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BowFlex PR3000
Samuel Henderson
Member #3,757
August 2003
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StevenVI said:

Sounds like you need a wife.

Mine must be broken then... It seems like she wants fast food more than I do :P (and no, she is not fat!)

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Paul whoknows: Why is this thread still open?
Onewing: Because it is a pthread: a thread for me to pee on.

BAF
Member #2,981
December 2002
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bamccaig said:

I know I won't go to a gym regularly. I don't like people, and I'm self-conscious, so I would talk myself out of it any time that I didn't want to go (always). Relatively often I don't even want to go to the store or something like that. With a home gym, I can exercise in the comfort of my own home without having to travel and without fearing other people watching me.

You're so self conscious that you can't go excercise at a gym where everyone else is exercising? What is the concern over someone else watching you at the gym? I guess I just don't understand...

Quote:

I can use this machine for as long as it lasts. The only limit is its own structural integrity and ability to age. In theory, it could last considerably longer than 2 years.

Yeah, one machine. Gyms have multiple machines, different types of machines, etc.

bamccaig said:

My only interest in exercise is to improve my cardiovascular performance (lungs/heart) and muscular strength and endurance. Obviously, my results would be better with an optimal diet, but it isn't like my current diet will result in no change at all.

Congrats! You've just bought a 2 year membership to a gym that has no cardio equipment!

I plan on joining a gym very soon. I plan on mostly concentrating on cardio though.

bamccaig
Member #7,536
July 2006
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BAF said:

Congrats! You've just bought a 2 year membership to a gym that has no cardio equipment!

Well, I only have so much space and I'm more interested in muscle than cardio. :-/ I was considering squeezing an inexpensive exercise bike in here too though.

BAF said:

I plan on joining a gym very soon.

Ah, yes, the ol' I'll do it later. :P

Sadly, the BowFlex doesn't seem to be working out though. :( It just seems so flimsy. The pulleys aren't kept tight and so just about every exercise seems to have you dropping the pulleys as the cables go slack. The pulleys are all just hooked into the machine so they move freely, meaning they fall down and then when you pull again and the cable goes taut you pick up the pulleys again... It's not smooth AT ALL. >:(

On top of that, the resistance doesn't feel anywhere near rated. I figured that having not lifted weights or anything it would be smart to start really low and slowly upgrade (I think that's what they taught us in Phs. Ed.). So I started with 5 lbs on either side. You can't even feel them there. As I said, the pulleys aren't pulled taut by the weights alone, and with 5 lb rods you only get a really short distance of resistance. So I upped it to 10 lbs on each side to see if that would help. It helped a little bit, but it's still basically the same problem. So I increased the resistance to 20 lbs on each side. It still suffers from this slack in the cables, and worse than that, it doesn't even feel like 20 lbs! I can pull on those all day long and my arms don't even seem to get tired. I know that a case of 28 beers weights almost 40 lbs (it's very exhausting so I weighed one once). Carrying a 40 lb case of beer across a parking lot is exhausting. Carrying one across a parking lot and up 4 flights of stairs, I learned, nearly kills me. I think that if I was pulling a combined "resistance" of 40 lbs that it should be a lot more difficult and a lot more exhausting. Clearly the resistance is nowhere near what it's rated for... I don't know if my machine is defective or if the BowFlex brand is just a gimmick. :-/ I'm going to try contacting BowFlex for some information/advice. I'm also going to contact Sears about returning it, but it's going to be a nightmare to disassemble and package all up again... >:(

At least I tried... :'(

Jonatan Hedborg
Member #4,886
July 2004
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Are you sure you set it up correctly? ??? The whole cable tautness thing sounds fishy. If you're not bending the resistance thingies all the way, the force needed would be far less (I guess it would follow Hooke's Law more or less. Unlike regular weight-based systems, which have a constant force regardless of where in the movement you are)

BAF
Member #2,981
December 2002
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bamccaig said:

Ah, yes, the ol' I'll do it later.

Very soon, as in I'm shopping around right now and weighing my options. So it's not being put off. :P

bamccaig
Member #7,536
July 2006
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Are you sure you set it up correctly? ??? The whole cable tautness thing sounds fishy. If you're not bending the resistance thingies all the way, the force needed would be far less (I guess it would follow Hooke's Law more or less. Unlike regular weight-based systems, which have a constant force regardless of where in the movement you are)

Fairly certain. My brother was double-checking my work and we compared to the diagrams afterward, etc. It's hard to be 100% sure, but then it also looks pretty hard to fuck up. They don't really provide a simple reference document to check your work. I'm 99.9% sure that it's set up correctly, but for all I know there is something wrong. That 0.1% is only because of the lack of tautness. It would be nice to have somebody from BowFlex look at it, but that's obviously going to cost me and it probably isn't worth it.

That's part of why I intend to contact them. I'm hoping they'll say it shouldn't be like that and offer to repair/replace it for free... I doubt that will happen though, so I'm still leaning towards returning it. That's going to be a bitch though. IF Sears will even take it back. >:(

Jonatan Hedborg
Member #4,886
July 2004
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Assuming it's set up correctly, my second guess would be that you're using it wrong ;) These machines can be crap (I.e. harmful), but they usually work.

Have you set up the chair for your body? I assume you set it up for your height or something. If the chair is too close to the machine, the cables would go slack (I'm just looking at the pictures here and guessing).

raist0069
Member #2,736
September 2002
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You should have went with dumbbells and P90X! Of course you will have to follow the high protein diet that it comes with and do the higher weight 6-8 rep exercises rather than the lower weight 12-15 rep exercises. It will build muscle and get you in the best shape of your life.

I didn't follow the protein diet plan very well as I didn't want to gain too much muscle. I only wanted to get into better shape.

gnolam
Member #2,030
March 2002
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raist0069 said:

You should of went with dumbbells and P90X!

Aaaaaaaaargh!

--
Move to the Democratic People's Republic of Vivendi Universal (formerly known as Sweden) - officially democracy- and privacy-free since 2008-06-18!

bamccaig
Member #7,536
July 2006
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Have you set up the chair for your body? I assume you set it up for your height or something. If the chair is too close to the machine, the cables would go slack (I'm just looking at the pictures here and guessing).

Well, their really weren't any useful instructions for where exactly to place the chair/seat, but there's only like 4 levels that it can be (I imagine all of them valid). There's no forward/backward adjustment; only height (albeit, it's on an angled beam). The z-distance between the bottom and top position looks to be about 4 or 5 inches, but there's a lot more slack than that.

Even ignoring the chair/seat, there are many standing exercises where you're supposed to stand on a 2' x 1' "standing platform". You experience the same thing with those exercises and there's really no adjusting that. :P

james_lohr
Member #1,947
February 2002

Like I said, real gym equipment costs ~ $5000 per machine, and these are single-use machines. Paying that price for a multi-use machine and expecting it to work is a bit like paying $10 for a new PC and expecting it to play top-end games.

bamccaig said:

I know I won't go to a gym regularly. I don't like people, and I'm self-conscious, so I would talk myself out of it any time that I didn't want to go (always).

Grow some balls: you need reasonable testosterone levels if you're hoping for muscle growth. ;)

Arthur Kalliokoski
Second in Command
February 2005
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Like I said, real gym equipment costs ~ $5000 per machine, and these are single-use machines. Paying that price for a multi-use machine and expecting it to work is a bit like paying £10 for a new PC and expecting it to play top-end games.

Those "magic exercise machines" are the equivalent of a Make Game button. Get a set of barbells, dumbbell handles and a weight bench with squat racks (or build your own with $20 worth of lumber) and exercise all those stabilizing muscles along with the big ones.

They all watch too much MSNBC... they get ideas.

23yrold3yrold
Member #1,134
March 2001
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Get a set of barbells, dumbbell handles and a weight bench with squat racks (or build your own with $20 worth of lumber) and exercise all those stabilizing muscles along with the big ones.

This. Those machines are actually bad for you compared to el-cheapo free weights.

--
Software Development == Church Development
Step 1. Build it.
Step 2. Pray.

bamccaig
Member #7,536
July 2006
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Well, the weights can't happen unless I can return the BowFlex and get my $1000 back. :-/ So save it until I know where I'm at. :'(

23yrold3yrold
Member #1,134
March 2001
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Hey, don't get me wrong; the machine works. It was only relatively recently that I learned myself that free weights work better.

--
Software Development == Church Development
Step 1. Build it.
Step 2. Pray.

raist0069
Member #2,736
September 2002
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gnolam said:

Aaaaaaaaargh!

Fixed, sorry. It's a bad habit. Back in grade school I could not have cared less about writing and grammar. Who would have thought that an on-line programming forum could teach better grammar? This site has contributed greatly toward my grammar in the years I've been a member. I'm trying!

piccolo
Member #3,163
January 2003
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well i don't think BowFlex is a gimmick because its been around for YEARS.
I think your doing or have done something wrong.

you should just do Piccolo Push-ups they very effective and a lot cheaper.
I do 3 a day before i take a bath.

wow
-------------------------------
i am who you are not am i

raist0069
Member #2,736
September 2002
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piccolo said:

you should just do Piccolo Push-ups they very effective and a lot cheaper.
I do 3 a day before i take a bath.

I laughed after reading this. I then realized I didn't know what a "Piccolo Push-up" was. Doing three "Piccolo Push-ups" could be quite strenuous. ;D

23yrold3yrold
Member #1,134
March 2001
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3 Piccolo Push-Ups are easy; just make 3 of yourself and do 1 each.

You need a dinosaur on your back when you do them, though.

--
Software Development == Church Development
Step 1. Build it.
Step 2. Pray.

HardTranceFan
Member #7,317
June 2006
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piccolo said:

you should just do Piccolo Push-ups they very effective and a lot cheaper.
I do 3 a day before i take a bath

I misread that as Pinocchio push ups. All it takes are 3 lies :D

--
"Shame your mind don't shine like your possessions do" - Faithless (I want more part 1)

superstar4410
Member #926
January 2001
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Ok instead of telling you how you wasted a lot of money I'll try to help you where you currently are.

How about sell it on ebay for like 75% of the price. You'll still have enough
money to buy a cheaper workout system and have cash left over.

You'll probably have to dis assemble it though if you plan on shipping.

Thats my advice

*I'm big into working out and I know lots about lifting*

Pushups are good and all but depending on your goal.
If your goal is strength training you should
use high weights/resistance to allow strength to develop.
Using your body weight is good but to take it to the next level
get weights. For example if you want to increase your bench press by 100 lbs
or bench more than your body weight doing pushups wont cut it. A good workout bench is only like $250 USD.

{"name":"Strength-Size-Power2.JPG","src":"\/\/djungxnpq2nug.cloudfront.net\/image\/cache\/5\/4\/544cc13438910545def09ea9d5c6d1d0.jpg","w":550,"h":203,"tn":"\/\/djungxnpq2nug.cloudfront.net\/image\/cache\/5\/4\/544cc13438910545def09ea9d5c6d1d0"}Strength-Size-Power2.JPG

Hypertrophy is muscle size.
Difference between strength and power is power has the speed component.

Example:

John has the strength to lift 200 lbs.
Susan has the power to lift 200 lbs 3ft in the air in 2seconds.

Don't take yourself too seriously, but do take your responsibilities very seriously.

HardTranceFan
Member #7,317
June 2006
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If your goal is strength training...

Nope.

Bambam said:

I really want to build some muscle and now I have no excuses.

Follow the workouts in owners manual for starters, and build a base fitness before you get too carried away.

--
"Shame your mind don't shine like your possessions do" - Faithless (I want more part 1)

bamccaig
Member #7,536
July 2006
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Sadly the owners manual doesn't seem to have advice about how much resistance to use. I think I'm going to increase it a bit more so that ~10 reps actually causes my muscles to fail (most of the exercises they describe seem to be intended to cause your muscles to fail after a set of reps) and then I'll try to work with that... That is, unless I decide to return it, but it isn't looking like I will be. :(

Jonny Cook
Member #4,055
November 2003

BAF said:

You're so self conscious that you can't go excercise at a gym where everyone else is exercising?.

I know you weren't talking to me, but... yup. It can also be intimidating, and discouraging.

The face of a child can say it all, especially the mouth part of the face.

Arthur Kalliokoski
Second in Command
February 2005
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It can also be intimidating, and discouraging.

Use the cheap-o barbells until you're no longer pathetically weak, then sign up for a gym membership.

They all watch too much MSNBC... they get ideas.



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