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Friday 19 July 2013

The Best and Worst of Infomercial Shape-Up Gear

EVER WONDER IF THE SHAKE WEIGHT OR BOWFLEX REALLY WORK? THENEST.COM PUT SOME OF THE TOP-SELLING INFOMERCIAL WORKOUT GEAR TO THE TEST. FIND OUT WHICH "AS SEEN ON TV" PRODUCTS ACTUALLY LIVE UP TO THAT MONEY-BACK GUARANTEE.


Ab Rocket

Home Buying Help – Money Management Tools – Home Decorating Ideas – Free RecipesThe promise: "With Ab Rocket, you don't need any expensive gym memberships to get the body you have always wanted. Simply use Ab Rocket for five minutes a day, and you will be able to transform your body with toned, sizzling rock-hard abs that will amaze your friends!"
How it works: Supposedly, you'll "get a complete ab workout" and "melt away the fat" just by rocking back and forth in this awkward blue chair, which allegedly feels like a "soothing massage."
The verdict: Okay, now we're talking! Any workout that you can perform while drinking a beer is a winner in my book. But alas, after thoroughly investigating, I still have no idea where the "rocket" part comes in. And after rocking for a month in a metal chair that looks like it belongs in a gynecologist's office (or at least how I imagine a chair in a gynecologist's office would look), I still don't have a six-pack. Bottom line: Why not just, oh, I don't know... do some sit-ups? Pass. (3 payments of $34, AbRocket.com)


The ThighMaster Gold

Home Buying Help – Money Management Tools – Home Decorating Ideas – Free RecipesThe promise: "Firms and tones your inner thighs, shapes and tones your stomach and abdomen, and tightens your upper arms."
How it works: As Suzanne Somers says, "Squeeze... squeeze your way to a shapely figure."
The verdict: Granted, nothing says scientific rigor, durability and modern-day relevance like "Suzanne Somers." But come on. We dare you: Try to keep a straight face as you tell your buddy, "Nothing worked on my thunder thighs until I tried the ThighMaster." What you lose in inches, you gain in shame. Sorry Suzanne, but I can think of a better way to squeeze and exercise my thighs (wink) -- and it's completely free. ($36 + S&H, ThighMaster.net)




P90X

Home Buying Help – Money Management Tools – Home Decorating Ideas – Free RecipesThe promise: "Get absolutely ripped in 90 days. Guaranteed or your money back."
How it works: Use this 12-DVD set, and "in just 90 days, you can get back in shape or build the body you've always wanted. All you need is a set of dumbbells or resistance bands, a pull-up bar and about an hour a day. No gym membership required."
The verdict: P90X scares me. It should scare anyone with its combo of weird calisthenics that simulate the torture of boot camp and will have you sweating buckets. Still, for dudes, it's definitely one of the manliest options of the infomercial bunch. And if you follow the routine (and the diet plan that goes with it), you will lose weight, get toned and annoy everyone you know by gushing about P90X the way some people say, "Oh my god -- you have, have, HAVE TO watch The Wire!!!"
($120 + S&H, BeachBody.com)




Shake Weight

Home Buying Help – Money Management Tools – Home Decorating Ideas – Free RecipesThe promise: "If your arms aren't on fire after just six minutes, return the Shake Weight for a 100 percent refund of EVERY dime you paid -- we'll even pay to take it back."
How it works: Two words: Dynamic inertia, which "can increase muscle activity to nearly 300 percent compared to a standard dumbbell."
The verdict: Huh? "Dynamic inertia?" Is that what the kids are calling hand jobs these days? Sure, it trims upper-arm fat. But who are we kidding? I don't need this thing. Like most men, I've been practicing "dynamic inertia" since puberty. Guys can perform this same "exercise" -- a rhythmic pumping of the hand -- with equipment that's free, portable and conveniently shrinks when not in use. (Hmmm... perhaps that's why it says "designed specifically for women" on the website.) So while the Shake Weight ain't no great shake for dudes, the ladies might (easy there, I'm not going to say what you think) find it really works on that hard-to-tone underarm flab that Oprah's always blabbing about. Gents be warned: The website also touts the Shake Weight as "a great gift," but before you wrap it up for your lady, just keep in mind that a) that line was probably written by a single man and b) it might send the wrong message.
($20 + S&H, ShakeWeight.com)

Bowflex Classic Home Gym

Home Buying Help – Money Management Tools – Home Decorating Ideas – Free RecipesThe promise: "Builds stronger muscles and a leaner body," "increases your metabolism," "reduces your body fat" and "has more satisfied customers than any other in-home, total-body strength-training product."
How it works: Do any of the 30-plus exercises (plus the built-in rowing machine) for 30 minutes, 3 times a week for a total-body workout.
The verdict: Can you really go wrong with a product endorsed by both Christie Brinkley and Chuck Norris? If all goes well, you'll become a Texas Ranger, have Billy Joel write a song about you (before divorcing you) and enroll in anger management classes. The pro? You have an entire gym in your bedroom. The con? You have an entire gym in your bedroom. In other words, this contraption will be awesome for precisely three days, after which you will stop using it and never hear the end of it from your wife/girlfriend, who thought "the world's most expensive towel rack" was a waste of money in the first place.
($649, Bowflex.com)


The Flex Belt

Home Buying Help – Money Management Tools – Home Decorating Ideas – Free RecipesThe promise: "With The Flex Belt, you can train your abs even if you're too busy or too tired for a traditional workout." Use it for 30 minutes a day, and you'll "get strong, toned abs in weeks."
How it works: No workout required! Just strap this belt around your gut, and The Flex Belt sends a "powerful pulse" of electricity through your stomach, automatically contracting your abs.
The verdict: You'll feel like Dolph Lundgren in Rocky IV, getting a six-pack from the fruits of science and technology. Then again, you may feel like Dolph Lundgren, but you'll look like a dork with a fanny pack. No grown man (or woman) should passively build their muscles from "powerful pulses" of electricity. But hey, go ahead and order it -- we won't judge (but we just did).
($200 + your dignity, TheFlexBelt.com)




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