8 Crazy Pieces Of Fitness Equipment From The 90s That We All Know

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The 1990s was a decade overflowing with optimism and colorful expression, not just in the world of fashion and entertainment but in the fitness industry as well. You remember the era of VHS workout tapes and when leotards with leg warmers ruled the gym floor.

In this eclectic time, fitness enthusiasts were introduced to some rather unusual equipment — gadgets that promised to sculpt, tone, and revolutionize the way you worked out. Let’s have a look of some of the most hyped fitness equipment during this decade and see if they offer actual benefits!

The Shake Weight

You might remember the Shake Weight as a wildly popular phenomenon in the late ’90s and early 2000s. This odd-looking dumbbell promised a quick workout fix by incorporating dynamic inertia. Basically, you’d shake the weight, and it would supposedly work your muscles harder than traditional weights could.

• Weight: About 2.5 pounds for women, 5 pounds for men
• Material: Made from plastic and metal
• Design: Equipped with springs on each end, causing it to jiggle
• Function: Markets itself on the idea that it increases muscle activity

The Shake Weight’s advertising became notorious for its suggestive nature, and you couldn’t help but chuckle every time the infomercial played on TV. Pitching to you that you’ll get “ripped” arms and shoulders by simply shaking this gadget for just minutes a day, the claims felt a bit over the top. Despite this, the Shake Weight managed to sell millions, becoming an easily recognizable fitness fad.

As for efficiency and results, well, let’s just say it probably isn’t your ticket to peak fitness. Critics argued that shaking a weight is less effective than traditional strength training methods. But it sure did provide entertainment and a shake-up to the monotony of regular gym gear. If you owned one, you know it always made for a good laugh, if not an intense workout session.

The Power Plate

Back in the 90s, you might have encountered the Power Plate, a vibrating platform designed to shake up your fitness routine – quite literally. This gadget claims to enhance your workouts by using vibration technology. Key features included:

• Vibrating base: The Power Plate’s main feature was a base that vibrated at various frequencies, intending to activate muscle contractions.
• Different models: You could find a range of models, from basic ones for home use to more advanced versions in gyms.
• Compact size: Its relatively small footprint made it a convenient addition to any home gym.

The science behind it was based on the principle of Whole Body Vibration (WBV). By standing, sitting, or doing exercises on the platform, your body was supposed to respond to the vibrations with rapid muscle contractions, which in turn were meant to improve circulation, increase muscle strength, and help with weight loss.

Here’s how you were supposed to use it:

• Start with low-frequency vibrations and gradually increase intensity.
• Use proper posture to maximize benefits.
• Combine with traditional exercises like squats or push-ups.

While some users swore by the results, scientific evidence supporting these claims was mixed. Nevertheless, the Power Plate became a quirky footnote in the annals of fitness, a reminder of the decade’s love for unconventional exercise equipment. Whether it worked the miracles it advertised or not, its buzz was enough to pique your curiosity and perhaps challenge your balance.

The Bodyblade

The Bodyblade is one of those quintessentially 90’s fitness gadgets that you might remember. Picture a thin, flexible, and somewhat sword-like apparatus that you’d wave back and forth to supposedly build muscle and improve endurance.

To use it, you’d grip the handle in the middle and give it a shake. The blade would wobble at high speeds, and your job was to stabilize it using your own muscle power. It was all about vibration and resistance. The makers claimed that your body’s natural flexing in response to the wobble could work wonders.

You might find it surprising, but the Bodyblade emphasized what they called “reactive training.” By resisting the force of the blade’s movement, you targeted a range of muscle groups such as your chest, arms, and abs.

People loved it for its simplicity and the promise that you could achieve a full-body workout in a matter of minutes a day. Plus, it was easy to store—you could slide it under a bed or prop it in a closet.

The Bodyblade, despite its peculiar appearance, found a place in the market and in many homes during the fitness-crazed ’90s.

The Bowflex

With its quirky design featuring power rods instead of traditional weights, the Bowflex promised to revolutionize your home gym experience. Key features included:

• Power rod technology: Instead of the clank of metal, you had flexible rods that provided resistance, which was a real novelty at the time.
• Versatility: You could perform over 65 exercises, aiming to work on every major muscle group.
• Space-saving design: Despite being sizeable when set up, it could be folded to tuck away – a huge plus if your living room doubled as a workout space.

What made the Bowflex unique was also its marketing approach, with videos showcasing impossibly fit people demonstrating the ease with which you could ‘Bowflex your way to toned muscles’.

Your fitness routine would inevitably involve adjusting the power rods to increase or decrease resistance, followed by sliding into a surprisingly comfortable seat to start your rows, curls, or presses.

The Bowflex became a mainstay in homes throughout the 90s. Although it might look a little quirky now, back in the day, it was cutting-edge – a full-body workout without heading to the gym or clanging free weights. It made you feel ahead of the fitness curve, right in the comfort of your home.

The Ab Dolly

The Ab Dolly was a unique fitness invention designed to jazz up your core workouts. You probably remember it as the wheeled device that promised to revolutionize ab exercises. Its simple design, a small platform with castor wheels attached, gave you the freedom to slide around effortlessly—well, sort of—while targeting those stubborn abdominal muscles.

Here’s a quick rundown of how it worked:

• Set up: You’d kneel and place your hands on the padded bars.
• Movement: By rolling forward and back, you engage your core.
• Variety: The Ab Dolly allowed for side-to-side movements too, aiming to work those obliques.

What set the Ab Dolly apart was its claim to provide a full range of motion, something traditional sit-ups just couldn’t offer. And because it was relatively compact, you could easily store it under your bed or in a closet. Despite its convenience and the fun factor, some users found the Ab Dolly a bit tricky to master, with balance being the main challenge.

The Ab Dolly had its moment in the 90s spotlight, beckoning you with promises of a toned midsection. Interestingly enough, the Ab Dolly does provide a full range of motion and can provide a solid workout for your abdominals. That’s why it’s still sold today.

The Total Gym

In the fitness craze of the ’90s, you might have come across the Total Gym, a versatile piece of equipment that capitalized on bodyweight exercises. Celebrities like Chuck Norris and Christie Brinkley endorsed it, so you know it had its moment of fame.

Here’s why the Total Gym stood out from the rest:

• Ease of use: With no weights or complicated setups, you could switch between exercises quickly which made your workout efficient.
• Adjustable resistance: Simply changing the incline adjusted the difficulty, using your body weight to create resistance.
• Variety of exercises: It allowed you to perform over 60 exercises, targeting various muscle groups to keep your workouts diverse.

The equipment folded for easy storage, so you didn’t have to dedicate a whole room to your fitness hobby. Whether you were aiming to bulk up, tone, or enhance your flexibility, the Total Gym could be tailored to meet your goals.

Remember its distinctive glideboard? You’d lie or sit on it, pulling or pushing against the handles attached to cables, all while it slid along rails—completely unique to your typical ’90s apparatus. Despite the oddball look compared to today’s sleek machines, it was a game-changer for home gyms at the time.

The Health Rider

Picture this: you mount a seat attached to two parallel bungee-like springs. With your feet placed firmly on the floor, your job is to bounce up and down or sway side to side, working those muscles in a way that traditional exercise equipment just couldn’t match at the time.

The machine was mainly invented for cardio purposes and was supposedly able to work your legs, core, and other stabilizing muscles in the process.

While it might look odd, The Health Rider aims to make your workout more dynamic. You’d not only burn calories; you’d also enhance your balancing skills. On the bright side, the Health Rider was easy on the joints.

But it wasn’t all serious exercise; you probably got some laughs in too. Imagine bouncing erratically while trying to hold a conversation—yeah, your ’70s workout videos just got a whole lot more entertaining.

And there’s this interesting tidbit: The Health Rider was also marketed as a therapeutic device, claiming to improve circulation and flexibility. Now, whether you’d find one in a modern gym is questionable, but back in the day, this piece of equipment turned heads and maybe even toned a few abs in the process.

The Gazelle Exercise Machine

Hitting the fitness scene, this low-impact exercise device was praised for its ability to offer a full-body workout without the strain on your joints.

Designed with a gliding motion, the Gazelle aimed to mimic the natural stride of running. Its handlebars provided an upper-body workout, targeting arms and chest.

Supposed benefits of the machine were that it elevated your heart rate (getting in your cardio, and would “tone” your muscles in action, especially your legs, glutes, and core.

You might even remember television infomercials featuring the enthusiastic fitness personality, Tony Little. He championed this machine, emphasizing its ease of use for people at all fitness levels — from beginners to those more advanced.

Despite its somewhat unconventional appearance, you couldn’t deny its allure for a fuss-free workout. While it might not be the centerpiece of today’s modern gyms, the Gazelle showcased an era where innovation and fun intersected in the world of fitness equipment.