Adjustable Dumbells

Bowflex adjustable dumbells, called SelectTech, by their manufacturer, come in three different weight ranges.  The smallest of the group is called the SelectTech 220 and can be adjusted from 2.5 to 20 pounds.  The middle weight is the 552 and can go from 5 to 52.5 pounds, and the top end goes from 10 to 90 pounds and goes by the name 1090.  There’s a definite pattern to their naming convention, and I suppose it makes for a catchy label as well.

The first benefit of these adjustable dumbells is that you won’t need to take of an entire wall with dumbell racks to hold a pair of weights for every 5 pound increment.  You get 90 pounds total, 45 pounds on each side.  They essentially take up the space that two standard 45 lb dumbells would fit in.  Not a bad deal.

And speaking of stands, I find that the dumbells themselves are much easier to adjust when they are sitting on the racks that you can buy from BowFlex.  They have small spaces that each plate fits into when you set them down, and it seems that the proper spacing and relief of tension makes the adjustment mechanism work better.  That’s not to say it won’t work while they’re sitting on the floor, but it is a bit of a chore to keep the weights spaced correctly so that the bars can fit back in them properly.  My recommendation, though, would be to buy the racks.  They look good and work very well.  They are well worth the money.

The BowFlex adjustable dumbells themselves are very attractive, just like the other products that BowFlex designs.  They are aesthetically appealing and well made.  They feel good in your hands, and come standard with professional style grips.  That being said, there are a few shortcomings that I would like to see changed in future models.

The biggest problem is the weight limit of 90 lbs.  That’s plenty for the casual weight lifter, but if you’ve ever gotten serious out lifting you know that you’ll quickly move past 45 lbs on each arm.  Don’t get me wrong, it certainly accounts for a wide range of the lower level weights, but you can probably count on buying sets of 60 lbs dumbells through probably 90 or 100 lbs, depending on your workout routine and fitness level.

The other thing I noticed was that I was very hesitant to drop them on the floor from any height.  I have nothing concrete to make me think they’re fragile, but they are adjustable and thus have a mechanism to hold the plates in place that I’m sure can break with enough repeated shock.

All in all, I think these weights would be a valuable addition to anyone’s home gym, and a real space saver.