RESISTANCE TRAINING

WHICH IS BETTER? TRX VS. WEIGHTLIFTING

MAY 28, 2014 | LAIRDH | 2 COMMENTS

TRX vs. weightlifting: which is better?

I came here to the American College of Sports Medicine’s Annual meeting hoping to get answers
to such questions. This is the premiere wonkfest for exercise experts, and I wasn’t disappointed.

Researchers here presented the only head-to-head comparison I have been able to find of the two
approaches. The results? Each approach seems to have its advantages, and neither one is clearly
superior.

TRX Suspension Training

For some years now, suspension training — a system of ropes allowing users to lift their body
weight in various configurations — has become increasingly popular. TRX is probably the best-
known and most widely marketed version of suspension training.

Also read: TRX vs. traditional bodyweight exercises

(Strictly speaking, it is a form of weightlifting, since you lift your body weight. But for the purposes
of this article I’m using “weightlifting” to mean pumping iron.)

In theory TRX might be more effective for preventing sports injuries than lifting weights on ma-
chines because it is more “functional;” it exercises groups of muscles rather than isolating individ-
ual ones.

So researchers at Michigan State University and the University of Wisconsin wanted to compare
TRX vs. weightlifting (what they’d called “traditional resistance training.”)

For their purposes, traditional resistance training meant bench presses, back squat, lunges, YTW
benches, single leg/stiff leg dead lift, triceps extension, plank pose, hamstring curl, and isometric
side hold.

The TRX exercises were suspension versions of the chest press, lunge, two-arm row, squat, YTW,
single leg/stiff leg dead lift, triceps extension, hamstring curl, front plank and isometric side hold
with pallof press.

Here’s an example of YTW traditional weight lifting from Primal Conquest.

Here’s an example of YTW done on TRX straps by Mainwayfitness
The TRX vs. Weightlifting Face Off
The researchers began by taking various measurements of the bodies of 54 adults. Then they
asked these volunteers to lift the maximum weight they could for five repetitions on a bench
press, five repetitions in a squat and so on to measure the strength of various muscle groups.

Next they randomly assigned half the volunteers to do TRX workouts and half to do traditional re-
sistance training for seven weeks. They compared the difference between younger folks, (19 to 25
years old) and older folks (44 to 65 years old). And finally they performed the same measurements
again to see if one group got bigger changes in strength than the other.
They answer depended on which body part they looked at, and the age of the participants. Here
are some examples:

Percent Improvement in Strength

Lower Body Abdominal Back Extensor Side Bridge Side Bridge
Flexor Left Right

Younger Adults: 13.1 80.5 31.1 6.1 15.1

TRX

Younger Adults: 26.5 52.9 9.4 26.1 15.6

Traditional
Weightlifting

Older Adults: 29.3 13.6 66.1 32.2 16.4

TRX

Older Adults: 27.5 -2.3 61.7 20.4 20.9

Traditional
Weightlifing

Overall, the TRX group did better by a few more of the strength measures than the traditional re-
sistance training group.

You have to take these results with a grain of salt, though. First, there’s no such things as one “tra-
ditional” resistance training program. Everyone does different things in a weight room. Changing
the number of reps in one program or the other might shift the results.

Then of course you have to bear in mind the caveats that always apply: this is only one study, and a
fairly small one, so it’s not definitive.

But I’m inclined to agree with the researchers who wrote that TRX “could prove useful to individu-
als looking for more training options to gain both core endurance and muscular strength simulta-
neously and [enhance] the diversity of exercise choices.”

Diversity is important in overcoming boredom, which is one of the biggest reasons people give up
their exercise regimens. If hanging from straps helps with that, I’m all for it.

Featured photo: “TRX” by USAG Livorno PAO

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2 THOUGHTS ON “WHICH IS BETTER? TRX VS. WEIGHTLIFTING”

Pingback: TRX vs. Traditional Bodyweight Exercises - Sports Without Injury

Harshan Taylor
JUNE 8, 2016 AT 1:39 AM

If one wants to get immediate result from his or her exercise , for him and her the best path of
exercise is choosing weight lifting though this is not my suggestion .
My view is to take trx exercise as this is long lasting exercise to keep body fit without side
 effects.

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