The Bowflex Tread Climber is a remarkable piece of equipment for the home gym. Essentially a hybrid of three different kinds of machines, the Bowflex Tread Climber provides a smooth, fluid and nearly impact-less workout that will have you sweating and panting and burning loads of calories in no time. This makes the machine especially valuable for the elderly, those recovering from injury, or those who are concerned about the long-term damage, especially to the knees, that running can do.
About Bowflex
The Bowflex brand is a subsidiary of Nautilus, a name synonymous with quality and well known to gym users for the last two decades. Like the rest of the Bowflex line, the Tread Climber is a sturdy well built unit with some great features. The frame is made of high grade carbon steel, and the unit is quite heavy giving it a great 'feel' during use. The machine features a system Bowflex calls 'dual-treadle', which is essentially a treadmill split down the middle, with each left and right section working independently.
Three Machines In One
The Bowflex Tread Climber is a combination of three popular cardiovascular workout machines: the treadmill, the stair climber, and the elliptical machine. The Tread Climber uses the dual-treadle system for two separate rolling platforms, like a treadmill, but with each of the two 'pads' lifting as you walk forward. This creates the stair climber effect, though it is a smoother motion than with traditional stair climbers and without the impact of using a stepper. The separate feet are much like an elliptical machine, but the feet are free and not held into a foot pad, so the motion feels much more natural. It is important to stress that this is not a running machine, but rather a hill-walking machine. The feel of the incline is more gradual than with a stepper, but it is a great workout nonetheless. Unlike an elliptical machine, the arms stay static, so it is more like a traditional treadmill in that respect.
The machine can also be used as a standard stair climber, by leaving the power off and simply adjusting the resistance. Also, the dual-treadles can be snapped together to create a traditional treadmill that runs at a 10 degree incline.
What makes this machine such a great workout, and an effective fat-blaster, is its ability to easily accommodate interval training. Interval training is a cardiovascular workout that is highly effective and used extensively by athletes. Essentially it is simply interspersing all-out efforts with periods of lower activity, then back to another all-out effort. It is the most effective weight loss training there is, and this unit does it perfectly. By varying speeds, resistance and incline, the Tread Climber easily adjusts the workout so that intense intervals are followed by relatively light-walking, then back to more stairs.
Make Room for a Bowflex!
Like all Bowflex equipment, the Tread Climber is designed for home gyms, and thus consideration is made for fitting inside a normal sized room. The unit measures 63 by 32 inches, and is mounted on wheels, for moving. It does, however, weigh in at 350 pounds, so it is not easily moved. Also, the unit requires some assembly when it arrives, and is best done by two people.
For an all-around great piece of home gym equipment, the Bowflex Tread Climber is a smart choice that will have you burning tons of calories and replacing all that fat with muscle mass in no time!
