I have updated this review over the past few months, as my husband and I have used our new Bowflex.

When my husband bought the Bowflex, I had been recovering from a neck and shoulder injury -- and then a back injury --from an automobile accident and couldn't use it for a while (see my review of the Toyota Sienna Minivan to read about my car accident). However, my husband used it almost daily. Here is our review of the Bowflex Power Pro.

******UPDATE July 25, 2001 ********

OK, after MONTHS of back and neck problems and physical therapy from that stupid car accident, I am finally out of pain and done with PT! (And I have a nice insurance settlement, to boot).

Now, I have begun using the Bowflex regularly, along with some isometric exercises my PT place showed me (and of course, aerobic exercise on the exercise bike and nordic trak).

Basically, I do like the Bowflex. I feel that it gives me a good work-out; as good as free weights or machines at the gym.

Some things can be a bit awkward, though. For instance, it is a little cumbersome to adjust the fabric hand grips for some exercises (the tricep exercise, the leg exercises). Also, if you have the optional leg attachment or pull-down bar, the cables lay around and can get in the way. Another thing that's awkward is changing the machine from exercise to exercise: sometimes you have the bench on, sometimes it's off. But really, I feel that these are just minor complaints. After all, when you go to a gym, you must make adjustments to the machines, as well.

I think I'm getting a good work-out with the Bowflex and so far, I'm happy with it. I feel really toned. I do a basic full-body workout in about a half hour. As I've mentioned, my husband is very happy with it. For the money and size, I think it's a good value.

And, thankfully, nothing on the Bowflex has hurt my back or neck (although my PT recommended I stay away from the leg extension attachment for a while). I had a trainer from my PT come to my house and go through the Bowflex exercises with me. He marked off which ones to do, and which ones to avoid. He also went over each exercise and showed me how to do each properly, and I took notes. For this, I paid him $100. I think that, considering how much pain I've been in for the past few months, it was $100 well-spent. Now I can use the Bowflex with confidence.

Do I recommend Bowflex? Absolutely. Read the rest of my review for information about assembly and our first impressions of the machine.


*****UPDATE April 25, 2001******

My husband has been using the Bowflex regularly for 4 weeks now. Wow, what results he has achieved! I'm not kidding, he is really looking more defined and sculpted. He has been using the "bodybuilding" sets outlined in the booklet, which has you doing a different set of exercises each day for different muscle groups.

His pants are about an inch looser, although he hasn't lost any weight. His chest and arms look really nice and defined. I'm stunned at his results. He never looked this good from his hit-and-miss efforts at the gym. He looks so sexy!

I can't wait to begin using the Bowflex myself in a few weeks!

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Why Bowflex?

My husband never got to the gym to lift weights as often as he would have liked. This really irritated him. We have a Nordic Trak and a Tunturi exercise bike already at home, and use them often. But we had no weight-lifting equipment.

Finally my husband decided to get a home gym. We did a lot of research and finally settled on the Bowflex. In addition to all the recommendations from other users (in epinions and other websites), the Bowflex seemed to have one major advantage: you don't need a "spotter" if you're using it alone. At about $1,000 it isn't cheap, but it isn't incredibly expensive, either.

The gym that we currently use is going to move at the end of next year (it is part of a community center that is moving). So we eventually would have needed to find another gym, anyway.


Putting the Darned Thing Together

The Bowflex arrived on our doorstep approximately 3 weeks after we ordered it on the phone. Please note that you get a better deal ordering it on the phone than using the website. For example, we got the leg extension attachment for free. This is not offered on the website.

Anyway, it arrived in one large box and two smaller boxes. My husband put it together himself over the course of two days. In total, it took him approximately 3-4 hours of work. We needed to buy a rubber mallet, a wrench set, and a large phillips screwdriver. Perhaps you already own these tools. If so, you're ahead.

In general, the Bowflex wasn't too daunting to put together; really, no worse than a "do it yourself" desk or chest of drawers.

But the instructions really were lacking. I'm a technical writer, so I can talk about this....really they weren't as descriptive as they should have been. At times you needed to hit something with the mallet to make it fit, and the instructions didn't mention this. Also, some parts weren't machined exactly right....some parts fit like a glove and some parts had to be tweaked a little. We did make one call to the 800 number to get some advice at 10 p.m. PST. We were impressed that we could get our question answered at that hour.

Overall, we feel that it is well-made and well-designed. No buyer's remorse yet.

Once it is put together, it fills the room with a distinctive rubbery smell from the weight rods. This fades in a few weeks.


Using the Bowflex

There are so many exercises you can perform on this machine; it is very versatile. The instructional booklet and video are very helpful and descriptive. My husband was able to begin using it immediately.

So far, it seems that the major drawback of the Bowflex lies in changing the weight rods, bench position, and hand grips, from exercise to exercise. You are constantly hooking and unhooking things. I suppose that the more you use it, the more second-nature this becomes. After all, at the gym, you must change the weights and seat positions.

Another major difference between Bowflex and typical "universal-style" equipment is the wobbling of the rods. If you lift a heavy amount of weight, the rods wobble a bit. Perhaps you could look at this as an advantage, because you must use your muscles even more to steady the weight (sorta like free weights, if you think about it). So far, this doesn't bother my husband too much.

He's been using the Bowflex for almost 2 weeks now and I'm really beginning to see some nice definition in his chest, etc. So far he is very happy with the purchase.


I hope that our reviews of the product have helped you in your purchasing decision.




Recommended: Yes