The BodyBoss home gym 2.0 is a piece of compact workout equipment suitable for home and portable anywhere due to its diminutive size and weight. Find out how it works in my detailed review.
Resistance comes through elastic bands that can be added or removed to match any strength level, while versatility is provided by a number of accessories like wrists wraps, handles, a bar with grips, and a sturdy platform.
The whole apparatus allows for over 300 exercises that mimic those you could normally perform with traditional home gyms or free weights, but without the bulk and costs associated with it.
The BodyBoss 2.0 comes by default as a basic, standard package that can be enhanced with the addition of extra resistance bands or other accessories as you see fit, but even the default portable gym is enough for most needs.
This review will tell you how this minimalist equipment works, how it is built, and whether it could be a valid alternative for you to more expensive and bulky gear.
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Who Is The BodyBoss Home Gym 2.0 For?
The BodyBoss Home Gym could be the ideal solution for those who want to workout at home but do not have enough space for a regular home gym or dislike the crowds and costs of regular, commercial gyms.
This compact workout gym can be easily folded and stored anywhere in your house, right under your bed or wherever, and it would be ideal also for those on the move, as the whole gear weighs just over 10 lbs.
The BodyBoss Home Gym also allows for a great range of movements with different levels of intensity, making it flexible and suitable for those seeking to improve not just one aspect of fitness but different ones.
For example, it can be used for moderate strength or muscle building with the strongest resistance settings but also for fat loss and HIIT with the lightest settings.
To sum up, the BodyBoss Home Gym is a light, compact and alternative workout solution that addresses different problems in one go, making it ideal for people with limited adobe space, travelers, people on a budget or with a dislike for crowded gyms.
The BodyBoss Home Gym comes with a BodyBoss bag with all the accessories. The folding base is separate and when open it offers 5 different settings through pop-up rings where the bands are to be clipped onto. Here is a detailed breakdown:
1 Fold up VectorFit Base – This is the folding base that works as a workout platform. It is made of hybrid injection molding and is fitted with 5 different pairs of clip-on hooks onto which you attach the bands for different configurations and levels of resistance. The floor side of the base is secured with rubber pads to prevent slipping on or damaging the floor, while the top part offers an anti-slip padded area for your feet.
1 Carry Bag – This is just a simple and smart bag to carry all the remaining components, except for the base above. The components in the bag are as follows:
4 Cloth-Finished Resistance Bands – Each band providing up to 30lb resistance and 32 inches in length.
1 Pair Of Handles – These are sturdy and well made with two rings to easily clips into the band hooks.
1 Pair Of Wrist Wraps – This accessory is for performing a wide variety of movements without the need for grabbing the handles and it also doubles up for ankle workouts. It works with a Velcro strap that can be adjusted as needed and then hooked into the bands.
1 Door Anchor – This is an accessory that allows for movements like pull-downs and rowers to be performed. You place the stop on the other side of the door, shut the door, and then attach the bands into the hooks provided, then connect the handles on the other side.
1 Workout Bar – The bar is a two-fold gear that screws together for the workouts. It is sturdy and comes with padded grips. You can use the bar for all the compound movements like the military press, squat, bench press (though you need and bench for that) or rowers and upright shrugs. You can also use it for isolation exercises like bicep curls, triceps extensions, flies, pull-overs, front and side raises, and so on.
In addition, you also get:
A Quick Start-Up Guide – This includes instructions on setting up.
The overall impression is that the BodyBoss Home Gym 2.0 is a well manufactured piece of equipment that looks like is made to last.
All the components are sturdy and well thought of and the finish is very good, while the bright color options help give it a young and easy-going look.
We liked that you can choose from different packages with more or fewer components to suit your budget or needs, plus the company and customer service are good, they are easy to get hold of and responsive to your queries.
BodyBoss Home Gym Accessories
The BodyBoss Home Gym can be enhanced by a range of accessories that can be bought to enhance or complete the portable gym. The gym itself can be had as a default standard package or enhanced with extra accessories and bands as needed.
BodyBoss provides a good selection of useful add-ons such as:
Extra Cloth-Covered Bands
Wrist/Ankle Straps
Extra Handles
Door Anchors
Workout Bars
Ab Wheels
All these accessories are already included in the standard package, except for the ab wheel. Any extra accessory is there to increase the capability of the gym.
For example, in order to increase resistance, you may want to add an extra pair of bands, or in order to work out with a partner, you may need an extra set of handles, wrist wraps and bar, and so on.
Advantages And Limitations Of The BodyBoss Home Gym
This unusual workout gear owes its compact size, lightweight, and portability thanks to the resistance system employed: band resistance training.
Without elastic bands, it would be impossible to recreate the same level of resistance without the bulk and weight of regular home gyms, barbells, and dumbbells.
Rubber bands do offer a number of advantages over bulkier equipment, and this is why they are used by many people across the globe. However, their practicality and low costs are also offset by some disadvantages, which is the reason why normal gyms, machines, and weights will never go out of fashion anytime soon.
So, while they look attractive as an alternative workout solution, they must also be looked at with a critical eye as for their effectiveness compared to standard equipment.
Read on to find out what the main advantages and limitations of resistance bands are before you make an informed decision on the BodyBoss Home Gym.
Advantages
Progressive Resistance – Elastic bands offer an increase in the level of resistance as they stretch. This is particularly beneficial for pushing movements like squats, chest presses, and shoulder presses, as the resistance increases exactly as the movement becomes easier, at the top of the range when the resistance is off-loaded from your muscles into your bones in the lock-up position.
Easy On The Joints – The BodyBoss Home Gym elastic bands stress your joints to a lesser extent than free weights because they do not rely on gravity for resistance. Elastic bands allow for an infinite variation of the plane of movements for the same exercises, preventing the wear and tear typical of machines and weights which use always the same pattern.
Flexible And Easy To Use – The BodyBoss Home Gym elastic bands suit different styles of training, whether it be for strength, hypertrophy, endurance, or HIIT. The resistance can be increased or reduced very easily and quickly by just re-positioning your body with a step forward or backward, allowing for seamless transitions of resistance, style of training, and multi-drop sets.
Improve Flexibility And Coordination – Elastic bands can be used for speed and power training with a light resistance through many planes of motions, ideal for developing coordination, balance, speed as well as promoting fat loss and improving cardio.
Strengthen Your Core And Body As A Whole – Elastic bands allow for all the possible natural movements nature allows. Since they do not rely on fixed patterns of movement, they force you to engage your core muscle and all the other muscles in your body for stability and assistance in any given exercise, unlike free weights and machines whereas most muscle groups are relaxed except for the targeted ones.
Portable And Very Convenient – Elastic bands are much lighter than any free weights or gyms in order to create the same level of resistance. They are really the pocket size and can be used anywhere, anytime, at home or on the move, hence the portability of the BodyBoss Home Gym.
They Are Much Cheaper – Elastic bands are by default much cheaper than iron-made machines or free weights. There is little material involved despite creating considerable levels of resistance. Only bodyweight training is even cheaper.
Ideal For Those Without Space At Home Or Without Access To A Gym – This is quite self-explanatory. If you are short of space or on a budget, elastic bands are the way to go.
Limitations
Progressive resistance – This is a limitation of elastic bands just as it is an advantage. While on pushing movements it can be considered an advantage for the reasons described above, on pulling movements like pull-down or rowers, where your back and biceps become involved, it can become a limitation.
This is because the mechanics are inverted: the resistance increases exactly as the movement becomes more difficult, that is at the end of the range when the resistance is off-loaded from your bones and ligament and into your muscles, the opposite of what happens with pushing movement.
Just as the top of a bench press is the easiest part of the exercise, the top of a pull-up is the most difficult.
The result is difficulty in finding the correct resistance level because it could be either adequate at the start of the movement but too high at the end, or too light at the start while trying to make it adequate at the end of it.
In the end, you will need to compromise, finding a position that is a bit high at the start but not so much that you find it impossible to fully contract the pulling movement at the end of its range.
There are no such issues with free weight or machines which rely on gravity and offer a linear level of resistance throughout any movement, save for the change in mechanics and leverage caused by your bone structure and joints through any given movement.
Difficult To Fine Tune – On any machine or with free weights you can be 100% sure of how much resistance you increase or decrease, but elastic bands are a more haphazard affair.
On the BodyBoss Home Gym, you do not have pin-stacks or disks with selected weight resistance to rely on, instead, you need to acquaint yourself with the elastic feel and find out the right level of resistance as you progress.
However, as you become more familiar with bands, this will become less of an issue and you’ll be able to adjust resistance correctly if not 100% accurately like with standard equipment.
Difficult To Log Improvements – This goes hand in hand with the point above. Since regulating resistance is not as accurate as with free weights, so is the ability to clearly determine with precision how well you are doing and how much you are progressing.
Again, with the BodyBoss Home Gym, you need to develop a feel for the elastic resistance, and only after some time, you may be able to determine that you have increased your strength.
Easier To damage Than Iron-made Equipment – Elastic bands are usually strong for the purpose they are built for, though they come with different grades of quality.
In general, they stand up well to regular use, but they are not “immortal” like iron. Rubber does deteriorate with time and can even break. On the plus side, they are cheap to replace.
They Are Not Substitute For Gravity – Elastic bands completely bypass the driving force that mother nature has given us to fight against in order to stand and move around the planet: gravity.
It is thanks to gravity that any living organism has developed with time bones and muscles to survive. Machines and free weights do nothing more than replicate that situation and even enhance it.
The result is that weight resistance is a tried and tested method for developing strength and hypertrophy, while elastic resistance does the job to a lesser degree.
Was it not the case, power-lifters, bodybuilders and Olympic weight lifters would all train exclusively with elastic bands.
This is not the case at all. They may include bands as an addition to general conditioning, but the bulk of their training is done with iron and gravity.
The take-home message is that if you think you can achieve the same levels of strength and hypertrophy attainable with weights by just using bands, you are going to get disappointed.
However, if you only plan for a moderate increase in strength and hypertrophy coupled with more flexibility, coordination, fat loss, and increased stamina, the BodyBoss Home Gym stands up well to the job.
BodyBoss Home Gym 2.0 Workouts
The BodyBoss home gym comes with a Workout Booklet plus access to free workout videos and trainer support.
BodyBoss Home Gym Price And Guarantee
Right now the basic, default package comes discounted at $179.00, but this price can change anytime or can increase if you choose to get extra accessories.
The company offers a one-year warranty, hassle-free return, and generally timely support and good customer care.
Closing Thoughts - Is The BodyBoss Home Gym Worth It?
The BodyBoss Home Gym 2.0 is a very practical, flexible, economical and user-friendly alternative to standard home gyms, free weights or machines.
Its main advantages are the super-compact size, lightweight and low price comparing to regular home equipment.
It does offer these advantages thanks to the elastic band system utilized in order to simulate the resistance offered by bulkier, heavier, and bigger standard gear.
The ease of use of such bands allows targeting different fitness skills like moderate strength and hypertrophy, speed, stamina, HIIT, while helping burn fat along the way.
However, the system also comes with a few caveats. While the BodyBoss Home Gym is built with good manufacturing standards and offers good all-round workout effectiveness for regular guys and gals who like to train at home or anywhere, it may not be enough for those seeking a tool for full strength and/or hypertrophy, as elastic bands cannot re-create the effect of gravity and weights.
However, for those looking for a good all-around home conditioning tool for HIIT, flexibility, speed, stamina, coordination, and moderate hypertrophy and strength, the BodyBoss Home Gym 2.0 does the job very well.
My name is Jay Fielding. I gained an interest in fitness since I was a child, and eventually developed my passion into a career path. I am now a Certified Personal Trainer with a natural ability to program customized body recomposition and motivate people in achieving their goals, be it gaining muscle or losing fat.
