The Bowflex Max Total 16 is an elliptical machine for small spaces. It has a lot of great features, but its physical size has to be its No. 1 draw. Don't discount the amount of space a good piece of gym equipment will consume.
By mid-2020, I had purchased a rowing machine to take advantage of the extra time I had in light of widespread stay-at-home orders. I would have preferred a treadmill, but I went with a minimal rowing machine that folded up smaller than any decent treadmill would have because of the limited space I had available.
I don't regret the rowing machine, per se, but it turned out not to be the right piece of home gym equipment for me. Fast-forward to early 2022 and limited space is still keeping a high-quality treadmill at bay. But I'm finding Bowflex's newest elliptical machine is a very suitable stand-in for cardio workouts.
The front-drive compact elliptical straddles the line in what it is and wants to be. It doesn't provide a full stride like large back-drive elliptical machines can. It looks and feels more like a stair-stepper, but has much smoother motion. It's a great hybrid unit that can provide intense training.
TL;DR
Pros:
- Compact size
- Several popular streaming video services built-in
Cons:
- Most features require a paid Jrny subscription
- Occasional software glitches
Buy at Bowflex.
Setup and Size
Even though Bowflex does offer a paid, in-home setup service for its equipment, I took the plunge to see what it was like to put together the Max Total 16 myself. To get started, I spread out the contents of the two shipping boxes across most of a two-car garage to assemble the unit. You should also be able to achieve this in a spacious living room or an empty bedroom.
I was able to put together the Max Total 16 mostly solo. I used a dolly to move the boxes from my front door around to my garage. I did need my wife to help me pull the main part out of one of the boxes, but in general it is possible for one person to do the majority of the assembly. Of course, two sets of hands, if you can get them, will make the setup much easier, especially because there are a few heavier parts.
Assembled, the Max Total 16 will fit nicely in a bedroom or a carved-out area of a garage. Bowflex lists the dimensions as 49.3 inches long by 30.8 inches wide, with a height of 65.7 inches. If you do put it in the garage you'll want to keep an eye out above you while working out. I positioned mine parallel to the overhead garage door rails so the height isn't a problem.
There are two small wheels to move the unit if need be, but you will need plenty of space around it to tilt it forward and maneuver it.
Bowflex Max Total 16 Features
The Max Total 16 has a 16-inch touchscreen screen, 20 resistance levels, a dual-rail design, handlebars with six-grip positions, and Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity. It's a serious home workout machine. It tops the different available models that Bowflex sells.
Interestingly, it only has a few differentiators from the midrange Max Trainer M9 model. The Max Trainer M9 has a 10-inch touchscreen media screen compared with this 16-inch one, a single rail design compared with the dual rails for increased stability and handlebars with four grip positions compared with six grip positions. Those few items, along with $500, are the main differences between the two models.
Technology Performance
Once the elliptical machine is all screwed together, the process of setting up your profile and interacting with the software begins. Paid subscriptions have quickly become the norm among workout equipment, so they're hard to escape. A key component of the software is Jrny, Bowflex's subscription service. The company really wants you to use Jrny—so much so that nearly all coaching, videos and even access to the streaming apps are tied to having the Jrny subscription. As a consumer, I don't like this. Purchase of the Max Total 16 comes with a free year of the Jrny subscription service to get you started—or hooked.
If you've spent much time at a local gym, the touchscreen experience here will feel similar. It's perfectly usable and responsive enough for touch input, but it's not quite as responsive as an iPad.
In case you're curious, the software powering the machine appears to be the Android operating system for tablets.
I did have a few software glitches. Including once when the countdown time of the 14-minute workout never started and just read "00:00" until I stopped it at the end of a show I was watching. I also had another when the Netflix app inexplicably reverted to the narrow phone app on the screen versus the typical full-screen version.
If there weren't a subscription fee required, these minor glitches would be forgettable and inconsequential. Their being part of a paid service, however, makes them much more challenging to ignore. It's hard to tell how constant these will be long-term, but hopefully invisible software updates will resolve these issues.
Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, HBO Max and Hulu are the streaming video services available on Jrny. While that's not every service you might want, the selection includes the most popular ones, and so most people should have at least one they subscribe to available.
As neat as the other coaching videos are, the native streaming apps have been a huge factor in getting me to use the machine regularly. I found myself heading over to the machine to work out while watching a show instead of just sitting on the couch.
Interestingly, to get to a streaming service app you first need to select a workout on screen. The workout metrics show as a narrow bar on top of the video. When the workout duration is finished and you select End, the streaming video app closes. (You can keep watching as long as you don't exit the workout.)
The 16-inch screen is listed as high-definition, though that's not saying much, since it has almost become a default for screens nowadays. Steven Soderbergh's latest film, Kimi, on HBO Max, looked crisp and clear to me.
There are videos that move through more than 50 destinations around the world to make it feel like you are exercising in those places virtually. Those were also visually pleasant on the 16-inch HD screen. If you want to use your own tablet or phone to watch videos, there's a dedicated spot above the resistance knob to hold or prop up devices. I used an iPad mini there, and it was stable—though it offered a less compelling angle than the built-in screen.
You can sync your workout data from the Max Total 16 to Apple Health. Logging into the Jrny iOS app with the same account as on the machine will bring the data over to your iPhone.
Max Total 16 Workout Performance
With a single Jrny subscription everyone in your household can have a profile. Annoyingly, though, every time you switch to a different user they need to sign in. This appears to be on purpose, but it needs to change—or at least make saving account info a setting.
The type of workout you're looking to do will really determine whether this machine is a good fit for you. My workout of choice is outdoor running, so I was looking for something that could provide a similar cardio experience for the times I couldn't head outside, for whatever reason. I think the Max Total 16 mostly covers my needs.
Its hybrid take on a standard elliptical machine means that it provides a smooth motion—but it also incorporates some stair-step qualities that are nice. Personally, I don't think of this as a high-intensity interval training (HIT) machine, but when using a high resistance setting (and using the handles), the Max Total 16 can get you some meaningful upper body movement.
I'm not sure if the six-grip handlebar is worth the extra money over the four-grip one, but I do love all the handle options. I find myself switching between the different ones both for comfort and to try to engage multiple areas of my body.
There are 20 levels of resistance that are controlled via a dedicated knob. For me, it's somewhere between level 12 and 20 where I feel a meaningful impact. This will vary, of course, but there's enough variety that beginners and athletes should be equally satisfied.
For people who do want a serious fitness experience, the videos with trainers are well-done. I think they can help motivate and push you to work harder. Personally I preferred the more casual approach and watching shows.
The Jrny subscription includes adaptive workouts. After doing an initial assessment, it will adjust the burn rate in future exercise to push you to improve your physical capability.
Outside of using the Jrny subscription on the Bowflex equipment itself, there's a mobile app for iOS and Android that will sync your workouts and show instructional videos that don't need a machine. These videos are listed for Whole Body and include stretching, yoga, Pilates and free weights. There aren't streaming video options when doing a workout from your phone or tablet, but you can still listen to the different streaming music genres available as part of the subscription.
Should You Buy the Bowflex Max Total 16?
No matter how you consider it, the Bowflex Max Total 16 is a major investment. It makes the most sense if you were paying a gym membership and were now looking to shift that to an at-home solution.
I found the machine's unique blend of elliptical motion and vertical stair-stepping angle to be an effective cardio workout. Most of all, I like that the unit is compact. It's similar in quality to any piece of equipment you would find at 24 Hour Fitness, but without the bulky footprint. Its technology is also pretty modern and compelling, too. My one concern is the software quality over the long run. But since I never saw the same issue twice, I'm optimistic those won't be a showstopper.
Be aware that no piece of fitness equipment will be the catalyst to finally getting you to work out regularly. If you can swing the price and aren't bothered by a yearly subscription then the Max Total 16 is a solid way to do your regular workouts.
Buy at Bowflex for $2,499.
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