The Bowflex vs Free Weights Debate: Bodybuilders Unite
When the Bowflex home gym was first released, it opened a lot of eyes. Suddenly, an entire gym's worth of weight lifting equipment could be purchased in one simple machine, small enough to fit in the home and easy enough for even the most beginner lifter to use.
However, with every positive comes a negative, and the Bowflex vs free weights debate continues on. Sometimes newer is not necessarily better, and it can be debated whether or not the Bowflex home gym truly does offer the same workout as traditional free weights. What is certain, however, is that each method offers something special, and maybe the answer to the Bowflex vs free weights debate is to simply include a little of both style.
Pros and Cons
Aesthetically, the Bowflex home gym excels in comparison to free weights. Many individuals choose the Bowflex vs free weights because they do not have a room at home dedicated solely to exercise, and the home gym can fit easily in even the smallest space while still offering countless exercises. Since no actual weights are involved, everything is compacted into a system of pulleys and cables, each mimicking certain weights.
Versus a full rack of free weights, benches and various other pieces of equipment, stylistically the Bowflex home gym is a better choice. Also, for those who live to far away from a gym, or who can save money by purchasing an at-home system, the Bowflex home gym is probably more beneficial than traveling to some far away gym to use a free weights room.
However, many lifters prefer free weights for many reasons. The pinnacle of the Bowflex vs free weights debate is not aesthetic - instead, it is functional. Does the Bowflex truly provide the same workout as free weights, or is just a cleverly-designed marketing ploy? Tension systems like the Bowflex home gym do work minor muscles that many free weights ignore, and while some lifters find the system awkward, that awkwardness is often due to larger muscles getting worked in new ways, so it is not entirely harmful.
However, free weights often offer heavier loads than the Bowflex can manage, so for the bodybuilder, the home gym may be useless. Another element of the Bowflex vs free weights arguments stems from the idea of balance. Using free weights, lifters must balance the weights in place while they are lifting. Machines like the Bowflex balance the weights for the user. Therefore, more can be lifted using the Bowflex than can be lifted using free weights, which hints at the idea that maybe free weights are more beneficial in some ways.
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