Home gym setup

[foghorn67]

My roommate and I are going all in for a home gym setup. He hates gyms, and as a result, he doesn't weight train. He would love to, but he hates the idea of paying money to be around a bunch of bro dudes waiting the for the next staph infection breakout.
My situation is different, but the same goal is in mind. I go to the gym on a regular basis 2 times a week, been doing that for years. My cardio is my bike.
Roommates cardio is his high speed treadmill.
And I HATE the gym. I don't like dude bros either and how everyone breaks every rule.

Our summer goal is to have weight/resistive training equipment at home.

In my head, I'm thinking two stations. One for the flat/incline/decline/military press seat/bench similar to this:
Link here


And something that can supplement it here.
Bowlfex thingy
I don't know too much about the Bowflex, other than commercials.
What I am looking for is something that can be a little flexible (no pun intended) with legs and the back.

I love the pully/plate station of the gym for my back and supplemental workouts for the arms and chest. Would the Bowflex be a suitable replacement for that station?

Overall thoughts?

 

[Zivic]

buy a power rack (squat rack) and an adjustable bench. that will take care of 90% of what you need.... vs the upper body only equipment you are asking about

 

[deadlyapp]

Avoid machines. You'll pay a ton with questionable versatility. If you have a limited budget and space, you should get a power rack, a decent bar (preferably something like an olympic lifting bar that has some springiness to it), and a good set of plates (bumper or iron).

That will give you a pretty good amount of workouts for both lower and upper body and a ton of versatility. You can add as you want - a multi position bench, dip attachments, etc

 

[iluvdeal]

Definitely browse craigslist in your area, you can get exercise equipment at a fraction of the retail price if you're lucky. I'd avoid the Bowflex machine, I don't know a single real person who got in shape using that thing. Their adjustable dumbbells would be fine though.

When buying used exercise equipment at a good price, it's likely you guys can sell it for about the same price if you ever decide you no longer want it or move, so don't think of the purchase as throwing money away, you will get it back so don't be afraid to pay more for good stuff. Some racks include high/low pulley systems so be on the lookout for those.

 

[SP33Demon]

Yep I'd go for a rack off CL. Just got a rogue for 4 hundo, helluva deal.

Also, the bench from your OP:
Weight capacity: 300 lbs. user capacity and 300 lbs. weight-set limit

Could be a problem if you have a buddy who is a 350lb bencher who is 200-250, may get unstable.

 

[SlitheryDee]

I would skip the bowflex and put that money toward a more substantial bench, rack, and weight set. I actually don't have a power rack myself, but I do have a decent enough adjustable height rack that is adequate for everything I do. It actually came with a bench similar to the set you linked to, but trying to work out on a wobbly sub-par bench is the worst, so I threw that one away and spent some money for a sturdy bench. I'd much prefer a power rack, but since what I've got is technically "good enough", I haven't got off my ass and started looking for one.

I'd prioritize my purchases in this order.

Olympic weight set with weights
Good rack
good bench
Dumbell handles and weights (or select tech or equivalent dumbells)
Pullup bar

I wouldn't ever want to give up the space in my weight room that a bowflex or any other cable machine would require. I'd much sooner save up for a nice treadmill or something (actually that's exactly what I did). Between the barbell and dumbells you can do everything the cable machines do, except better.

 

[AndreM]

I would skip the bowflex and put that money toward a more substantial bench, rack, and weight set. I actually don't have a power rack myself, but I do have a decent enough adjustable height rack that is adequate for everything I do. It actually came with a bench similar to the set you linked to, but trying to work out on a wobbly sub-par bench is the worst, so I threw that one away and spent some money for a sturdy bench. I'd much prefer a power rack, but since what I've got is technically "good enough", I haven't got off my ass and started looking for one.

I'd prioritize my purchases in this order.

Olympic weight set with weights
Good rack
good bench
Dumbell handles and weights (or select tech or equivalent dumbells)
Pullup bar

I wouldn't ever want to give up the space in my weight room that a bowflex or any other cable machine would require. I'd much sooner save up for a nice treadmill or something (actually that's exactly what I did). Between the barbell and dumbells you can do everything the cable machines do, except better.

I'll second this post, buying olympic bar with weights and dumbbells was my first priority building our home gym!

 

[purbeast0]

everyone of the people who are on the bowflex commercials (or ANY of the gimmicky stuff you see on tv) did NOT get the way they look by using those machines/gimmicks. they are there simply as a fitness model so don't think just because they are shredded means you will get shredded like them using a bowflex. those bowflex probably can't even go heavy enough for those guys warmup sets doing real exercises.

 

[Zivic]

Could be a problem if you have a buddy who is a 350lb bencher who is 200-250, may get unstable.

going to go out on a limb and say that is HIGHLY unlikely... more likely he has a buddy that weighs 350 lbs and might bench 200 lbs

 

[slightlyhuman]

you could keep it super simple and just get a few kettlebells to start with. I bought 2 x 20lbs 2 years ago, upgraded to 2 x 40lbs a year ago and now have a 62lb i'm slowly adding it. you can do every single muscle workout in the world with them and they take up very little space.

i also use a treadmill, a bench(every now and then) and a T-bar row but I have to say kettlebells get me 80% of my workout.

 

[edro]

An adjustable bench and dumbell set would be very useful.
I prefer dumbells over barbells, but you can't do squat/deadlift effectively.

 

[foghorn67]

everyone of the people who are on the bowflex commercials (or ANY of the gimmicky stuff you see on tv) did NOT get the way they look by using those machines/gimmicks. they are there simply as a fitness model so don't think just because they are shredded means you will get shredded like them using a bowflex. those bowflex probably can't even go heavy enough for those guys warmup sets doing real exercises.

I had my doubts about these anyway. It's my roommate's plan to get some home gym stuff. I considered it because he has no lifting experience whatsoever.
Anyway, we are getting a rack that can be used for benching and squatting, some handles for pull ups and a pulley system for cable workouts for arms. The adjustable bench with a barbell system is on its way. And I convinced him to get the adjustable dumbbells just to make me happy.
Ive been lifting for years, not so much for body building, just to help stay in shape.
I'm pretty confident with the prospect of a garage gym. It should be fun.
Thanks for the input. Bowflex idea kaput



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[iluvdeal]

I had my doubts about these anyway. It's my roommate's plan to get some home gym stuff. I considered it because he has no lifting experience whatsoever.
Anyway, we are getting a rack that can be used for benching and squatting, some handles for pull ups and a pulley system for cable workouts for arms. The adjustable bench with a barbell system is on its way. And I convinced him to get the adjustable dumbbells just to make me happy.
Ive been lifting for years, not so much for body building, just to help stay in shape.
I'm pretty confident with the prospect of a garage gym. It should be fun.
Thanks for the input. Bowflex idea kaput

Sounds good. I'd start shopping around for cable attachments to make the most of your pulley system, I assume it just comes with a lat bar? I like the rope pulldown for it's versatility. Also I got one of these recently and like it a lot better than the close grip attachment I have, hits my lats better: http://www.walmart.com/ip/4183585

 

[TallBill]

Rack + bench + whatever else you need.

All I have is a rack, bench, bar, and plates.