The Bowflex Revolution is one of the most versatile Bowflex home gyms on the market with over 100 different exercise variations. While this versatility was one of the highlights in our Bowflex Revolution review, it can also be overwhelming for beginners. 

In this guide, we will go over some of the most fundamental Bowflex Revolution exercises that will go a long way toward building your base. 

On top of that, we will also provide a full workout plan along with a free PDF so that you can easily access the routine anytime you need it. 

Best Bowflex Revolution Exercises

While the Revolution has over 100 possible exercises, you really do not need to know all of them to work out your entire body. You are much better off focusing on the key movements we outline here and mastering them.

Bench Press

The bench press on the Bowflex Revolution is a compound exercise that targets the muscles of the chest, shoulders, and triceps. This exercise involves pushing the handles forward and upward while lying on the adjustable bench, providing an effective workout for upper body strength and muscle development.

Benefits:

• Chest development: The bench press is a fundamental exercise for building and strengthening the pectoral muscles, resulting in a well-defined and sculpted chest.
• Upper body strength: By engaging the shoulders and triceps along with the chest, the bench press helps develop overall upper body strength and power.
• Functional movements: The bench press mimics pushing movements commonly encountered in daily activities, making it a practical exercise for functional strength.

How To Do Bench Press On The Bowflex Revolution

1. Adjust the bench: Set the bench to a flat position or choose your desired incline angle if you prefer an inclined bench press. Make sure the bench is securely locked in place and comfortable for your body.
2. Position yourself: Lie on the bench with your head positioned toward the weight resistance. Ensure your feet are firmly planted on the ground and maintain a stable position throughout the exercise.
3. Grip the handles or bars: Grasp the handles or bars with an overhand grip, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. Ensure a firm grip on the handles, maintaining control throughout the exercise.
4. Engage your core: Before you start, engage your core muscles by contracting your abs and stabilizing your torso. This will provide a solid foundation and enhance your overall form.
5. Begin the movement: Push the handles or bars forward and upward, extending your arms fully. Keep your elbows slightly bent but avoid locking them out. This is the starting position.
6. Lower the handles: With control, gradually lower the handles or bars toward your chest while maintaining a controlled motion. Aim to bring the handles to a point just above your chest, without touching it.
7. Press back up: Once you reach the desired depth, drive through your chest and triceps to press the handles or bars back to the starting position. Extend your arms fully but avoid locking out your elbows.

Seated Shoulder Press

The seated shoulder press on the Bowflex Revolution is an effective upper body exercise that targets the shoulders, triceps, and upper back muscles. This exercise involves pressing the hand grips overhead while seated, providing a challenging workout for your shoulder muscles.

Benefits:

• Shoulder strength: The seated shoulder press primarily targets the deltoid muscles, helping to develop strength and definition in the shoulders.
• Upper body stability: This exercise also engages the triceps and upper back muscles, improving overall upper body stability and posture.
• Functional movement: The seated shoulder press mimics pushing movements commonly encountered in daily activities, enhancing your functional strength.

How To Do Seated Shoulder Press On The Bowflex Revolution

1. Position yourself: Sit on the bench and ensure that your feet are flat on the ground for stability.
2. Adjust the bench: Set the bench to a comfortable angle, typically between 75 to 90 degrees.
3. Grasp the hand grips: Hold the hand grips with an overhand grip, positioning your palms facing forward.
4. Set your starting position: Begin with your hands at shoulder level, elbows bent to approximately 90 degrees.
5. Engage your core: Stabilize your torso by engaging your core muscles.
6. Initiate the movement: Press the hand grips overhead, extending your arms fully. Avoid locking your elbows.
7. Maintain control: Slowly lower the hand grips back to the starting position, maintaining control throughout the motion.

Leg Press

The leg press on the Bowflex Revolution is a compound exercise that primarily targets the muscles of the lower body, including the quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes. This exercise involves pushing against a resistance to extend the legs, providing a challenging workout for your lower body strength and muscle development.

Benefits:

• Lower body strength: The leg press is an excellent exercise for developing lower body strength, particularly in the quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes. It helps build strong and powerful legs.
• Muscle development: By engaging multiple muscle groups simultaneously, the leg press promotes muscle development and improves muscular endurance in the lower body.
• Joint stability: Performing the leg press on the Bowflex Revolution enhances joint stability and balance, which can benefit overall functional movement and athletic performance.

How To Do Leg Press On The Bowflex Revolution

1. Position yourself: Sit on the seat with your back supported and place your feet on the footplate, shoulder-width apart.
2. Adjust the seat position: Set the seat so that your knees are positioned at approximately a 90-degree angle when your feet are on the footplate.
3. Set your starting position: Bend your knees and bring them towards your chest until they are at approximately a 90-degree angle.
4. Engage your core: Stabilize your torso by engaging your core muscles.
5. Initiate the movement: Push against the footplate by extending your legs, straightening your knees and pressing the weight away from your body.
6. Maintain control: Slowly bend your knees and lower the footplate back to the starting position, maintaining control throughout the motion.
7. Repeat: Perform the desired number of repetitions based on your workout routine, taking brief pauses between each repetition.

Seated Lat Rows

Seated lat rows on the Bowflex Revolution are a compound exercise that targets the muscles of the back, primarily the latissimus dorsi (lats), along with the biceps and rear shoulder muscles. This exercise involves pulling the handles toward your body while seated, providing a challenging workout for your upper back and arm muscles.

Benefits:

• Back and arm strength: Seated lat rows effectively target and strengthen the muscles of your upper back, helping to improve posture and overall back strength. Additionally, it engages the biceps, contributing to arm strength development.
• Improved posture: By targeting the muscles responsible for retracting and stabilizing the shoulder blades, seated lat rows can help improve posture and reduce the risk of postural imbalances.
• Upper body stability: This exercise engages multiple muscle groups, including the core, providing stability and strength to your upper body.

How To Do Seated Lat Rows On The Bowflex Revolution

1. Position yourself: Sit on the bench with your feet flat on the floor, maintaining a straight posture.
2. Adjust the bench: Set the bench to a position where the handles are within reach while seated.
3. Grasp the handles: Grab the handles with an overhand grip, keeping your palms facing downward.
4. Set your starting position: Sit with your arms extended, maintaining a slight bend in your elbows.
5. Engage your core: Stabilize your torso by engaging your core muscles.
6. Initiate the movement: Pull the handles toward your body, leading with your elbows, and squeezing your shoulder blades together.
7. Maintain control: Slowly extend your arms, returning the handles to the starting position while keeping tension in your back muscles.
8. Repeat: Perform the desired number of repetitions based on your workout routine, taking brief pauses between each repetition.

Triceps Pushdown

The triceps pushdown on the Bowflex Revolution is a targeted exercise that primarily focuses on the triceps muscles, located on the back of the upper arm. This exercise involves pushing a cable attachment downward, providing an effective workout for strengthening and sculpting the triceps.

Benefits:

• Triceps strength: The triceps pushdown is an excellent exercise for isolating and strengthening the triceps muscles, helping to improve arm strength and definition.
• Arm aesthetics: Regularly performing triceps pushdowns can contribute to toned and sculpted arms, enhancing the overall appearance of your upper body.
• Functional movements: Strong triceps are essential for various pushing movements in daily life, making the triceps pushdown a beneficial exercise for functional strength.

How To Do Tricep Pushdowns On The Bowflex Revolution

1. Position yourself: Stand in front of the Bowflex Revolution, facing the cable machine, with your feet shoulder-width apart.
2. Adjust the height: Set the cable attachment to a height that allows you to comfortably grip it with your arms fully extended.
3. Grasp the attachment: Grab the cable attachment with an overhand grip, keeping your palms facing downward and your hands shoulder-width apart.
4. Set your starting position: Stand upright with your chest lifted and a slight bend in your knees. Your elbows should be at your sides, bent at a 90-degree angle.
5. Engage your core: Stabilize your torso by engaging your core muscles.
6. Initiate the movement: Push the cable attachment downward by straightening your elbows, focusing on contracting your triceps.
7. Maintain control: Slowly return to the starting position by bending your elbows, allowing the cable attachment to rise back up while keeping tension in your triceps.
8. Repeat: Perform the desired number of repetitions based on your workout routine, taking brief pauses between each repetition.

Standing Bicep Curl

The standing bicep curl on the Bowflex Revolution is a classic exercise that targets the biceps muscles, located in the front of the upper arm. This exercise involves curling the handles upward against resistance, providing an effective workout for building strength and definition in the biceps.

Benefits:

• Bicep strength: The standing bicep curl is a key exercise for developing and strengthening the biceps muscles, helping to improve arm strength and size.
• Arm aesthetics: Regularly performing standing bicep curls can contribute to well-defined and sculpted arms, enhancing the overall appearance of your upper body.
• Functional movements: Strong biceps are essential for various pulling and lifting movements in everyday life, making the standing bicep curl a beneficial exercise for functional strength.

How To Do Standing Bicep Curl On The Bowflex Revolution

1. Position yourself: Stand in front of the Bowflex Revolution, facing the cable machine, with your feet shoulder-width apart.
2. Adjust the height: Set the cable attachments to a height that allows you to comfortably grip them with your arms fully extended and palms facing upward.
3. Grasp the attachments: Grab the cable attachments with an underhand grip, keeping your palms facing upward and your hands shoulder-width apart.
4. Set your starting position: Stand tall with your chest lifted, shoulders back, and a slight bend in your knees. Your elbows should be close to your sides, fully extended.
5. Engage your core: Stabilize your torso by engaging your core muscles.
6. Initiate the movement: Curl the cable attachments upward by flexing your elbows, bringing your hands towards your shoulders. Keep your upper arms stationary and only move your forearms.
7. Squeeze the biceps: At the top of the movement, contract your biceps, ensuring a full range of motion.
8. Maintain control: Slowly lower the cable attachments back to the starting position, extending your elbows while maintaining tension in your biceps.
9. Repeat: Perform the desired number of repetitions based on your workout routine, taking brief pauses between each repetition.

The Full Bowflex Revolution Workouts Plan (With PDF)

Now that you know how to do all of the basic exercises, we can put it all together and develop a proper workout plan.

1. Warm-up: Begin with 5-10 minutes of light cardiovascular exercise, such as jogging or jumping jacks, to raise your heart rate and warm up your muscles.
2. Exercise 1: Seated Lat Rows
   • Sets: 3
   • Repetitions: 10-12
   • Rest between sets: 60 seconds
3. Exercise 2: Standing Bicep Curls
   • Sets: 3
   • Repetitions: 10-12
   • Rest between sets: 60 seconds
4. Exercise 3: Bench Press
   • Sets: 3
   • Repetitions: 8-10
   • Rest between sets: 90 seconds
5. Exercise 4: Leg Press
   • Sets: 3
   • Repetitions: 10-12
   • Rest between sets: 60 seconds
6. Exercise 5: Triceps Pushdown
   • Sets: 3
   • Repetitions: 10-12
   • Rest between sets: 60 seconds
7. Cool-down: Finish the workout with 5-10 minutes of light cardio, such as brisk walking or cycling, followed by static stretching for all major muscle groups.

Our Tips

• Start with a weight resistance that challenges you but allows you to maintain proper form throughout each exercise.
• Gradually increase the weight as your strength improves over time.
• Focus on maintaining control, proper form, and a full range of motion during each exercise.
• If you have specific goals or preferences, such as focusing more on strength or hypertrophy, you can modify the repetitions and sets accordingly.
• Aim to perform this workout routine 2-3 times per week, allowing at least one day of rest between sessions to allow for muscle recovery and adaptation.

Bowflex Revolution Workouts Plan PDF

For your convenience, download the PDF and feel free to print or save it so that you can remember and track your routine.

Using Bowflex Revolution Rowing For Cardio

The last thing to consider for our routine cardio. Personally, I have found great success in using the build in rower that the Bowflex Revolution comes with.

It will depend on your goals, but you really cannot go wrong with 20-30 minutes of cardio 2-3 times per week. You might as well do what I do and do your cardio after your lifting session.

Final Thoughts

The Bowflex Revolution is an incredibly versatile tool. However, like most things in fitness you are better off sticking to the basics to see the best results.

Be sure to try out the routine and watch the results come in!

FAQs

Michael K.

Daniel Mesa, CPT, is a trusted fitness expert and founder of  FitDominium. With his extensive experience and commitment to helping others, Daniel is the go-to source for reliable fitness advice and recommendations.