caselynette wrote:(Mod: Oh folks, please don't requote spam!)

Is this really what the Woot forum is coming to? :-(

isometric < concentric. don't buy this.

They still make these? We had one of these in the house in the eighties.

Batman4oz wrote:Yes! I've been wanting to mention this since this popped up, but the comments section would not work for me till just now!
I actually Had a Bullworker...40 years ago! And it cost me $30 back then!
Everything Old is New again...even Us!

^^X^^

My brother had the Bullworker. That was the first thing I though about when I saw this woot. Bullworker was actually quite the workout for my 7 year old self.

The things people make these days for money.... unreal. This guy probably made a million dollars or more off of this Stale Candy workout bar. Hats off to him....

PERSONAL EXPERIENCE

I'm an old guy.
I've been using this thing since the mid-1970s when it first came out. (they originally called it the "Bullworker"). I use it off and on.
It's based on isometric principles.

My testimony... for very little workout time, you get quite good results. If you're wanting to be a bodybuilder, don't use this, but if you want a well toned body and you haven't the time or money to devote to hours in a gym, then this is a great alternative!

Over the decades, the 7x has allowed me to have the look of a devoted gym user. On several occasions I've had folks ask what exercises I do (they seem to be wanting to know what my weight training routine is) and they are a bit surprised that all I do is ten to fifteen minutes of isometric training a day. This thing has allowed me to maintain wide shoulders, large chest, small waist, and large biceps... at least beyond other men my age who aren't devoted to working out.

No bragging here... just giving a perspective from a long-term user.

pphilipp wrote:PERSONAL EXPERIENCE

I'm an old guy.
I've been using this thing since the mid-1970s when it first came out. (they originally called it the "Bullworker"). I use it off and on.
It's based on isometric principles.

My testimony... for very little workout time, you get quite good results. If you're wanting to be a bodybuilder, don't use this, but if you want a well toned body and you haven't the time or money to devote to hours in a gym, then this is a great alternative!

Over the decades, the 7x has allowed me to have the look of a devoted gym user. On several occasions I've had folks ask what exercises I do (they seem to be wanting to know what my weight training routine is) and they are a bit surprised that all I do is ten to fifteen minutes of isometric training a day. This thing has allowed me to maintain wide shoulders, large chest, small waist, and large biceps... at least beyond other men my age who aren't devoted to working out.

No bragging here... just giving a perspective from a long-term user.

Same story here. I still have my Bullworker from decades ago and get it out every so often. I think very highly of the results of a few weeks of workouts. Shapes your body and builds power.

I've owned one of these for about a year now but I don't use it much (although I could/should). It's not really meant for building muscle but it's good for warming up before a workout and to help stretch a muscle after a workout. Otherwise, it's not much different than flexing your muscle as hard as you can for 7 seconds at a time.
I would not recommend this for helping recover from an injury especially if it's in the shoulder region mostly because it's too difficult for weaker body parts in certain positions (eg compressing it horizontally directly in front of you which causes discomfort in the shoulder socket since it pushes your arms outward). If you don't exercise regularly to begin with, this will not likely change your habits but it can be useful in limited capacities.

I had one of these as a teenager when it was called a bullworker. It's like an archery bow and a gas shock absorber combined. I ordered one for my son and one for me for nostalgia. You can't beat the price.

I will skip this and continue with what I'm doing. I have a set of Bodylastics bands that I love, but I use them with the P90X strength routines.

On cardio days I ride the bike for an hour. The P90X cardio routines were either too hard (plyometrics near ruined my knee/hip and I wasn't jumping very high) or boring (yoga/kenpo...and I used to take yoga classes and am in martial arts. The routines are just so dull).

Then again, this isn't a review for P90X. I will say this thing scares me though. I have a bad shoulder (torn rotator cuff years ago that still hasn't healed totally) and a bad hip (sports injury, but it is fun to tell people I might need a new hip at 40). I can see this doing some serious damage to both.

Isometric training is actually the worst way to build muscle, concentric is better, and eccentric is best.

hippie19 wrote:I remember my dad had one of these from before I was born.

You remember from before you were born? Was it really dark in there and sorta slippery?

bluejester wrote:I was wondering the same thing. My younger brother works out a bit, and recently got a resistance band for his birthday. I saw this come up and was considering doing a bit of early Christmas shopping. However, I don't want to grab something that is all gimmick and no substance.

Anyone out there have personal experience with this device?

Just my opinion...with isometrics you're basically pitting one muscle against another, with neither moving or you're pitting a muscle against an immovable object. For example, you could bend your elbows and place your hands together and push your hands against each other, like you're praying, thus working your triceps. You could stand on the edge of a bathtowel and try pulling it out from under your foot in a biceps curling type position. Lie on your back on the floor, knees bent and feet flat on the wall and push and you're working the front of your thigh.

Rubber tubing would also offer resistance in a fixed position, but I've seen rubber tubing used more in a rehab situation where you actually go through a range of motion rather than work the muscles from a fixed position.

I wouldn't say this device is necessarily a gimmick, but I do think much of what it can do can be accomplished just by using basic household items, pressing against a wall or other immovable object, or your own body.

Next on Woot! - The 1973 Datsun B210!

Not sure what I find more amazing: the notion that the Bullworker is still being manufactured or the possibility that a forgotten 30+ year old cache has been discovered.

A shiny, brand new B210 would be pretty neat. And a bargain at $7.99. :D

The guy in the video did NOT get that way by just using the "ISO 7X" ... it's just the next ridiculous gimmick that makes people think you can get ripped by doing almost nothing.

The only way you will get in shape AND STAY THAT WAY is with a combination of resistance training and cardiovascular workouts combined with a balanced diet.

Live with it.

And don't buy cheaply made products that promise magical results.

Hello? Oh, yes ok...

Woot, the 70's called and they want their gimmicky workout contraption back.

Thanks.

my neighbor's sister-in-law makes $77/hr on the internet. She has been without work for 6 months but last month her paycheck was $7645 just working on the internet for a few hours. Read this web site ......com

My best friend's sister's boyfriend's brother's girlfriend heard from this guy who knows this kid who's going with the girl who saw Ferris pass out at 31 Flavors last night.

Nope I'm out!

Years ago this was marketed under the name "Bullworker". I think it's BS they changed it.

bluejester wrote:I was wondering the same thing. My younger brother works out a bit, and recently got a resistance band for his birthday. I saw this come up and was considering doing a bit of early Christmas shopping. However, I don't want to grab something that is all gimmick and no substance.

Anyone out there have personal experience with this device?

NASA researched the topic extensively. They wanted to know if isometrics helped astronauts avoid atrophy. Isometrics were chosen due to the limited amount of space for other protocol. In the end, NASA found that isometrics did assist in maintaining and building some strength, it did not stop contractile proteins from diminishing. These are the proteins involved in concentric/eccentric movement -- that is, essentially "MOVEMENT".

I found an article you might want to read:
http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/livingthings/10dec_muscles.html

There's more to it, but it's a bit of a standard in physiology. Also, true isometrics are actually against something truly fixed. Doesn't this bar move? I do not see how this bar, with its moving parts, is isometric. For "isometric holds", which almost always involve a starting and finishing movement?

My view is that you could (WILL) get more out of simply bodyweight movements and their many varieties -- pushup, situp, pullup, and air squat -- than you ever will out of this device. Why even consider it? Save your $$ and get stronger without it.

tonyeye wrote:My best friend's sister's boyfriend's brother's girlfriend heard from this guy who knows this kid who's going with the girl who saw Ferris pass out at 31 Flavors last night.

Haha love it!

People hurt themselves when they don't follow the instructions on any Bully type device. Use only 80% of your maximum effort. Isometrics have been proven to work by NASA. The exercise is a seven second "Static Hold" designed to fully tax every muscle group. When you do reps you do them to exhaustion. Isometrics gets you there in one...you do the last rep FIRST! If you can close this thing at the chest press, you can also bench 300lbs. It will be a while before you outgrow this device.

decaman wrote:

The study implied but didn't show muscle atrophy (based on a single protein marker) but did show strength increased. When you get back from Mars do you want to look buff, or be able to walk?

Nothing builds muscle fiber recruitment better than isometrics. Why? Because as you hold a static press, fibers get tired and give out, forcing other fibers to kick in. Isotonics move right past every area of the range of motion far too quickly to give you that result.

This device is also an improvement over pressing against a bulkhead, as this device combines isotonic with isometric...that is, there is movement.

stevef2222 wrote:depends on the size of your kegal;-)

LMAO! :-D

Is this for beating hobos? Zombies? What sort of workout am I to expect?

People still fall for these contraptions? This is basically like flexing your muscles in the mirror. Isometric exercises will not make you stronger. Whether it will make any difference physically is up for discussion but even then it won't be much.


Working out at home? Body-weight exercises or a kettle belt along with a healthy diet is all you need if you want to stay relatively fit. It's really not that complicated.

blowcarrot wrote:People still fall for these contraptions? Body-weight exercises or a kettle belt along with a healthy diet is all you need. It's really not that complicated.

I've never worn a kettle belt. I'll have to try it.

This Woot is a "stretch"...

Since we're bringing back old exercises...have you guys heard of 8-minute abs? Well check this out, it's totally going to blow your mind: 7...minute...abs.

tonyeye wrote:I've never worn a kettle belt. I'll have to try it.

Whoops, I meant kettle bell.

Haha, a kettle bell is decent a replacement for a barbell. You don't wear it. You can do squats, presses, deadlifts, raises etc. It's more versatile than a barbell, and takes up significantly less space.

clintone wrote:Just my opinion...with isometrics you're basically pitting one muscle against another, with neither moving or you're pitting a muscle against an immovable object.
.........
I wouldn't say this device is necessarily a gimmick, but I do think much of what it can do can be accomplished just by using basic household items, pressing against a wall or other immovable object, or your own body.

Not at all like pushing against a wall. This exercise involves motion and pushes back. Much more rewarding in benefits.

I bought the original in 1972 and still own and use it. While I still enjoy the weights, isometrics is extremely effective in keeping in shape and gaining strength. At this price, buy several and share.

luk3d4wg wrote: Honestly, I'd save the money and buy some used dumbbells or cheap resistance bands.

I don't know, dumbells don't work for me and the only resistance band that I could stand was Rage Against The Machine(though at $13.99 for a CD they weren't exactly cheap...)

I remember this from the 70s. Wow.

Physics 101: Work = Force x Distance. Even if you're applying a force, if you don't apply it through some distance, then you're not doing any work. No work = no gain.

More to the point, why do gyms have all of this resistance equipment if all you need is a spring-loaded bar? Why are weightlifters doing all of these curls, benches, and squats? Look at the guy in the video. Despite doing the exercises, he never appears to be seriously using any of his muscles. This thing just can't challenge him. And if it can't challenge him, you're never going to look like him either.

I love cheap exercise equipment - I have bands, free weights, a pullup bar (from Woot), a pair of pushup handles (also from Woot), and a cheap bench. Honestly, I was excited when I saw this on here this morning, but the more I think about it, the more I realize that it just won't do any good.

Finally, I was talking to a personal trainer friend of mine recently about sports equipment and I asked him if I should invest in one of those several thousand dollar all-in-one weight trainers (you know, like Bowflex or similar). He said that the reason the gym has all of that equipment is because its easy to setup and hard to injure yourself on. He added that as long as you follow correct form, then you can exercise all of the same muscles with free weights that you can do with even the most complicated piece of equipment.

My two cents: avoid this and get yourself some dumbbell handles (Target has high quality ones for cheap (Reebox brand)) and some free weights.

Batman4oz wrote:Yes! I've been wanting to mention this since this popped up, but the comments section would not work for me till just now!
I actually Had a Bullworker...40 years ago! And it cost me $30 back then!
Everything Old is New again...even Us!

^^X^^

I did too and I really liked it, Of course I was ~40 years younger! I am acutally tempted to get one at this price

The one thing that this piece of equipment does do well is build square pecs. It can also be done by:

1) Incline Barbell Press
2) Incline Dumbbell Press
3) Incline Machine Press
4) All variations of Incline Flyes

but this works that area perfectly. I'm still considering this as a purchase to replace the old bullworker that broke years ago.

I'm out. If a piece of exercise equipment can't be used to hang your clothes on after you quit using it, it's useless.

This looks like it should have been on a T-shirt in this past shirt.woot Derby...