Testing home gym equipment is part of my job as a fitness writer and personal trainer, but many of the viral gadgets fall short of expectations and in my honest opinion aren’t worth the money.
That said, I had high hopes when the Gymproluxe Band and Bar 2.0 set landed on my desk.
Compact, portable and lightweight, it is essentially a belt with handles and three detachable resistance bands at each end, along with a bar. Attach all the resistance bands to the handles and the resistance tops out at 200lb (90kg).
It comes with an app that shows you how the Gymproluxe can be used to execute more than 100 different exercises, as well as follow-along workouts.
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I spent a month trying it out and this is what I discovered.
My experience using Gymproluxe for 30 days
It offers more than enough resistance
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Gymproluxe Band and Bar set 2.0
Whenever I bring bands to sessions with my personal training clients,they often think the bands won’t pose much of a challenge, but believe me, they change their tune after using them!
The belt has six adjustable belt tubes, the two white bands have a resistance of 10kg, the green 15kg and the black 20kg, which add up to 90kg (200lbs)—a significant weight for most people to work with.
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It’s lightweight and portable
(Image credit: Future / Maddy Biddulph)
One thing I love about the Gymproluxe is that it weighs just 4kg—more than light enough to pick up—and the bar unscrews into two parts to fit in the included carry bag.
I always feel better when I exercise outdoors, so I enjoyed taking the kit with me to train in my local park.
It’s versatile
The Gymproluxe bar can be threaded through the bands belt to do a bench press, seated rows and deadlifts. I don’t have a barbell at home so I really enjoyed being able to perform moves I normally have to go to a gym for.
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The bar can also double as a mobility stick, which is preferable to the garden broom I had been using! I loved working on my shoulder flexibility and used the bar as part of my mobility training.
The only thing I’d say is, because the bands are attached to the belt, I couldn’t pull them far enough apart to do certain exercises such as the pec flye, but there were so many other moves to do that I didn’t mind too much.
The app is easy to use and helpful
The app is easy to navigate and the trainers are really good at explaining set-up and technique, which is ideal for beginners and people returning to exercise after a break.
As well as traditional strength exercises, the app includes advice on stretching too, which is a great addition.
There is a range of workouts to follow, from a quick 15-minute chest annihilator (video below) to longer HIIT classes, which were my favorite.
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1
Hollow Body Hold
Movement pattern: Core
Why it rocks: The hollow body hold is even more challenging than a plank (trust us), and requires full-body activation. Pro tip: Press your back into the floor and squeeze your core while doing this move. If you feel your lower back is rising off the floor, bend your knees to 90 degrees, says Sariya.
How to:
Start lying on back with with arms extended overhead on floor and legs straight resting on mat.
At the same time, and with control, lift arms, head, shoulder blades, and legs a few inches off the floor.
Hold the elevated position, ensuring your low back is still glued to the ground.
2
Plank
Movement pattern: Core
Why it rocks:Planks are a great way to build total body strength. They’re a type of isometric hold, which takes a lot of effort and builds both stamina and endurance. Plus, they can easily be modified by planking on your knees or elevating your hands until you can do them all-out.
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How to:
Start on all fours with shins and palms flat on mat.
Step back onto the on balls of your feet, creating a straight line from heels through the top of your head. Keep your gaze to the floor.
Squeeze your glutes and abs to keep hips inline with your shoulders. Hold here as long as you can.
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3
Bird Dog
Movement pattern:Core
Why it rocks: This is a great move to practice coordination, and builds core stability and balance.
How to:
Start on all fours with wrists directly under shoulders and knees under hips. Keep back flat, core engaged, and a slight bend in elbows.
Extend left arm out in front at shoulder height and right leg straight behind at hip height.
Bend leg and arm and bring to midline under torso until elbow and knee touch. That’s 1 rep. Alternate sides.
4
Reverse Crunch
Movement pattern: Core
Why it rocks: This move builds strength and control through your core abs. Make sure you’re using your lower abs—and not momentum—to perform this movement. If you’re struggling, imagine you’re pushing your heels to the ceiling, Sariya says.
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How to:
Start lying on back with arms by sides and feet lifted off the ground, legs extended, and toes pointed.
Squeeze your core to pull your hips off the ground. Do your best to push your toes up towards the ceiling instead of back towards your head.
Slowly return to start. That’s 1 rep.
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5
Russian Twist
Movement pattern: Core
Why it rocks: This move builds rotational strength. Make sure you have the proper form when doing this oblique-working move: Puff out your chest and keep a long line from your tailbone to your shoulder.
How to:
Start seated with upper body leaned back until abs are engaged, legs lifted and bent, arms bent, hands clasped, and elbows wide. For an extra challenge, lift heels up off the floor.
Rotate torso to right side so that right elbow is hovering off mat.
Keeping lower body still throughout, rotate the upper body to the left side. That’s 1 rep.
6
Inchworm Shoulder Tap
Movement pattern: Core
Why it rocks: This exercise strengthens your shoulders, and works your core.
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How to:
Start standing with feet hip-width apart.
Reach down to ground and crawl out into a high plank position, with your wrists just under your shoulders.
Keeping hips square to ground, lift right hand to tap left shoulder.
Return right hand to ground.
Lift left hand to tap right shoulder.
Return left hand to ground.
Walk hands back to feet and return to standing. That’s 1 rep.
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7
Plank Up Down
Movement pattern: Core
Why it rocks: This move builds strength in your chest and shoulders. To make it harder, come up onto your toes.
How to:
Start in a high plank position (on knees or toes).
Lower down, one arm at a time, into a forearm plank, keeping elbows under shoulders.
Reverse the movement press hands one at a time into floor to return to high plank. That’s 1 rep.
8
Downward Dog Toe Tap
Movement pattern: Core
Why it rocks:This move fires up the core and hamstrings, all while strengthening your shoulders. Pro tip: If you can’t reach your toes, aim for knees or shins.
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How to:
Start in a high plank position with a straight line from head to heels and shoulders over wrists.
Press torso back toward legs so heels lower to the ground, while reaching left arm to right toes. Maintain a long spine.
Return to high plank.
Repeat movement, bringing right arm to left toes.
Return to high plank. That’s 1 rep. Continue alternating.
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9
Scissor Kick
Movement pattern: Core
Why it rocks: Scissor kicks strengthen your lower abs and hip flexors.
How to:
Lie on back with arms down by sides, palms down, and elbows and lower back touching the floor.
Engage core by pressing lower back into the floor, tuck pelvis, and lift both legs about six inches off the ground.
Raise one leg to 60-degrees, while maintaining the other leg at the 45-degree angle.
Continue alternating legs up and down keeping knees as straight as possible.
10
Inchworm
Movement pattern: Core
Why it rocks: This move fires up both your core and upper body, making it a great warmup move for your upper body days.
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How to:
Start standing with feet hips-width apart.
Hinge at hips and lower down until hands reach the ground, focusing on core activation and spine alignment, keeping legs as straight as possible.
Crawl forward lifting one hand at a time with legs straight and hips lifted until in a high plank. Try to keep hips as square to the ground as you can throughout the move.
Walk hands one by one back to feet.
Reverse motion to return to standing tall. That’s 1 rep.
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11
Plank Jack Shoulder Tap
Movement pattern: Core
Why it rocks: There’s a lot going on in this intermediate-to-advanced move. It targets lower abs and shoulders and gets your heart rate up. Pro tip: If your wrists start to get tired, you can do this on your fists.
How to:
Start in a high plank position, with hands stacked directly under shoulders and head to heels in a straight line.
Keeping core engaged, tap right shoulder with left hand as you jump feet outward.
Return to high plank.
Immediately repeat on the opposite side. That’s 1 rep.
12
Plank Knee To Nose
Movement pattern: Core
Why it rocks: This is a good core move that improves your spinal stability.
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How to:
Start in a high plank position with right foot lifted slightly up off the floor.
Exhale and pull the right knee toward the chest while rounding the spine to bring nose toward knee.
With control, reverse movement to return to plank position with right foot lifted. That’s 1 rep.
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13
Leg Lower
Movement pattern: Core
Why it rocks: This move is great for core stability.
How to:
Start lying on back with arms on mat and hands under butt, palms down, legs raised at a 90-degree angle from the floor, feet flexed.
Slowly lower one leg as far down as possible without allowing your lower back to lift off the ground.
Return to start.
Repeat with the other leg. That’s 1 rep.
14
Forearm Side Plank
Movement pattern: Core
Why it rocks: This move works the shoulders, obliques, and the rectus abdominis.
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How to:
Lay on side with right forearm flat on the floor, elbow under shoulder, and both legs extended so body forms a straight line from head to feet. Feet can either be staggered for extra stability or stacked for more of a challenge.
Engage core and lift hips off the floor.
Pause and hold.
Repeat on the other side.
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15
Side Plank Thread The Needle
Movement pattern: Core
Why it rocks: Level up your side planks with a little extra movement. Pro tip: If you’re struggling to stack your feet, split your stance for better balance.
How to:
Start on left side with left forearm on mat and knees bent.
Raise right arm toward ceiling and lift hips up and away from the floor until body forms a straight line from head to heels.
Keeping hips lifted, rotate left arm down and underneath torso and allow gaze to shift toward the floor.
Reverse the movement to return to start. That’s 1 rep. Complete on the opposite side.
16
Pushup To Plank Row
Movement Pattern: Upper Body
Why it rocks: This exercise targets your chest and back at the same time. Once you get comfortable with the move, add a resistance band around your hands for a little more back challenge. Or, you can also pop into a high plank position for a full pushup.
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How to:
Start in a modified plank position, knees on ground, wrists under shoulders. Maintain a long spine with knees to head aligned.
Lower into a pushup so chest hovers just above the floor, and elbows are close to sides.
Push up from ground to return to modified plank position, then drive right elbow toward sky, performing a row.
Return right hand to ground.
Repeat row with left arm.
Return left hand to ground. That’s 1 rep.
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17
Superman Arm Extension
Movement pattern: Upper Body
Why it rocks:This is a great move for people who want to strengthen their posterior chain (or all the muscles on the back side of your body!). It can even help improve posture, says Sariya.
How to:
Start lying facedown on a mat, legs extended, elbows tucked at sides.
Squeeze glutes to lift legs and extend arms overhead simultaneously, pulling thighs and chest off the floor.
Pause, then lower legs and bend arms to sides to return to starting position. That’s 1 rep.
18
Triceps Dip
Movement Pattern: Upper Body
Why it rocks: This move isolates the triceps. Pro tip: Make sure your hands are right outside your hips and your elbows are pointing behind you in order to really target the back of your arms. To make it more challenging, straighten out your legs.
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How to:
Sit in a chair (or on a box/step) and grip the front edges with hands.
Scoot butt forward until it’s hovering just off the seat and legs form a 90-degree angle and straighten arms.
Lower body down until biceps are parallel to floor.
Engage triceps to press back to start. That’s 1 rep.
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19
Superwoman Isometric Hold
Movement Pattern: Upper Body
Why it rocks: This move works the back muscles that stabilize and support your spine, making everyday movement easier, says Sariya.
How to:
Lie facedown on the mat, with arms and legs stretched out.
Squeeze glutes and lift torso and legs up as far as you can. Imagine reaching out with arms and legs.
Pause at the top and hold.
20
Incline Pushup
Movement Pattern: Upper Body
Why it rocks: This is a great move for people working their way up to a flat pushup.
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How to:
Start in an incline plank position with hands on a chair, bench, or step and feet on floor with head to heels aligned.
Lower down, with elbows pointing 45-degrees away from body, until arms bend to 90-degrees.
Press back up keeping body in a straight line. That’s 1 rep.
Andi Breitowich is a Chicago-based writer and graduate student at Northwestern Medill. She’s a mass consumer of social media and cares about women’s rights, holistic wellness, and non-stigmatizing reproductive care. As a former collegiate pole vaulter, she has a love for all things fitness and is currently obsessed with Peloton Tread workouts and hot yoga.
Olivia Luppino is an editorial assistant at Women’s Health. She spends most of her time interviewing expert sources about the latest fitness trends, nutrition tips, and practical advice for living a healthier life. Olivia previously wrote for New York Magazine’s The Cut, PS (formerly POPSUGAR), and Salon, where she also did on-camera interviews with celebrity guests. She recently ran the New York City Marathon.
Cori Ritchey, C.S.C.S., is the fitness editor at Women’s Health, as well as a certified strength and condition coach and group fitness instructor. She’s reported on topics regarding health, nutrition, mental health, fitness, sex, and relationships for several years. You can find more of her work in Men’s Health, HealthCentral, Livestrong, Self, and others.
The U.S. Air Force updated its physical fitness program and score charts for the fitness tests to boost the long-term health of airmen.
The modernized program utilizes a more thorough assessment model to strengthen warfighter readiness by motivating airmen to build more sustainable fitness habits for the duration of their careers, according to a Feb. 27 release.
“This update is not just about increasing the physical fitness test standards; it’s about ensuring our warfighters are fit, ready, and prioritizing their long-term health,” Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Ken Wilsbach said in the memo.
The updated score charts will have increased minimums for each scored component and separate charts are now available for Occupationally Specific Physical Fitness Assessments as well.
A baseline window for airmen to take the diagnostic tests will begin March 1, but scoring won’t become official until July 1, per the statement.
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This gives the airmen time to adjust their training focus as needed before the official scoring date. The baseline period is also meant to produce data to ensure that the new program is implemented in a fair, accurate and effective manner across the Air Force.
“The baseline period will also provide the data required to assess and refine score charts in advance of full implementation of the new standards,” the statement says.
Airmen who complete the Physical Fitness Readiness Assessment during the baseline period can use that diagnostic score as their official fitness test score, according to the release.
Body composition will return as a scored component in the assessment, but airmen can elect to take it out of the test up to five days before testing the remaining components.
The release states that resources are made available to support the force through the transition, like trained experts that will instruct airmen through safe conditioning and a playbook that gives guidance on workouts, recovery and nutrition.
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Earlier this year, the force announced that airmen can choose between a 2-mile run or the 20-meter High-Aerobic Multi-shuttle Run for their fitness tests every six months, following the “Culture of Fitness” initiative last September to encourage airmen and Space Force guardians to improve their physical fitness.
The statement says that the certification of the 2-mile run is in progress to ensure that all Air Force tracks meet official standards, and final measurement specifications will be published in the fitness program guide.
As announced in January, an airmen’s fitness assessment scores will become part of their annual evaluation to “incorporate a full picture of an individual’s performance and contributions.”
Cristina Stassis is a reporter covering stories surrounding the defense industry, national security, military/veteran affairs and more. She previously worked as an editorial fellow for Defense News in 2024 where she assisted the newsroom in breaking news across Sightline Media Group.
The universal quest for immortality continues, and new research has hinted at a small lifestyle change that could reduce overall death rates in countries if we start taking our movement more seriously.
Conducted by a global research team, the study named ‘Deaths potentially averted by small changes in physical activity and sedentary time: an individual participant data meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies’ was published in The Lancet and suggested that adding five more minutes of physical exercise a day to your life could reduce death rates by 6 per cent.
Conducted on cohorts wearing on-person devices from Norway, Sweden and the USA, scientists analysed activity and sedentary levels to deduce what was causing higher death rates and found that a little change could go a long way.
With the help of the study’s author and additional experts from the field, we delved into the details and uncovered exactly what we need to do to make sure we are maximising our health before it’s too late.
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A little change makes all the difference
We already know that we should all be getting out and exercising to ensure everything in our bodies is running smoothly, but just how important is that daily movement and could it be contributing to national mortality rates?
Professor Ulf Ekelund works in the Physical Activity and Health department at the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences and was one of the authors of the study. He broke down the data for HELLO!.
The professor explained: “We estimated the number of deaths potentially prevented by five and ten-minute increases in moderate intensity physical activity if all individuals in the population adhered to this increase.
“We analysed the data using two different approaches:
‘High-risk approach’ comprising the least active 20 per cent of the population
‘Population approach’ comprising 80 per cent of the population (excluding the most active 20 per cent).
He continued: “We found that six per cent and ten per cent of all deaths might be prevented in the two different scenarios, respectively, if all individuals made these changes.
“If an individual is completely inactive, every little move counts. For example, the least active 20 per cent in our study sample were only active for an average of about two minutes per day of moderate intensity. If all these individuals increased their activity by five minutes per day, it might reduce the number of deaths by six per cent annually.”
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Dr Darren Player, a professor in Musculoskeletal Bioengineering at University College London, who was not involved in the study, shared his interpretation of the data with us and added: “The key finding was that an increase in Moderate-to-Vigorous Physical Activity (MVPA) by only five minutes per day for the least active individuals prevented 6 per cent of all deaths. This effect could extend to as much as 10 per cent in all individuals, except for those who are already very active.”
Adding five minutes of exercise on to your day could have massive results
Exercise versus moderate intensity
In terms of how to achieve the correct level of activity and movement, we have to understand the difference between physical activity and moderately intense movement. They are different and will yield different results.
Professor Ulf explained: “There is a clear distinction between moderate intensity activity and exercise. Brisk walking is an excellent type of moderate intensity, whereas exercise is defined as something people do with the purpose to enhance fitness and/or health. It is structured and repetitive. Exercise is only a small proportion of all the physical activity people do.
“Physical activity [PA] is any bodily movement that increases energy expenditure above resting levels. It can be conducted with different intensities from very low to very strenuous. Exercise is a subset of PA which is planned, structured and done with a specific purpose.”
It matters what kind of exercise you do, so we need to understand the difference between physical exercise and intense movement
Could any of this add years onto our lives?
While this study was specifically about reducing death rates through exercise and movement, it made us wonder how it would affect the number of years we could all expect to live. Would incorporating an extra five minutes of movement add any time to the general life expectancy?
Dr Darren referred to data from the UK Biobank to share his estimations. He said: “This is quite a difficult question to answer, but there is some evidence. The following paper suggests that there could be an increase in life expectancy of 0.9 years for inactive women and up to 1.4 years for inactive men.
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“The increases are dependent on the nature of physical activity, with higher intensity and greater volume (total amount of exercise) being the key factors. This is a large UK Biobank study, which does have some strengths for the analyses.”
He continued: “However, the factors that contribute to life expectancy and mortality are complex and varied, with further studies required to understand the picture fully. Particularly, the effect of resistance training combined with other forms of physical activity is likely to have a greater effect than one type of activity alone. Further research is required in this area to provide suitable evidence.”
What type of exercises can I do during my five extra minutes a day?
According to the NHS, there are a variety of movements that you can incorporate into your routine to make sure you are hitting the target of five extra minutes of exercise per day to increase your longevity.
These range from simple activities like making a cup of tea to pushing a lawnmower and dancing around your living room for fitness, depending on the intensity you are able for. While the study suggested five minutes of moderate intensity exercise, the health service broke down its recommendations into sections based on vigour:
Light activity:
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Getting up to make a cup of tea
Moving around your home
Walking at a slow pace
Cleaning and dusting
Vacuuming
Moderate activity:
Walking for health
Water aerobics
Riding a bike
Dance for fitness
Pushing a lawnmower
Hiking
Intense activity:
Running
Swimming
Football
Hiking uphill
Martial arts
It also suggested some easy-to-do strength exercises that involve using a kitchen chair or filled bottles of water as props:
