Home Gyms
The following list of home gyms takes you through a range of under $200 to over $3,000 dollars and 4 different brand names. A home gym combines the features which a commercial gym would separate into various machines to work your upper and lower body. With multiple stations, several clients are able to work out at the same time.
Most people don’t have room in their homes for all of that equipment, however, so a home gym takes their place while also providing a place for family members of all ages and abilities to find a suitable place to develop strength and resistance without feeling self-conscious. In the long run, a home gym could be a money-saver when you add up the cost of gym membership for multiple family members. Here are the top five systems of 2016.
First Place: Bowflex PR100
Bowflex is one of the top names in home weight stations with several excellent home gyms and assorted prices for all levels of ability and budget. Their PR100 is hugely popular and far more affordable than some of their other machines, including the Revolution (also featured on this list). Pay between $500 and $800 for a station which has almost everything you could want: up to 210 lbs resistance and a 300-lb maximum weight limit. Choose lat pull downs or the horizontal bench press. Pick from over 30 exercises like leg extensions and leg presses, plus several moves for every arm muscle. Upholstered rollers provide comfortable, durable support. The PR100 folds away for easy storage if you don’t want to leave it set up permanently in your basement, but if you leave it set up, this workout product takes up a surprisingly small amount of space for what you get.
Second Place: Weider Power Tower
I wouldn’t say this is one of the most sophisticated home gyms on the market, but it is often cited as a top model if you only have a small amount of money to spend or are undecided whether a gym in your basement is a good investment. Put aside just a few hundred dollars for the unit plus attachments and you’ve got a basic home system for daily use. Work arms with pull ups at the bar. Try tricep and shoulder dips or vertical knee raises. Steel tubing makes this a strong product but relatively light to move around and the Weider 25-year reputation adds another level of security.
Third Place: Bowflex Revolution
Although this is the most sophisticated product on our list, it is also a $3,000 machine, so not the most affordable for average consumers. That is why it finds its way to the middle of the top-five list and not the top. If you are a hard core athlete, the Bowflex Revolution is definitely the right machine for you and worth investing in. Try one of over 100 exercises with up to 400 variations. Your resistance load can be upgraded but right away, upper body resistance is 220 lbs; 600 lbs for your lower body. Arms can be positioned independently. The five-way hand grip and ankle cuff provide optimum versatility. This whole station with its amazingly small footprint folds away for compact storage in the event you need to make space. Also, a rowing machine is built into the Bowflex Revolution, so you can use it to work your muscles or to get a cardio workout or do a little bit of cardio to warm up prior to resistance training.
Fourth Place: Body Solid EXM 1500S
Next is the mid-range Body Solid household gym. Choose lat pull downs, abdominal crunches, leg curls, and more. Perform seated rows or cable crossovers. Weights are stacked to a maximum 160 lbs, fully adjustable, and the action is smooth. The Body Solid EXM1500S (one of several home gyms from Body Solid) is built to be ergonomic and works 10 distinct areas of the body, top and bottom.
Fifth: Powerline BSG10X
Last on the list is this highly-rated home gym which comes mostly assembled right at the start. Steel cables are reliably strong. Weights are stacked to a maximum of 160 lbs but fully adjustable so you can lift a little or a lot using the bar or cables. Telescoping seat positioning makes this an ideal selection for multiple members of the family with their varying heights.