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The Bowflex Body Plan Review

The Bowflex Body Plan, by fitness expert Ellington Darden, is a solid 300 pages. It's divided into five parts (more details on the sections below). Overall, I definitely recommend the book. It's a big hardback with heft, lots of information inside. In fact, it's even worth reading if you're not a Bowflex owner, and you're just looking for a good reference for fitness and nutrition information. The Bowflex Body Plan does a good job breaking down the scientific stuff into understandable terms. For us Bowflex folks, though, there's the bonus of a section devoted to Bowflex exercises.

Part 1 Background

This section starts with a brief background and technology of the Bowflex, and an introduction to The Bowflex Body Plan (which refers to the program and not just the book). Chapters include:

  • The Power is Yours: Get Real Results!
  • From Creation to Credibility: The Facts about Who, When, & Why
  • The Components of a Fit Body: Endurance, Flexibility, Strength, & Leanness--Which is the Most Important?
  • The Gym Explosion: There's No Place like Home

Part 2 Exercises

This section talks about the exercises you can do on your Bowflex, including form and training tips. They don't talk about every possible exercise, but they focused on about twenty five key exercises. I liked the way each exercise got a page to itself, and there were photographs showing both the starting position and the mid-point of the action. Chapters include:

  • Strength-Training Basics: Repetitions, Intensity, & Form
  • Lower-Body Exercises: For Performance & Appearance
  • Back, Chest, & Shoulder Exercises: What's Best for the Torso
  • Arm & Abdominal Exercises: For Strength & Muscularity
  • Basic Training: Routines for Beginners & Intermediates
  • Advanced Techniques: Breakdowns, Double Pre-Exhaustion, & Negatives

Part 3 Science

This section of The Bowflex Body Plan tells you what you need to know about fat, muscles, and metabolism. It clears up the difference between slow and fast twitch muscle fibers, why our bodies want to store fat, and the right way to lose fat while gaining muscle. Chapters include:

  • Muscle: Hard to Get, Easy to Lose
  • Fat: Easy to Get, Hard to Lose
  • Thermodynamics: Something Old & Something New
  • Fat-Loss Nutrition: Fundamentals, Simplicity, & Details
  • Food Supplements: Concepts to Consider
  • Superhydration: A Supercharged Practice
  • Sleep: A Wake-Up Call
  • Synergy: 1 + 1 + 1 = 5

Part 4 Programs

The Bowflex programs section offers a number of routines, each with a different focus, that should be helpful even to the experienced Bowflex user. Chapters include:

  • Preparation: What to Do First
  • The Body-Leanness Plan: A Six-Week Course for Losing Fat
  • The Hard-Body Challenge: A Six-Week, Get-Ripped Course for Athletes
  • Hips & Thighs--Tackling the Tough Spots: A Six-Week Lower-Body Course for Women
  • Abdominal Focus: A Six-Week Course for a Flatter Stomach
  • A Thicker Chest: A Two-Week Blitz for Pumped Pectorals
  • Accent on Arms: A Two-Week Blitz for Bigger Biceps & Triceps

Part 5 Persistence

This last section gives you some tips for staying motivated and breaking through to the next level. Chapters include:

  • Those Last 5 Pounds: 30 Tips on How To Lose Them
  • More Progress: A Few Twists for Continued Success
  • Maintenance: Modifying Key Factors
  • Questions, Please: Up-To-Date Answers to Prevalent Problems
  • A Prescription for Life: The Power is Yours--Today, Tomorrow, & Forever!



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