To gain health benefits you need to do muscle-strengthening activities such as weightlifting at least twice per week. You need to work all of your major muscle groups -- your arms, legs, shoulders, hips, back, chest and abs -- to the point where it's hard to do another repetition without assistance. A good home gym should make it easy to achieve your fitness goals.
Body Solid exm 1500
The Body Solid exm 1500 is the best home gym in its class, according to Bret Spottke at the website Exercise Equipment Expert. It's an excellent mix of quality, variety and ergonomics. Stations for lat pull-downs, ab crunches, leg extensions and curls, chest presses and seated-rows are included. The exm 1500 can accommodate dozens of other exercises as well. It comes with a 160 lb. weight stack, lat and low row bars, a utility strap and a lifetime warranty on everything. The Body Solid exm 1500 retails for $1,195 as of early 2011.
Powertec WB-LS Workbench Leverage Gym
The Powertec WB-LS Workbench Leverage Gym was awarded "Best Home Gym Overall" at the review website Bestcovery.com. It includes all of the strengthening exercises you would expect in a home gym and some you don't usually see, including the squat. The WB-LS uses a lever arm in place of the barbell and features a high/low cable system as well as leg extension and leg curl stations for more than 20 different workouts. The WB-LS comes with a lifetime warranty on the frame, two years on parts and one year on pads and grips. It retails for $999 as of early 2011.
NordicTrack Personal Trainer III
The NordicTrack Personal Trainer III is equipped with Free Motion technology which engages your core much more than traditional home gyms because it allows you to move naturally in any direction. There are no weight plates or resistance bands to adjust on the Personal Trainer III, but there is a high-resolution display that allows you to plug in an iFit Card for a series of five "Daily Training Series" workouts. You can also go it alone with up to 220 lbs. of NordicTrack's Powershift Resistance. The Personal Trainer III retails for $1,999 but can be found online for as little as $599 as of early 2011.
Bowflex Revolution
The Bowflex Revolution offers something a lot of home gyms don't -- a good cardio workout. The Revolution offers over 100 different strength-building exercises, including several different abdominal workouts. It comes with a rowing machine feature and, as an add-on, a leg press. It uses plates filled with coiling elastic straps -- a technology developed to fight muscle atrophy in space -- instead of weights to help you achieve your fitness goals. The Bowflex Revolution comes with a ten year warranty and retails for $2,999 as of early 2011.
References
- Exercise Equipment Expert: Body Solid exm 1500s Home Gym Review
- Bestcovery: Powertec Workbench WB-LS
- Home Gym Advisor: NordicTrack Personal Trainer III -- Just Grab, Shift, and Go
- Fitness Equipment Reviews: Bowflex Revolution Home Gym Review
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Physical Activity for Everyone
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