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Hey, I know this is the fatloss forum and doesn't belong here, but I am fat so this is where I hang out. :-) I was offered a bowflex today for 100 bucks... Would this be a good investment? Does it work well if you stick with a solid routine? Thanks for the help.
Yes it probably would be a good investment if the Bowflex was in good shape
You could probably sell it for more on Ebay
Nothing beats a gym full of equipment
But the bowflex will help if you are just look to get in better shape.
yeah a bowflex 'works', and it will help you keep muscle while losing fat. But don't expect to become a bodybuilder using it :)
[QUOTE=ironman55]Hey, I know this is the fatloss forum and doesn't belong here, but I am fat so this is where I hang out. :-) I was offered a bowflex today for 100 bucks... Would this be a good investment? Does it work well if you stick with a solid routine? Thanks for the help.[/QUOTE]
It works... only if it isn't broken :D
Seriously, for $100, I'd get one.
What is the difference between that and free weights?
[QUOTE=ironman55]What is the difference between that and free weights?[/QUOTE]
You have a lot of reading to do brother ;) That's not something that can be summed up in one post, unless someone is REALLY bored.
Im a really strong guy who has a lot of fat to lose. I guess I am just worried about losing muscle with the thing.
just had to chime in. i have a bowflex, paid full price for it and i love it. it gives me a great intense workout, i don't have to worry about having a spotter and i would buy it. 100 dollars is great, i paid 2300 for mine but i think it was worth every cent.
I started out on a bowflex 4 years ago. I never lifted weights before that and I didn't know how to do anything. It was good for me to teach me the basic exercises.
I do think that you outgrow it strength-wise. Certain exercises start feeling very weird (it gets very jerky and torques you strangely) when you start getting heavy. (I remember military press suffering from this the most).
I still used it when I got a bench and free weights. Certain exercises on the bowflex are superior to machine and free weights. Resisted crunches, reverse crunches, lat pulldowns, fixed cable rows .. are all exercises I thought were superior compared to machine/free weight.
I eventually sold it and the attachments on ebay for a pretty hefty sum. (I sold the lat attachment which I got for free.. retails at $199 for like $350)
How can they be 'superior' to free weights? That doesn't make sense.
You couldn't possibly match all the exercises you can do in a gym with a myriad of free weights, dumb bells, machines to a Bowflex. Bottom line, go to the gym. If you have your heart set on buying it, you can just use it one day you can't make it to the gym. If you have children I'm sure you can get them on it when they are old enough.
Hmmm??
Not sure if you have used free motion equipment before, which a lot of bigger gyms have now. But the free motion lat pulldown machine (similar to bowflex lat pulldown) is sooo nice compared to the traditional cable lat pulldown with the weight stack. When I had my free weights and bowflex I would do bench using my bench/free weights, but when I wanted to crunches I would do them on the bowflex versus my incline bench and grabbing some weight, cause I thought the bowflex version was better.
Lying leg curls was another one, I thought they were better on the bowflex than on typical machines.
Lying leg curls? Nothing beats some Squats or Deadlifts for hams bro. Theres no comparison. A bowflex will only keep you in 'decent' shape.
Dude, I was just saying the bowflex is decent to start on. I'm a big fan of compounds.
*I have to edit this in. Doing leg curls on a bowflex consistently week after week is >>> doing squats/deads for a couple weeks then stop going to gym because you get "busy". Me and the girl at the front desk were laughing cause there were over 200 id cards at the desk, which means over 200 people signed up, paids for a full year+ membership to the gym then never picked up their id card (which takes about 2 weeks after signing up).
Amjzz, you have a point about that. But the goal he wants to accomplish is to quit missing workouts because he is 'busy'. I can do an insane amount of work in 30 minutes in the gym. Granted my conditioning is excellent, he will just have to build his up.
I have and use a Bowflex regularly. For me, it's all I need with my elliptical machine.
It's great, and it's expecially great if you have a hard time getting motivated to go to the gym, but don't mind hopping on something convenient. It is a HUGE sight better than nothing!
It all depends on ironmans goals really. I'm sure he can do great things with a good diet and a varied routine with a Bowflex. But understand Ironman, if you ever wanna take your body to a higher level than just 'in shape', you will need to hit the gym.
I personally like the gym. But for 100 bucks that isn't a bad price to pay at all. Buy it and if you don't like it sell it. You really have nothing to lose buying the bowflex for that cheap. To your earlier question about the difference betweeen the bowflex and free weights. Simple the bowflex is resistance training.
One step at a time. The $100 is less than he'll pay for a gym membership that will take him all the way through getting in shape, so it's a time and a cost savings.
However, with my sport, I can do every compound exercise that I can do at a gym. By buying an attachment, you can make the weights go up to 400 lbs. More than I ever intend to need. :p
If he's going to go with the Bowflex route, he better get himself a dragging sled to use at home as well. There are just so many exercises you can do on it with a bit of creativity, and knowledge of biomechanics and kinesiology.