[Sportsandrec] Home gyms for Ryan Smith
Thornbury, Kelly
kthornbury at bresnan.net
Sun Feb 20 18:38:48 UTC 2011
Greetings Ryan,
I use both the Total Gym and the BowFlex, and here are my opinions on both.
The Total Gym is nice in that you don't have to mess with weights or flex
bars (which becomes a concern in my unheated garage during Wyoming winters).
The system is based on body weight, and is a little cumbersome to change the
angles of the sliding bench to go from stronger muscle groups to smaller
ones. The advantage is that you can switch from one exercise to another
instantly when the different muscles are of similar strength. Also, a lot of
the exercises really require you to engage your core muscles, building
strength and balance there. Another downside is that it actually takes up a
lot of room. Its not very wide (as wide as you can stretch out your arms
typically), but it is very long as compared to other equipment.
The BowFlex, or the CrossBow, simulate weights through the use of composite
poles that bend as you "lift" the weight. These systems offer a wider
variety of exercises typically, and offer much higher resistances than the
typical TotalGym. These systems require wider workout areas (to allow for
the flex of the rods), but I find them to be shorter overall. Also, in the
case of the BowFlex, if you workout in cold environments (in the garage for
example), the rods are prone to breaking (but I think BowFlex now has a
lifetime warranty on their rods). Also, as with any composite rod flex
system, the "weight" increases with the flex of the rod (i.e. the 50-pound
rod is only about 60% at the beginning of its flex). This may matter
depending on what your goals are. For general fitness, the lighter weight at
the beginning of the lift (increasing as you flex the muscle) is okay, but
if you were interested in powerlifting or strength activities, this will
create a deadspot in your lift. The BowFlex allows for doing squats if that
exercise interests you, and the leg attachment (for leg extensions and leg
curls) isn't bad for a home system (but the angles of the apparatus don't
quite match gym quality equipment). Another drawback to the BowFlex/CrossBow
are cost, as both pieces are quite expensive (although, I believe the
CrossBow is much cheaper than the BowFlex). I'm also really impressed with
the build quality of the BowFlex, and am happy with its purchase despite the
cost.
Regardless of what you choose, its value will depend on whether or not you
use the equipment. If you can find dealers in your area for whatever
equipment you are interested in, you will be much better off (being able to
actually put the equipment through its paces).
Hope this helps with your question.
Kelly Thornbury
B.S. K&HP
ACE PT
ACSM HFI
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