men's Health, March 16, 2020. Accessed March 24, 2023. "Shaped like a crescent moon and inspired by the goat-and-sheep-hefting prowess of shepherds, the Bulgarian bag is essentially a re-engineered sandbag. Instead of containing a single bladder of sand, they're usually filled with individually wrapped sand packets and padded with wool to create a solid, curved (typically goat leather) sack that's more stable than a traditional duffel-shaped sandbag."
7. 4126284 . 25177174 . 13 . Muscle Activation during Push-Ups with Different Suspension Training Systems . J Sports Sci Med . 502–10 . Calatayud . J . Borreani . S . Colado . JC . Martín . FF . Rogers . ME . Behm . DG . Andersen . LL. 3 . 2014 .
8. Web site: Your Ultimate Guide to Using the GHD Machine. Gabrielle . Kassel . February 12, 2020. Shape .