I haven't been here in a while. I just had a baby two months ago. I am around 250lbs now and not in very good shape at all. Last year I was looking into the Lebert Equalizer. It looked interesting but at the time I didnt have the extra funds. Then I got pregnant and I'm just getting around to starting a new routine other than walking. I decided to go ahead and order it.

I have always wanted to be able to do simple regular exercises, push ups, sit ups, squats, lunges... but most of them I can't do and I have not seen very good modifications that take you for instance from "Can't do a push up at all... to push up champ" The best thing I've seen as far as modifications to push up for instance is stairs, and I dont have any.

This equalizer is amazing! It holds up to 400lb. I can do their version of a beginner push up. They even have a further modified one that's less hard. It's perfect to use for balance when you are trying to do a squat or a lunge. But the best part is that you can go from using it for support and modifications to doing these super crazy advanced body weight exercises.

So when I ordered it I knew about the range of exercises. I also knew that its used by a lot of personal trainers and gyms. I've seen videos of people doing exercises on it. The videos were all of very fit people. It comes with a dvd that had a beginner and intermediate workout. In the past I've tried sooo many beginner workout videos that were too hard for me which is very discouraging. This is the part that made me cry ...

I completed the whole beginner workout, correctly, and without modifications. But .. he also had another section on the dvd to make it even easier if I needed it to be. I feel like I have a tool now that I can truly grow with, and I didn't get discouraged right off the bat.

If you are looking to get strong and starting from the beginning, I highly recommend this product. I had it put together in 10 minutes or less and was doing the video in my living room with very little space within 15.

Here is the main website. I ordered mine from amazon though.
http://www.lebertequalizer.com/index.htm


Google Lebert Equalizer in case the link gets removed.

Does anyone else use the equalizer? What has your progress been like?

I looked at it, that actually looks similar to what we use at our gym sometimes but ours are made out of PVC pipes that you can find at home depot. You could probably make your own for $20. We have guys 300+ lbs and their weight is supported without any issue.

Also if you like body weight exercises, I'm a fan of the TRX. It is ultra portable and you can do lots of various exercises with it.

Thanks, I will check out the TRX.

Cool tip about the PVC too. Do you know what they are called? There might be a tutorial out there that could help someone else. I really think the $99 I spent was reasonable but if you can make something similar I'd like to be able to point people to it. Its just so motivating to be able to do so many exercises that I wasn't able to do before without using some awkward wrong size chair or coffee table.

Yeah. I use TRX and people have made their own TRX through home depot findings as well It is a bit more complicated than the PVC though. And it is just called PVC pipe. That might be useful if you want to look at making one your own, or a different height or something.

Ok, I think I found the standard name for this type of bars is parallettes or parallel bars. I found a tutorial here.

http://baye.com/diy-parallettes/

Nelie, I was looking into the TRX after reading your post and saw some mixed reviews on Amazon. It looks like it would be a great workout but if someone is already in shape and pretty strong, does it really add any additional challenge? Apparently a lot of the reviews on Amazon are fake (supposedly) so feedback from someone who has actually used it would be great.

My husband is in pretty good shape and it is his primary workout. It was developed initially for training military people so I'd say yeah it offers a challenge He really likes it. I don't do it as often as him because I do other workouts but you can make it as challenging as you want to.

You do have to find a place to hang it, they do sell a ceiling mount as well as a door mount. We had something to hang it on though.

For those looking into TRX, there are cheaper suspension trainers out there.
Check out Lifeline USA
http://www.amazon.com/Lifeline-4-JG-.../dp/B00069CN2S

Or you can even make your own:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ES5GN9k7BZw

I've seen the lifeline but it does look a little flimsy compared to TRX. Also if you are interested in TRX, I suggest getting on their mailing list/friending them on facebook because they will announce discounts. I think they had a 30% discount at Christmas where a lot of people got theirs but I've seen 25% and such at other times.

I love my Equalizers. One of the best things about them is how portable and versatile they are. I can use them right in my living room to do dips, chin ups, and pushups, or take them outside to my backyard or even the park to do these exercises and others! I've even taken them to work to get in a good ten minute workout at lunchtime. I've seen lots of videos on YouTube that show some great exercise variations. I could NOT live without these - most days, they are the only piece of equipment I need to use!