home gyms

[Climb01742]

does anyone have experience with any of the home gyms you see advertised? like total gym or blowflex or whatever. i belong to a really good gym where i do most of my strength training, but between work, family and weather, having something in the basement (that isn't my trainer :o ) might be nice. any suggestions? thanks.

[cycledoc]

How much do you want to spend? I did quite a bit of research over 2 years ago, looked at the Bowflex system, as well as many other brands of home gyms and finally went with a Cybex PG400 home gym. I've been using it religeously for over two years and it's a phenomenal system and it gives terrific results (you just have to supply the effort!) On the negative side, the system is quite expensive (lists for $4195) but, as the saying goes, "You get what you pay for." I was able to negotiate a substantial discount from my local fitness equipment shop.

It is heavily constructed, like the machines you find in a health club, compact in foot print and cabled such that it requires very little fussing to switch from station to station--just moving a pin in the weight stack. These were important to me as I plan on this lasting me the rest of my life and I hate fiddling with changing cables, etc.

This product was very favorably reviewed back when I was looking (Google it and you may find some reviews.). There may now be new machines on the market, but the Cybex offers everything I need in a home gym in a well-engineered, and designed, attractive package. You can see product info on the Cybex website (cybexintl.com)

Best of health

[schneiderrd]

I use a Bowflex Ultimate for upper body workouts at home, and yes it does save time when you want to ride and do some resistance training. For me it is very good for upper body workouts. I don't care for the lower body workouts as they are not as good as going to a gym, but they would be better than nothing if that is all you have. Based on the latest reports that some of the lesser models have been recalled, if you are going to buy a Bowflex, go for the Utimate as it is extremely well built and not subject to the recall.

[D-Squared]

Hi,
I'm a triathlete wannabe and ended up buying a Vasa trainer hoping that it would help with my swimming.

[Ahneida Ride]

Climb

Consider an Ironmaster. http://www.ironmaster.com/

It is exceptionaly well built and Smooooooth as advertised.

I believe they are offering a few cosmetically blemished
models at a substantial discount. There is not a better machine
on the market for doing squats, Including Professional
Smith machines.

Great Product ! Like a Serotta, it performs as advertsed.

[Ozz]

How about a bench and some free weights?

All in, probably a couple hundred bucks. They will store much more easily than a home gym.

You need to pay more attention to form, but as long as you don't try and load up the weight you shouldn't have any problems.

[pale scotsman]

I think machines are are waste of money though they do make good clothes hangers. A good set of dumbells and a decent bench is all you need.

[cycler48]

I have a Total Gym and absolutely love it! I feel it's everything they say it is and more. About the only drawback to it is you're not going to be able to use it for very heavy two legged squats. I've found that doing single leg squats gives me all the resistance I can handle. Over the years I've used free weights, a machine made by the makers of NordicTrack (Nordicflex Gold) and have tried the Bowflex. I felt the Bowflex was nowhere near the resistance it was supposed to be. A good friend of mine has one and he let me try it out. I set up 250 lbs for some squats and it felt more like 150 lbs. I wasn't too thrilled with how it was constructed either.

I purchased my Total Gym down in San Diego ... direct from the company. The one you see on TV is more expensive ($1500 vs $1000) and not as well made as the one you can buy direct. They also sell a model used in rehab facilities that sells for around $1500. It's a little sturdier and has a 650 lb weight limit. You can look online at: http://www.totalgym.com/

[SBash]

I have a bench with free weights, rowing machine, and ride almost every day. Should probably work on my legs more but at 52 and 6' and 210 lbs i can still dunk a volley ball on a 10' basket. Wish i could still do a basketball but need about 4 more inches to do with both hands, not 20 or 30 anymore.

[Big Jim]

I have been using a total gym for about the last 5 years, especially in the non riding season. I like it but have not had other devices/machines to compare it to. One thing should be noted however, I have seen some lower priced total gyms at some local stores and they are nowhere near as sturdy looking as mine but perhaps they work fine. I think the sturdy looking ones go for 1200 to 1500.

[oknife]

Just went through this dilemma myself. Bowflex is portable, quiet, smooth and fast to switch between exercises. The PowerPro models recently underwent a recall which added extra bracing pieces to the previous construction.

One consideration I had between free weights and Bowflex was that I felt the Bowflex was safer in an environment where kids might be playing (mine is in the basement).

If you buy one, try to get it at Costco or the like. You won't pay shipping and can return it if you don't like it!

:beer: :banana:

[Jay Torborg]

I also did a fair amount of research on this subject last year and put together a home gym for my wife and I to use. It really depends on how much you want to spend and what kind of workouts you're interested in. You can do a lot with a bench and freeweights. In many cases, however, I think you need a spotter to do this safely, and there are some exercises that are more effectively done with machines.

We have about a dozen fitness shops within ten miles of where I live so I was able to try out many of the home gym systems. While many of them looked good on paper, most were just not very smooth in operation, or were difficult to use (setting up for an exercise took longer than doing the exercise itself). I didn't want to wast a bunch of time setting up the machine each time. The two that I was most impressed with were the Tuff Stuff Apollo 250 (http://www.fitness-showcase.com/apollo250.htm) and the Nautilus NS700 (http://www.nautilusfitnessproducts.com/product.asp?cat=gym&subcat=gy) . I ended up selecting the Tuff Stuff and getting a bench and a set of dumbells. I've been very happy with this system for the past nine months. My wife and I both use it 2-3 times a week and have found we can get all the same exercises we used to when we belonged to an expensive club.

[Kurt]

It really depends on the kind of workout you see yourself doing. You can hurt yourself easier with free weight unless you take your time and concentrate on form. I do not use them because of this and you cannot rip through a workout the way you can with a center-stack machine. The Hoist 310 (I have the 300) is a very small footprint and does most of what one would want I would think. This machine is made is in Taiwan, which is fine, just not made as well as some of the older models. This unit does not have a mid-cable. If you go to a place that has all the top brands it will be obvious of what you want, the quality varies greatly. Hoist’s deal is that they have a free weight type of feel to some of the exercises. If you have a recycler or some other used outlet, you can save a boatload on these types of machines. Mine with the leg-press was close to $ 4,500 and I paid $ 1,200 for an almost new machine from a person that needed the room.

http://www.advancedfitness.com/equip/hoist.htm#310

[Ray]

Tried the Bowflex, various weight stack machines, the resistance unit Nordic Trac was selling at the time, and freeweights. Unless you plan on doing a really hard core program at home, I think the best way to go is a basic bench and a set of adjustable dumb bells with a range of 10 to about 50 pounds per side. Cheap, safe, and very effective. I really don't like machines - they don't make you use any stabilizing muscles and do more for your looks than strength.

I have a set of dumbells and can do a good range of lifts with them. Although 100 pounds isn't much to bench press, doing it with dumbbells is a lot harder than the equivalent weight with a bar (and way harder than a machine), because you have to stabilize the weight with each arm, as well as lift it. No spotters are needed since there's no bar to drop on your chest or neck. Pretty cheap too.

Another great way to supplement a weight workout (or replace a weight workout) is with kettlebells. These things are like a bowling ball with a handle attached and can be had in weights from about 25 pounds up to 8-90 or so. I have a couple of them that I do some basic swings and deadlifts with and they're a hell of a workout. There's a lot of information on the web on these things. Very effective resistance workout and frankly, a lot more fun than a normal weight routine.

-Ray

[Ozz]

Our local paper ran an article about these recently. They sounded pretty interesting. Very dynamic, build good "core" strength, coordination, etc....

Thanks for reminding me, I meant to look into them.

[BigMac]

Climb:
I believe you need to be honest with how committed you are to resistance training before choosing an appropriate machine. Most of the lower priced, highly marketed machines are quite good and very safe for the average consumer looking for a simple, quick and reasonably effective workout. Don't expect a ripped physique like those depicted in ads and you'll not be disappointed. A friend who has never really lifted much bought a Crossbow trainer and both he, his wife and 2 kids all very much enjoy its portability, ease of use and setup. I personally helped him with choice by demoing a couple BowFlex, a Gold's Gym and the Weider Crossbow designs. The Crossbow was better priced, and better designed than BowFlex and just a bit more versatile than the Gold's gym version. For the average consumer these offer fairly smooth resistance, large range of motion, good muscle isolation all at a reasonable price.

For the more serious lifters, the Smith, IronMaster and similar rack setups are a far better, albeit pricier setup. These machines take greater commitment, are a slower and more difficult setup but their overall versatility, flexibility and capacity far exceeds their smaller syblings. We have a couple IronMaster machines in my home gym, largely because I do alot of group training sessions with young athletes. I too am a big fan of dumbells for ultimate isolation of muscle groups. For many this becomes tedious and unexciting which eventually leads to ambivalence and the dreaded heavy dust collector. Be sure you're really committed to resistence training before investing in free weights and racks. It also helps to have a decent music setup, preferrably a no-brainer setup like a 5-disc cd carousel system helps. I know some folks employ a tv in gym but that's too annoying and distracting for most serious training work, imo. I also keep one of my old acoustic guitars in gym, a nice break when transitioning between workouts or on days when I find myself less focussed...spend a few minutes strumming some Neil Young, Ry Cooder, Beatles or James Taylor and I'm refocussed. Make it fun and your workouts will be far more effective.

Kettlebells are an old Russian training tool dating back over a century. Dumbells are far more versatile, imo. Kettlebells if used improperly can be very unsafe and often lead to wrist injuries. Be safe, injury free and most of all, make your workouts fun, the results will be far more productive and rewarding. Be very realistic with your strength goals, it takes years for most folks to acheive a truly muscular physique, w/o artificial aids of course which should NEVER be used!

Ride on!