Customer Reviews

Bosu 3D System Balance Trainer

5 star:		(36)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have been kind of sick of my treadmill/free weight workouts so I decided to look for something new that was not expensive, quick and maybe even fun...ish!
So I found this Bosu trainer. I just finished the first workout and it was incredible...really good for working on balance, but you can hold on throughout! It works your core muscles without you having to do any crunches, situps or other ungodly manoever...I mean, I can feel my abs right now, but not in a bad way...just in a way that lets me know I exercised them. This thing does cardio, strength and you can also stretch on it...the DVD that's included shows you how. For $114, I think this gives a lot of bang for the buck...and it feels very sturdy. Although it comes with a cheap pump, I had a bicycle pump that I blew it up with. So, for what it's worth, I would highly recommend this.

We've looked at several of these models for awhile and finally settled on buying the Bosu 3D System Balance Trainer. Weighing in at 33lbs its more bulky then heavy. One thing for certain, its not going to be moved around a lot. After going through and deciphering the enclosed instruction manual, I felt a sigh of relief in knowing that my inventory of parts and hardware was complete. That said, I began the assembly process.

The first thing I noticed was that some of the screw holes located under the base were covered and could not be lined properly with the platform. I discovered that the rubber plates (used for vibration and weight distribution) were the culprit. No worries, I used a flathead screwdriver to pry the glue mounted plates and realigned them with the holes. I added just a dab of shop glue for extra measure. I did not run into any other problems with alignment. Total assembly time was about 20 minutes.

It goes without saying the included pump is worthless. I saved the valve head and tossed the rest of the unit. I used my portable compressor to inflate the ball. At 39" x 29" x 49" it does take up some real estate. We decided to place the Bosu Trainer in the corner of the garage in front of the tv/dvd player.

Once in place, the system works like a charm with no issues. Even the ball seems to hold up well and does not have to be filled as often. The ball is gym quality and should last a long time. The balance bar is steady and fully adjustable. The resistance trainer is mounted with comfortable hand grips and above average tubing.

For those new to Bosu, its not rocket science. Primarily it covers the basics for strengthening up and using targeted core muscle groups. The enclosed dvd offers a good basic workout program. The owners manual is packed with various work out programs, training tips, progression charts and of course, the assembly instructions. A separate nutrition and menu planning booklet is also enclosed with this system.

Even with its manufacturing issues, the quality of this particular model is above average. We are pleased with this unit and would recommend it to anyone that is looking for a change up without gym membership fees. Its a low cost alternative to better health.

The Bosu Ball is a great training aid for developing balance and core strength. The addition of the base and support makes it much easier for someone without great balance to get started on the ball. I would happily have given it five stars if I hadn't had to drill and file out the holes on the support brackets to make it fit. If my wife had wanted to put this together herself she could not have done so and would have had to sent it back.

The problem is in the location of the welded brackets. I understand the difficulty of doing the weld precisely, but clearly the manufacturer needs to improve their procedure. Until they do, I would not recommend anyone who is not prepared to do some non-trivial hole enlarging to buy the item as it must be just a matter of luck whether you get one that fits or one that doesn't.

It's a great package. Assembly wasn't hard at all, and there are a lot of workout DVDs included. It's surprising how intense the workout is - I did the first cardio workout today and my heart was pounding after 15 minutes (in a good way). Perfect for anyone who wants to work out but isn't a fan of gyms, especially in the winter when it's no fun to jog or bike outside.

One drawback - it's not all that easy to store. I had hoped the 3D system would fold down or something similar to store away quickly, but that's not the case. You can take off the top handles easily, but you'd still need a relatively large space to store the entire thing in. So, you may end up just leaving it fully assembled wherever you put it together. It's not an eyesore exactly, but it'd be nice to have it disassemble a bit so it could fit under a bed or in a small space.

Overall, though, it's a very good product and I think I'll get more than my money's worth out of it in exercise.

This Bosu in itself was used by my physical therapist because I needed help in regaining balance control. My walking was off balance due to a fall I had as well as a birth defect. She introduced me to this aparatus whic at first I was not confident that I could get on it and make it work with me. My PT then showed me how with er assistance. Pretty soon,I was on there and balancing myself just standing and quickly learned to balance myself without the support and spotting from my PT! I decided it would be a great way to practice at home and have a way to get exercise, too! After a few nights of web searching, I found this awesome deal with Amazon. It was to great of a deal to pass up! You will not find a better deal anywhere than Amazon for the Bosu 3 D System!

After laying out all the nuts and bolts and parts I baegan the assembly process as spelled out by the handy manual. Everything was fine until the base assembly wherein the base holes(pre drilled)were off a fraction of an inch in relation to the ball platform holes making it impossible to align the supplied nuts and bolts without some extra drilling and "gerry rigging" to join the two pieces together. This problem has occured several times in my life with other assembly products and only happened when dealing with products manufactured outside the U.S. I was expecting more from BOSU as the final product seems to be quite good in spite of aformentioned problem.

I bought this back in Nov. 2009 when it was a Gold Box deal for around $90. Basically, it is the Bosu trainer, plus a stand with bar to help you balance, rubber resistance tubes (basically useless), a pump that worked fairly well to inflate quickly, and a DVD including 3 workouts, which are an okay introduction, but grow boring very quickly. I looked and just the Bosu alone is around $80, so I figured the system is worth the extra $10. The stand/bar are really nice when you are just beginning, but you'll find as you get used to using the Bosu, you can put it in storage and just keep the Bosu out. As I said, the tubes are useless - they constantly come un-tightened from where you set the resistance level, so I just put them in storage and use hand weights. The Bosu itself is fun, but like other fitness equipment, it's really only as good as the workouts and the DVD that comes with this set is OK for starting out, but I found it had way too many squats, and not enough interesting choreography or moves to justify using the Bosu. I am in the process of trying other Bosu DVDs and have discovered the range of movement is very limited. Lots of squats on and off the Bosu, stepping/jumping up and over, basically simple step aerobic moves done on the Bosu. And there are not a lot of Bosu workouts out there either, which is disappointing (the one I like best so far is Body Bar & Bosu Training with Mindy Mylrea & Keli Roberts, which has recently been discontinued). It's like the slanted risers I bought a year ago - great idea, but no workouts available, so I only use it in rotation with many other workouts because otherwise it gets boring. Anyhow, overall, I would say if you are like me and need variety and new challenges in your workouts, this is worth it to use 2-4 times a month in combination with other types of workouts. But if you are looking for something you can do every day, this is not the right tool. Best of luck getting/keeping in shape!

my personal trainer has a Bosu, and I was inspired to get one. I like it because it's different. The video included is very good but if you are not in great shape or a beginner, you will have to modify the work out on the tape to your pace, as with any fitness training. You can get serious cardio with the Bosu if self motivated to mix it up with knee lifts, lunges, etc. I like to use it with my Urban Rebounder, so I do 10-15 minutes of Bosu and 10-15 minutes of urban rebounding or combine the two.
I haven't done any of the floor exercises yet, but expect they will be very good for abdominal work.
The 3D system is a good value if you have the space to move with it. The system itself is not big, but you do need space to move forward, back, and side to side comfortably. The only complaint I have is that the pump was missing from the box, and it doesn't seem easy on Amazon to resolve a missing piece without sending the item back. Fortunately, I already had a pump, so I got lucky...this time.

I bought this product because I had used one in the gym and realized it really helped my hip loosen up. The more I used it the better my hip got. I thought too that my elderly Mother would benefit from the balancing aspects.
I am recommending this product 100%!!

This is the most versatile piece of equipment I have ever had. It does it all, toning and cardio! I had an awesome trainer who I was paying $60 an hour that showed me several exercises to do with it. I would highly recommend it to anyone who wants a versatile piece of excersise equipment.