Total Gym, like on info with Christy Brinkley
 

anyone own one of these, I have watched it for awhile now, thinking about doing the payment plan but thats 60 bucks for 19 months man..lol I wanna make sure this thing is a dam good as it looks

anyone have anything to say on it?

I have one! I used to use it a lot and loved it. I've recently purchased a regular home gym, though, I just wanted something different, but more traditional, and like it better. Jennifer also has a Total Gym, but she never really used hers, and also just bought a regular home gym.

There are a lot of models to choose from. I had the Total Gym 2000, and Jennifer had the Total Gym Platinum, which was the smaller unit available from QVC. I didn't notice a huge difference between them.

Here's what Consumer Reports had to say about the total gym:

Originally Posted by :
5 TOTAL GYM XL, $1,598 • 800-220-6481

The product: You adjust the incline of a sliding bench to change resistance, which ranges from about 10 to 50 percent of your body weight. Use a cable-and-pulley system to hoist yourself up the incline. Four videos and diet included, plus a helpful flip chart showing exercises. Sixty-day free trial. Warranty: Lifetime on frame, 2 years on other parts.

The claims: Replace a gym’s worth of equipment with just one piece of equipment that does it all.

The reality: You get various exercises, but it doesn’t duplicate all other devices, especially weight-bearing aerobic ones. Very good body position and range of motion. Very fit people may need to add more resistance; an optional weight bar costs $20 plus the cost of weights. Folds compactly for storage.

The bottom line: Easy to use, versatile. A viable strength-training alternative, especially for users with low to moderate fitness. But pricey.

I noticed on the www.totalgymdirect.com website that they now offer an "electra" model. By reading the description, I"m not sure it's worth the massive increase in price.

If you want the bigger total gym that is not the infomercial type, go to http://www.totalgym.com/ They are pretty expensive, though. If you want something inexpensive, QVC has their own models on their website.

I am totally biased here because I am a gym regular. For that price, you can join a gym and get to use all their machines and cardio machines and take classes as well. Of course if you really really want to work out at home, it might be a good investment.

If you MUST buy one, I'd strongly suggest browsing through eBay or Craigslist.org -- the thing about this kind of equipment is that there is ALWAYS someone wanting to unload a very slightly used model CHEAP. ;)

Check out your specialty fitness shops to. I just saw an ad for Giles fitness and they had the total gym on sale. Can't remember how much, but I was suprised at the time that it was as low as it was. Much lower than the payment plan comes to.