TRX Suspension Training: A Total Body Workout?

If you’re too busy to go to the gym, TRX Suspension Training promises a total-body home workout. Developed by Navy SEALs so they could exercise anywhere, the gym-in-a-box system is reportedly popular with such celebrities as Jennifer Lopez, Ellen Pompeo and Mary J. Blige. The device claims to “make your body a machine,” with  “fast and effective workouts” based on “vector resistance (that) ignites your metabolism and targets every muscle.”

To evaluate these claims, Consumer Reports had 14 male and female staffers of various ages, heights, weights and fitness levels compare the TRX Suspension Training Pro Pack (about $200) to the Tower 200 from Body by Jake (about $150). The Tower 200 touts “a killer total body workout in just 11 minutes,” through “explosive resistance,” to help you “get bigger, harder, stronger.” Here’s the skinny on how the two home fitness systems stacked up in Consumer Reports’ test.

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What is “Suspension Training?” Fitness Anywhere, manufacturer of the TRX, has trademarked the phrase “Suspension Training” to describe a workout with its home fitness product, which is suspended from an elevated surface. It can be attached to a door (using the door anchor included in the TRX Suspension Trainer Pro Pack with Door Anchor) or to a TRX Xmount screwed to a ceiling beam or wall stud. Your body weight and gravity create resistance during muscle-strengthening exercises.

How does the Tower 200 work? The Tower 200 Full-Body Exercise Gym is also based on resistance. The system has a pre-assembled steel structure that attaches to any standard door. Three pairs of color-coded resistance bands can be combined to provide 200 pounds of resistance, or used individually with the hand grips or ankle straps to create 25, 35, or 40 pounds of resistance, depending which band you use.

What is “vector resistance?” TRX defines “vector resistance” as changing the position of your body to intensify an exercise. As the angle of your body becomes steeper (relative to standing up straight), more and more of your weight transitions to the Suspension Trainer, creating vector resistance. The greater the resistance, the harder the exercise, such as a chest press, becomes. TRX has a vector resistance calculator to show how much weight you are moving, based on your body angle.

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Which muscles do the TRX and Tower 200 target? Both devices condition major muscle groups, including those in your core, chest, arms, legs, and shoulders, says Consumer Reports. Both devices are sold with a workout DVD and can be used for dozens of muscle-building exercises based on multi-joint movement.

What are the drawbacks of the two devices? “The exercises might be challenging for someone with limited strength, mobility, or flexibility,” Consumer Reports Nicole Sarrubbo told Newsnet5.com. Some testers initially grumbled about a tricky TRX maneuver that required them to put their feet in stirrups and then flip to a plank or push-up position. Some testers complained that the Tower 200 resistance bands rubbed against their bodies during certain exercises.

Which gym-in-a-box is best? Both systems are easy to set up and provide effective whole-body workouts that strength your core. Consumer Reports judged TRX the victor in the home fitness product face-off, because the Suspension Trainer lets you perform the exercises at various intensities, depending on your fitness level, simply by altering your body position. TRX’s 35-minute DVD offers beginner and advanced versions of each exercise. And the trainer only weighs two pounds, so you really can take it anywhere. However, the Tower 200 costs less and also delivers a vigorous muscle-building workout.

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