Some might associate the best suspension trainers with TRX, a household name in suspension training circles, but the San Francisco-based company is not the only purveyor of such things. Many companies now offer decent-quality suspension trainer sets for people who would like to use their bodyweight as resistance for their workouts.
This package of clever straps and an anchor point is easy to shove in a gym bag or install at home but opens up an entirely new world of training. One that can work for every muscle group in the body... hard. Suspension trainers have many benefits apart from providing a full-body workout, and you can read them all here: 5 main benefits of using suspension trainers for indoor and outdoor workouts.
Especially if you're planning on using your new suspension trainer in a park, you might want to have a look at T3's best workout shoe guide. Suspension training is excellent for building functional muscle mass, as is using the best kettlebells, so have a look at those, too, while you're at it.
Best suspension trainers to buy right now
Why you can trust T3
1. TRX All-in-One
Specifications
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
This all-in-one package is designed to get even complete suspension training newbies into the swing of it, with the excellent TRX workout guide acting as detailed bedtime reading in order to get the most out of each session.
Its patented single-point anchoring system promotes stability and encourages proper form throughout each exercise, while this kit includes everything you need to work out anywhere.
A choice of either a door anchor or the traditional TRX anchor, which loops around tree branches, posts or anything else that will easily take bodyweight without collapsing, increases the versatility.
This pack also comes with a handy carry bag, which makes it possible to bundle up the kit and quickly shove it in a backpack or small bag when travelling. Those regularly working away or travelling the world can easily create a gym in the hotel room.
Not the same thing, but you can read our full TRX HOME2 review here: the principle is the same
2. DOMYOS Training 100
Specifications
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
Things don't get much more basic than this, as you essentially receive a set of sturdy straps that either wrap around a pole or attach to a closed door by sliding beneath the gap between door and frame.
It's not exactly ideal, and the main anchor point doesn't seem the sturdiest here, but as a solution to lash to a tree branch or purpose-built pole, it will do the job nicely. The handles are fashioned from some pretty tough rubber, though, which can get uncomfortable.
Regardless, there's a basic workout manual and the entire system packs down into a minuscule bag. It's probably not one for dedicated suspension athletes out there, but it does the trick.
3. The Auster Traveller
Specifications
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
Much like the aforementioned TRX units, this bumper pack is designed to include everything you need to get started and work out on your travels. Therefore, it contains a solid main anchor point, Auster's own design power straps and a mesh backpack to transport them in.
On top of this, Auster throws in Dynamic Bands, which can be selected in either light, medium or heavy. These are designed to add that additional stretch element to a workout in order to up the resistance and increase muscle.
Each strap is designed to withstand 550 kg of force, meaning they are some of the safest around, while aerospace-grade aluminium is used for all adjusters, anchors, carabiners and clips, further adding to peace of mind.
4. Vulken Suspension Training Straps
Specifications
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
Another no-frills suspension training system, the Vulken Suspension Training Straps, uses a clipping system to adjust the length of the straps, as opposed to the well-known TRX sliding method. This takes a little getting used to, and it is slightly more fiddly, but the entire system is easy to set up and felt sturdy, considering the affordable price point. The pack includes a mesh bag for working out on the go, while it even contains a small 'workout in progress' warning card to hang on the door. Presumably, so fellow house-dwellers don't slam a door in your face mid-workout.
What is suspension training?
Don't take it from us; listen to Master Trainer Harry Aitken, who has been putting together detailed workout plans for suspension training specialists Auster Fitness for many years now.
"Suspension training is a style of bodyweight workout that uses straps to suspend the body. The hands hold – or feet are placed – in the straps, and the user's bodyweight is used as resistance. One of the biggest benefits of suspension training is that it is effortless to increase or decrease the difficulty of exercises. By simply increasing or decreasing the length of the straps and moving closer or further away from the anchor point, you can adjust the difficulty," he says.
And what's the benefit? Bodyweight training is highly functional, and most exercises train multiple muscle groups at once. "Suspension training is a very effective way to build muscle, build strong tendons and ligaments, burn fat and help to stabilise joints," says Harry.
On top of this, suspension training piddles all over the fixed motion machines you see in the gym, as it allows you to use your body through changing planes of motion and a variety of angles. This means increased muscle, ligament and tendon activation across various angles – ultimately leading to increased strength and stability.
What is the best suspension training system?
It has arguably become the Hoover of the suspension training world, as TRX is now synonymous with any workout that involves dangling from some straps, and its All-in-One system represents excellent value and includes everything you need to get started.
The simple anchoring mechanism means you can set up in a matter of seconds, using anything from a stable tree branch to a hotel door as an anchor point to get started. The fully adjustable and rugged straps allow for both feet and hands to be used here, opening up a whole world of rapid, fat-burning workouts. TRX also includes what it refers to as a 'best-in-class' 35-page workout guide, which will rapidly become your bible to all things suspension training.
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Leon has been writing about automotive and consumer tech for longer than he cares to divulge. When he’s not testing the latest fitness wearable and action camera, he’s out in a shed fawning over his motorcycles or trying not to kill himself on a mountain bike/surfboard/other extreme thing. He's also a man who knows his tools, and he's provided much of T3's drills coverage over the years, all without injuring himself.
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