Crossbow Home Gyms Compared – Weider vs. Bowflex

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Crossbow Home Gyms: Staying Fit on a Budget

First of all, what exactly are crossbow home gyms? It isn’t a model name as much as it is a generic description of the resistance rod-style of multi-gym. Bowflex made the original Power Rods design, followed by Weider, owned by Icon Fitness, which came out with a flex rods model that uses a technology called Compound Resistance System, or CRS.

Head-to-head Comparison

Crossbow home gyms offer the versatility to work all the muscle groups including the chest, back, shoulders, arms, and legs. Both resistance gyms include a lat tower, low pulley, leg developer, and removable bench. In addition, both have a squat station yet after years of research and development neither offers anything to cheer about. It is nothing like a squat performed with a bar and plates; crossbow squats take much to get used to, and taller users never feel comfortable doing them on these machines.

Crossbow home gyms use rods (also called flex bands) that offer up to 240-lbs of resistance with a full ROM or Range of Motion, similar to lifting free weights. However, the flex band technology doesn’t give the user the same continuous resistance as working with free weights does. This is because the actual resistance is easy at the start of the motion, and gradually becomes more difficult at the end of the press as the band is bowed.

Compare Bowflex® Home Gyms Here

Which Crossbow to Pick?

When comparing the two home gyms side by side, Bowflex comes out ahead in just about every category:

Weider crossbows are huge! The Bowflex has a smaller footprint and won’t take up as much room
The Weider machine does not feel as smooth as a Bowflex
A lot of assembly is required for either model (3-4 hrs) so neither has an advantage
The Bowflex home gym is better quality than a Weider
Taller people will feel more comfortable on the Bowflex
With proper care and maintenance, a Bowflex can last 20 years—so say owners who still have the original models. We haven’t heard those kinds of boasts from Weider machine owners.

The main reason Weider flex band gyms have sold so well in the past few years has been the sticker price; it was the budget alternative to the Bowflex costing hundreds of dollars less. Not anymore. In 2009, Bowflex shows why it is still king of the crossbows. The company has priced the Bowflex Classic, the basic Bowflex gym, at an affordable $649. The Weider Max model sells for slightly less, at $599, but that’s only if you buy directly from Weider — Sears sells the Max online for $999!

While you will get a good workout with either one, we’d recommend the Bowflex crossbow over the Weider home gym for quality, smoothness, and warranty. In fact, if you can afford it and are serious about a flex rods machine, you should consider upgrading to a better Bowflex, such as the Xtreme 2 SE. The Bowflex Classic (also sold under the model name PR1000 at Sears, Sports Authority, etc.) is the best quality in budget crossbow home gyms, and at a $50 price difference over the Weider Max, it’s a no-brainer: get the Bowflex.

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