Fitness Expert

A complete workout in just 4 minutes a day? That’s what the makers of the ROM cross trainer claim is possible with their piece of exercise equipment, while admitting that it sounds too incredible to believe. On their website it reads: The biggest problem is that 4 minutes sounds too good to be true for a complete non-impact cardio, resistance- and flexibility workout. The common maxim goes: "If such a machine really existed, then obviously everybody in the world would know about it." The website also mentions the difficulty they have in getting endorsements from fitness experts: The third problem are so called “experts” (personal trainers, doctors, etc.) when asked for their opinion about our 4 minute ROM machine, they will not even bother to inform themselves, read anything about it or try it out before giving their negative opinion or even ridiculing our ROM. Most of these "experts" are so closed minded that they cannot even be educated as to the logical insights that are embodied in the very intelligent ROM design and function.

Is it true that fitness experts are too close minded to even consider the claims of the ROM cross trainer, or is this a case of “attack is the best form of defense” on the side of the ROM machine distributor?

On the web, one can find quite a few blog entries and other articles written by people giving their opinion on the ROM machine. They claim varying degrees of expertise in health and fitness related topics. One blog called “Exercise Equipment Expert” writes a review of the machine after reading information at the website, however not trying out the machine in person, and concludes: “You can get a better workout on a rowing machine, doing squats and dumbbell bench presses.” Jim Fiore, a science professor and a blogger at ScienceBlogs.com, writes of the ROM machine makers: “[…] one of their basic claims is that if you workout harder, you don't have to workout as long to achieve the same benefits. Apparently, their lack of knowledge of the body's energy systems makes them eminently qualified to assess the value of this "new excellent idea". That doesn’t exactly sound like a ringing endorsement either. When the ROM cross trainer’s makers posted a link to his article and criticized that he had never tried the machine, he rebutted: “[…] I really DON'T have to try it to find out that it cannot possibly do what they claim it does BECAUSE my education does indeed tell me that it would be a total waste of time.” Todd Bublitz is a health and fitness writer at allexperts.com and was asked what his opinion of the ROM machine was. His answer was short but sweet: “The only thing more ridiculous than the suggestion that you can get a good workout in 4 minutes is the price tag. I did a thorough investigation of this machine a month ago and I could find no legitimacy.”

So the question begs…is there any fitness expert out there who thinks that the ROM machine can provide the high intensity, short duration full body workout that it promises? The ROM cross trainer’s website has a page called Studies with various studies regarding the benefits of high-intensity interval training. Three of the studies were done with the ROM machine. One study dates back to 1995, but two more recent studies were published in May 2007 in the Official Journal of the American College of Sports Medicine. Both those studies claim to have found results that study participants exhibited significant results and positive improvements in whole body strength and body composition after training on the ROM machine. Thus, those fitness experts concluded that the ROM cross trainer does give a user a workout in 4 minutes.

Although the ROM machine manufacturer’s negative smearing of experts does seem like a sour grapes reaction to negative reviews of the ROM cross trainer, it does become quite clear that there is a lot of expert opinion about the ROM machine which doesn’t come from first hand experience. One thing becomes quite clear when reading the different testimonials, blog entries and studies on the ROM machine: you should probably try the machine out yourself, to see if it’s all it’s cracked up to be.

Labels: fitness, Rom Cross Trainer, Rom Crosstrainer, rom machine