Bowflex’s expertise is in the home fitness equipment market, ranging from treadmills, elliptical trainers, free weights, and multi-function home gyms. This international brand is well respected in the fitness industry and can be relied upon to produce top range home fitness equipment, including one of the best home multi gyms on the market, The Bowflex Xtreme SE Home Gym.
Design
The Bowflex Xtreme Home Gym features a striking grey exterior coated frame, with a black and red ergonomic adjustable seat with Polyurethane cushion. This design provides added back support for leg exercises and knee support for lat exercises. The home gym is compact in size for use in a smaller workout area, and there is a space saving gym-style vertical workout position. The reinforced “X”-shaped base allows for maximum stability, and the multi gym is silent and comfortable to use.
The excellent power rods come with lifetime guarantee which put’s your mind at ease as you bend them to the floor.
If you want all the benefits of a great workout, but you don’t want to go all the way to the gym, then this is the home multi gym for you. If you have a lack of time or think that home gym equipment is inferior, then The Bowflex Xtreme SE Multi Gym will change your mind. It’s possible to achieve fantastic results from the comfort of your own home in as little as six weeks with regular muscle building exercise.
The Bowflex Xtreme SE Home Gym is the ideal choice if you want to work your entire body with high resistance but would rather not use weights as the Bowflex Xtreme SE home workout multi gym doesn’t use a weight stack to provide traditional weight resistance like other conventional home multi gyms. This unique muscle building station uses its very own revolutionary Bowflex Power Rods.
Indeed using The Bowflex Power Rods can feel better than working out with free weights but without the risk of joint pain or damage that is usually associated with using free weights. The compact, full-body strength building home gym provides all the resistance you need to achieve a full body workout.
By hooking the rods to the cable pulley system, The Bowflex Power Rods enable you to experience all the benefits of weight resistance training and all of the rods are precisely manufactured under high-quality control measures, then sheathed and tested to ensure quality and durability, providing a sustainable and affordable home gym solution.
As these rods are detachable, you can upgrade to add extra resistance from the included standard 210lbs (95kg) of rod resistance up to a maximum of 410lbs resistance, at any time, ensuring your workout will always progress to the next level and your strength training routine will never stagnate.
It is possible to use one rod or several rods in combination, to create your chosen resistance level. To place multiple rods on to one cable, bend the nearest road towards the cable and then place the cable hook through the rod cap.
You can then hook up the next rod into the same cable hook. Hooking up the closest rod first, will prevent the rods from crossing over the top of each other.
Offering over an incredible 65 exercises in the user manual and also included is the Better Body workout poster to hang by the machine, so you don’t have to use the book.
The Bowflex Xtreme Home Multi Gym includes many accessories & attachments as standard without needing to purchase expensive add-ons, although optional accessories such as a preacher curl or ab attachment are available from Bowflex that will enhance your training.
Also included is the lateral tower with angled lat bar for increasing the range of strength training exercises.
Features
The Bowflex Multi Gym uses a cable pulley system that features three different positions in the lower pulley position and a further two more positions in the mid and upper areas, which provides multiple workout options; this allows you to work all of the muscle groups at different angles and degrees increasing the effectiveness of many exercises.
Position one is the standard position, two: the lat pull down, three: squats, four: ab crunch and five: rowing. There is also an optional sixth pulley position with the leg extension.
The lower pulley system allows you to perform squats and muscle strengthening exercises that target the glutes, hamstrings, and quadriceps.
Hand Grips
5-Way Hand-Grip/Ankle Cuffs:
The unique handgrip is designed to add flexibility and performance to any workout. Functions include a Regular Grip, Non-Grip Cuff, Ankle Cuff, Foot Cuff and a Shoulder Cuff. The handgrips fit securely around your wrist, ankle, or instep. Attach the grips to the cables by snapping the cable clip onto the D-ring.
Standard Grip:
Grab the handle and cuff together to make a grip without inserting your hand through the cuff portion. Most exercises will use this grip. The Standard Grip is also used for Hammer Grip workouts when you need to hold the handgrip vertically for better wrist support.
Hand Cuff-Grip:
Push your hand through the cuff so that the foam pad lies on the back of your hand. Then grab the remainder of the grip that is resting in your palm. This particular method of gripping is ideal for exercises like the front shoulder raise or any indeed almost any exercise where your palm is facing down.
Ankle Cuff-Grip:
The cuff opening can be made larger to accommodate the ankle. Just put your hand into the cuff and push it away from the handle. Insert your foot or ankle and then tighten the grip by sliding the handle back toward the cuff to ensure maximum power.
Arch Cuff-Grip:
Securely fit the cuff over the arch of your foot. For this grip, place your foot into the cuff until it is around the arch of your instep, then tighten the cuff around your heel to secure fix the grip.
Abdominal Crunch Shoulder Harness:
Set the snap hooks to the D-rings on both ends of the harness. Then carefully place the harness on your shoulders letting the handles hang over your chest. Grab both of the handles. By using high resistance, a cross arm opposite-handle grip can be used.
Attachments
Lateral Pull-down Bar
The Lat Pull-down Bar enables exercises that work the back, shoulders and triceps muscles.
Abdominal Crunch Shoulder Harness
The ab harness gives you the ability to strengthen the muscles of the abdomen by safely adding Resistance to abdominal exercises. When using the ab harness, relocate the pulleys from the chest bar to the short abdominal bar.
Leg Extension Attachment
The leg extension enables you to work the major muscle groups in the legs and develop powerful toned leg muscles.
Safety Options
There are many safety precautions that you will need to ensure while using the Bowflex Xtreme SE.
Ensure that all of the fasteners are in place and tightened before using the grips, straps, lat bar, or ab harness, and that all auxiliary cables for the lat bar and leg extension have been securely fastened to the primary cables on the unit. Always use the lock knob on the slider to secure pulleys and never allow pulleys to change position during your exercise routine.
Use the bar holders to support the lat bar or you can remove the bar when not in use, and you must never hang from the Lat Tower or ever attempt to perform chin ups from the bar. Never pull on the bar unless there is resistance attached to it and Always use the Lock Knob to secure the attachment to your Bowflex Xtreme SE home gym.
Exercise Options
Chest Muscles
You can perform up to four different chest workouts with The Bowflex Xtreme home multi gym. These include:
Work the pectoralis major muscles with the bench press; this exercise will also allow you to target the anterior deltoids and triceps. You can emphasize your chest muscles by performing the chest fly with the centre top bar pulley in a wide position, again targeting your pecs major.
Next, try the decline bench press which will again work the primary chest muscles but this time the centre cross bar is used in the standard position, or you could use the incline bench press to target more of the upper portion of your pectoralis major chest muscles.
Shoulder Muscles
There are over ten different shoulder exercises you can perform with the Bowflex home gym. You can try the reverse fly, crossover reverse fly, crossover rear deltoid rows, crossover high rear deltoid rows, lateral shoulder raise, seated forearm lateral shoulder raise, front shoulder raise, seat shoulder press, shoulder rotator cuff – both internal and external, as well as the shoulder extension and shoulder shrug. You can also perform a scapular depression (use the lat bar for this) and retraction.
These shoulder exercises will work your trapezius and rhomboids muscles, the serratus anterior muscles, on the side of the rib cage. The rear portion of the rotator cuffs (infraspinatus, teres minor muscles), the front rotator cuff muscle (subscapularis) and your deltoids, upper back muscles and also the triceps in your arms. By using the handgrips and adjusting the pulley position you can alter the angle and increase the effectiveness of these exercises.
Back Muscles
Once again, the Bowflex Xtreme SE provides a great range of back exercises. Attach the lateral bar and work your upper back muscles with the standing shoulder pullover. Next up you can blow the latissimus dorsi, teres major and rear deltoids up – which make up the large pulling muscles of the upper back, by using the narrow pull-down with bent lat bar. This one also involves biceps group.
Back to the handgrips for some bent over rows and crossover bent over row. Use the squat pulley for the seated lat row and crossover seated lat row. With the standing low back extension, you can build strength in the muscles in the lower back such as the erector spinae, deep spinal muscles and other muscles groups such as the gluteus maximus and hamstrings.
Biceps & Triceps
Switch to the lateral tower to start building your arm muscles. The triceps pushdown will indeed work your triceps muscles. You can perform three different versions of this exercise. By using the hand grips or the lat bar then you can target slightly different area of this muscle.
With the centre crossbar pulley set to a narrow position then it’s possible to perform a triceps extension, hammer tri extension or a cross tri extension. More exercises that will target the tri’s include; tri kickback, hammer tri kick back and the resisted dip.
There are also many workouts that will target the bicep muscles. Start with a biceps curl or a concentrated biceps curl with the handgrips and squat pulley frame. Attach the squat straps for a reverse curl, to really get at the deep arm muscle (brachialis) and the front forearm muscles like the brachioradialis and biceps.
Use the squat bar for a biceps barbell curl and reverse barbell curl.
With the handgrips, you can then do a seated bicep and hammer curl. Finally, target the wrists with the wrist curl and extension.
Leg Muscles
It’s important to work your leg muscles to create a balanced overall toned body. What makes the Bowflex Xtreme SE one of the best home multi gyms, is the many leg exercise options available.
There are over ten different options here for building strong leg muscles. Exercises like the leg extension, which targets all the muscles on the front of the upper thigh (quadriceps muscle group). Or use the squat bar for an in-depth and challenging squat workout.
Use the handgrips for a standing hip extension either with knee bent or extended. Kickbacks to get at the buttocks area (gluteus maximus) or hip flexion to target the muscles at the front of the hips (iliopsoas,
rectus femoris).
Lastly, you can try a deadlift for your glutes and a standing hip adduction to work the insides of the thighs (adductor muscle groups) and the outside of the hips (gluteus medius) on the supporting leg. Calf raises are also possible by removing the seat and leg extension attachments.
Core Muscles
Set the centre crossbar to the standard position for a trunk rotation exercise, most of the core muscles can be targeted with this, but the rotation is limited in the spine and should only be performed with the least amount of resistance and proper alignment.
The seated (resisted) oblique abdominal crunch will work the external obliques on the resistance side and internal obliques on the opposite side. You will need to attach the abdominal crunch shoulder harness for this.
Then again by using the abdominal bar pulley, you can perform a seated (resisted) abdominal crunch which will work the abdominal area including the upper and lower front abs (rectus abdominus) and side abs (obliques).
Bowflex Xtreme Round Up
The Bowflex Xtreme SE Home Multi Gym is a really unique piece of home gym equipment when compared to similar home gyms. By using the Bowflex power rods instead of a tradional weight stack, you can experience all the benefits of a traditional weight-training workout but without the stresses usually associated with lifting weights.
The Bowflex Xtreme is a high-quality, strength building multi gym that has many excellent features. With its compact design, attachment options and a five-way handgrip, you can really achieve a varied, full body workout with plenty of powerful muscle building options.
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- Product Weight: 157 lbs. (71 kg)
- Product Dimensions: 53″ (135 cm) long x 49″ (124 cm) wide x 82″ (208 cm) high
- Workout Area: 96″ (244 cm) long x 78″ (198 cm) wide
- Number of Exercises: Over 60 Power Rod Resistance 210 lbs. (95 kg)
- Power Rod Upgradability: 310 lbs. (141 kg.) 410 lbs. (186 kg.)
- User Weight Limit: 300 lbs. (136 kg)
- Meets: EN957-1 Class H EN957-2 Class H Meets: ASTM F2276-05 ASTM F2216-05
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