I’ve been getting in shape and the first step in that journey was to put on some muscle.
I know most people start with diet or cardio, but I’ve found through previous failed attempts that if you don’t have some muscle on your body to help you keep the fat off, all the weight you manage to shed will come right back the moment you relax your diet or slow your cardio routine. This time, I’m doing it right so that means I need some equipment.
I’m going to a gym, and honestly that’s been a huge step in the right direction for me, but I can’t afford the time to be a daily gym bro. I need weights at home to help me supplement the gym time and so, as is often the path for a product reviewer like me, I started shopping. I went to the local sporting goods store (Academy Sports for me) and walked around the fitness section. Something I noticed very quickly was the cost. Another thing I realized after a quick glance was the footprint. If I wanted to train at home, I was going to need to devote a month’s pay and an entire room in my house to get all the stuff I needed. There had to be a better way.
The Usual Gym Suspects
So, I needed dumbbells at the very least. I could get a single set and use those to keep myself in motion, but then what happens when I make progress? I’d have to buy another, and another. What about all the different workouts? I know from experience that I need a very different weight for lateral raises, curls and military press. Am I doing skull crushers? If so that’s another set. At minimum I was looking at 5 sets of dumbbells, which would easily set me back a bit. Also, 5 sets would be a serious clutter without a rack, so that meant I might as well start shopping for a set that comes with a rack, which puts me at $450-$600. The math for weight-to-cost seems to be roughly $1.50-$2.00 per pound which means these things can get insanely pricey. Even used weights seem to come out to around a dollar a pound, so what on earth is a cash-strapped lifter with no free space to do?
A Compact Full Rack
The answer was pretty simple, just get adjustable dumbbells. I’ve seen them online for ages, the single handle that slots into a small rack of weight plates that makes adjusting from 5 to 52lbs easy. They replace a whole rack of weights with one set of dumbbells and keeps it all nice and tidy!
If you haven’t seen what I’m talking about, let me explain exactly how these work. When the handle is sitting in its base, you turn this little dial on either side of the set to pick the weight you want. Inside, each plate is part of a stack that stays in the tray until it’s selected. As you rotate the dial, it lines up a set of connectors that lock onto specific plates. You’re sliding a pin into a row of plates to select which ones you want to lock onto the handle.
Once you lift the handle, only those selected plates come up with it. Everything else stays behind in the tray nice and organized. That way you can go from a light weight to something heavier in just a few seconds without swapping plates by hand.
When you’re done with a set, you place the dumbbell back into the base, turn the dial again, and repeat the process. It’s simple. And it keeps your workout moving without much downtime.
Comparing Brands
So, I found my solution. Now it was time to figure out which model to buy. I went on Amazon and found an endless list of different versions of this exact product to pick from. It would seem that everyone and their mother has gotten into the adjustable dumbbell game, so this was going to take some time. I went to the reviews and started sorting out the obviously AI generated ones, focused on the reviews with photos (that’s a pro tip for you right there … always look for the reviews with photos) and started reading.
Here are a few of the common problems with these things. The biggest one here is a major safety concern, poorly locking pin systems. More than a few of these had reports of the plates not locking in properly, resulting in them just dropping off the handle mid-lift. A few of them mentioned injuries, so ok, that was scary. Another common issue reported was that awkward shape and odd lift balance of these things when only some plates are selected. I think that one is just a learning curve problem, so I can look past that. A concerning problem for a lot of the cheaper brands seemed to be poor long-term durability. Plastic parts breaking, dials freezing up, plates starting to rattle a lot during lifting. That’s a big no-go for me. Ok, so I can rule a lot of the cheaper ones out and I had my list of qualities I needed my pick to have. I’m usually not this picky when looking to test a new product but weights are dangerous if they don’t work right so my dumbbells need to have a good secure locking mechanism, smooth selection dials that don’t wear out and a solid feel that won’t leave me wobbling to account for loose plates. That left me with only a few options and I went with a brand I recognized from my childhood, Bowflex.
The Bowflex Selecttech 552s
Anyone who grew up on television like I did will remember bowflex commercials. I mean, the strange looking home gym with the resistance bands instead of classic weights. I never messed around with the actual home gym back then, but boy did that name get locked into my memory as a high-end home workout brand. It would seem that they are still living up to the hype because the 552s come highly recommended. I ordered mine and had a set in my hands within a week. Here’s how they stood up to my (mostly) daily workouts:
First off, my little checklist of must-haves were satisfied. The dial moves smoothly and reliably, the weights are firmly locked to the handle and even if they look a little odd with only one or two plates selected, they feel great in hand. Turning the dial to select the plates makes this oddly satisfying “swish-click” that just tickles the same place in my brain that the Nintendo Switch sound does, so that’s a nice bonus. Once you have your weight selected the handles pull out smoothly, leaving the unused plates behind and the handles feel great in my hand. They aren’t too bulky so I don’t think you’ll struggle if you have smaller hands, and the rubber grips really help you hold on tight.
I will say there are a few downsides. The biggest one is the size. Even at lighter weights, the dumbbells are big and a little clunky, which can feel awkward for certain exercises like curls or flys. You also have to return them to the base every time you want to change weight, which can break your rhythm a bit. They’re not meant to be dropped either, so if you’re used to more intense lifting styles, you’ll need to be a little more careful. I dropped one once and the sound they made scared the pants off of me. I thought I had broken them for sure!
TL;DR For the Skimmers
If you just wanna know exactly what these are and don’t have the time to read all this, here are the base specs.
- Weight Range: 5–52.5 lbs per dumbbell
- Increments: 2.5lb per click up to 25lbs and 5lbs per click after that
- Sets Replaced: 15 dumbbell pairs
- Grip: Ergonomic, non-slip
- Material: Metal plates + plastic housing
- Included In Box: Pair of dumbbells + storage trays
- Dimensions: 16.9″ L x 8.3″ W x 9″ H
To Buy or Not to Buy
This one is a bit of a strange one because when all was said and done, I hadn’t really saved much money. On their website they are $429 but I’ve seen this set on other sites for as little as $300. What I did save was space, so if your main limitation is your home gym space, these are a great buy. If not, I think a regular dumbbell set is just as good if not a little better. If you really just want a cool gym gadget then yeah, these are seriously cool!
About the Author:
Ever since a young George was disappointed with a toy that did match up to the advertising, he became a tireless advocate for consumers. He’ll review anything that folks have to spend their hard-earned dollars on. George is grateful that he gets to use his skills as a writer and an artist to help connect with consumers and help them make the best decisions possible.
This article is for informational purposes only and reflects the author’s independent opinion. Readers should verify details directly with the manufacturer or retailer before making a purchase decision.
