After 4 months of owning a Tonal and completing 4 recommended workout programs (67 total individual workouts), here is my overall impression of the Tonal smart home gym – an unbiased review to share with those who are considering purchasing one. This is the final part of my three part series on Tonal which includes an overview of the ordering process and the delivery and installation process.
Why I Decided on a Tonal
1. I want to improve my strength and try new exercises
As an intermediate weightlifter, I’ve been lifting weights for 17 years, though not very consistently. During college, I challenged my limits with a variety of workout plans and had workout partners to spot me. Having a spotter was crucial to push my limits safely. After college, I was still working out on a regular basis for years. However, I’ve been on the same workout routine and without a spotter; so I was staying in shape but not necessarily improving. Tonal appealed to me with automatic weight adjustment and progress tracking. It comes with a vast library of workout programs and continuously introduces new exercises to help me work out more effectively.
2. I want save time
The thought of spending time driving to the gym and frequently having to wait for equipment to free up was my least favorite part of working out. For years, I would head to the gym during odd hours when there were less or no other people to share equipment with. Having a Tonal means saving so many hours of driving, looking for parking, and waiting.
3. I want to have my own home gym
In 2020, I was ready to assemble a home gym. Unfortunately, I quickly realized that there was a shortage of exercise equipment as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, and that everyone else was also trying to workout at home, driving the prices insanely high for even used equipment in the secondhand market. This was when I came across an online Tonal advertisement. I saw that it was a slim, all-in-one machine that hangs on the wall with some attachments. This means that it comes with all the equipment needed for a complete workout. I took the plunge over Black Friday to order myself a Tonal.
Prepare for Delivery
The order process was straightforward, as easy as adding it to an online shopping cart and then checkout. Before scheduling for delivery, I had to complete a questionnaire that actually required a bit of legwork and a stud finder. In order to install the machine onto the wall of my gym, I had to locate the studs on the wall and check that the spacing between the studs meets Tonal’s requirement for installation. I was also asked to provide an alternate location in case the wall in my home gym does not meet the requirement.
Delivery and Installation Day
After 7 weeks of anticipation, my Tonal was finally delivered to a local installer, XPO. I was able to select a date for delivery and installation. The two men delivered the Tonal, took a look at the wall, put the Tonal up on the wall, cleaned up and left within 30 minutes.
Aside from waiting for almost two months for delivery, the entire process was smooth and painless; although I have read other online reviews that some people had less than stellar experiences with their delivery.
Setting up my Tonal
After Tonal is up on the wall and running, the setup was more than easy. I created an account with my email address and subscribed to their monthly membership.
I created my profile and provided my age, height, and weight. Tonal asked for my personal goal (get lean, build muscle, or improve fitness) and experience level (beginner, intermediate, and advanced). Based on my selection, my Tonal home screen prioritized displaying more workout types and programs that fit my experience level, pretty much like Netflix for workouts.
With the same account, I can also set up multiple profiles so everyone in the house can have their personalized profiles (again, just like Netflix). My wife was able to create a profile of her own with her email address so she can track her progress.
First Workout – Assessment
After setting up my account and profile, I completed the assessment workout. This was totally optional, but recommended. It consists of some simple exercises intended to educate me on how to use the machine and assess my strength so Tonal can automatically calibrate the weights for my future workouts.
After completing the basic assessment workout, I can choose to begin any individual workout or join a workout program. I can also customize my own custom workouts (I have not tried this yet, but it seems like I can choose a set of moves and reps, and then save it). I opted to join a workout program and I also explored some of the individual workouts.
There is a variety of different workout types, including strength, barre, bootcamp, boxing, cardio, dance cardio, family fitness, high intensity, kickboxing, meditation, mobility, pilates, pre & postnatal, recovery, warm-up, and yoga.
Finding a workout or program was relatively easy with the filter on the home screen. I can filter by workout type, coach, goal, duration, body region, level, muscle groups, completed workouts, and saved workouts. I particularly like the duration filter so I can filter for workouts that are less than 15 minutes for those days when I don’t have a lot of time.
Workout Experience – What You Should Know
The workouts are pre-recorded video clips so I can work out whenever I want. Most of the workouts are recorded in segments and organized into a complete workout. For example, you will hear an opening monologue from the trainer, then it will cut to the trainer doing warm ups, then it will cut to a different trainer completing the exercise, followed by a different trainer completing another exercise, and so on. As such, it doesn’t have the live workout feel because the trainer is not actually following along doing the workout. There are some pre-recorded live workouts with the live studio experience but the majority of the workouts are in the other format.
Since most of the workouts follow this video structure, I noticed I would hear the same speech week by week during a workout program. A workout program consists of a set number of different workouts a week and repeats the same workouts week by week for the duration of the program. The workout videos are the same week by week except usually a different opening and closing monologue but the core remains the same. This can get repetitive but I didn’t mind it much.
Another thing I want to point out is some exercises require you to be in a position where you cannot see the screen so it was hard to get the movement and timing down. This became less of a problem for me after I did more and more exercises and learned how to do them. I just take a minute to watch the screen and get the movement and timing down before I begin the exercise.
What I Love about Tonal
Initially, it took me some time to adjust the machine and/or change out the handles whenever it required a change for the next exercise. This was something I got used to pretty quickly from repetition.
1. Workout Programs
Tonal’s designed workout programs are typically a month long if you follow their recommended workout frequency. I really enjoy choosing a program to exercise a different muscle group with the same coach for consistency.
2. Weight Recommendation
I also like that Tonal keeps track of the weights for me. For the most part, the basic assessment got most of the weights correct for each exercise, but if something was too easy I can manually increase the weights and it would remember it for next time.
The 200 pounds max weight isn’t a problem for me, since I am nowhere near the max weight for any individual exercise on Tonal. I don’t think Tonal weights are equivalent to actual weights. I know that I do less weights on Tonal than I do with actual weights. Remember that Tonal creates resistance with electromagnets and it feels very different from free weights.
3. Progress Tracking
I can track my progress with Tonal’s strength score. The score combines the latest workout with all of my past performances to measure how strong I am, so my score can increase (or even decrease) after each workout. For example, if I was doing sets at or near my personal records, my strength score will probably increase after the workout.
This gives a sense of progression as my strength score increases. I also earn badges for hitting certain achievements. For example, I earned the Early Riser badge for working out at 4:00am once.
4. Quality and Design (including Accessories)
All the Tonal accessories are well built, including the smart handles, smart bar, rope, bench, mat, and roller. They are not necessarily high-end premium workout equipment, but they definitely don’t feel cheap. The bench and smart bar are very lightweight, and that’s important because I need to change and move around the equipment quickly and frequently throughout the workouts. Before I got my Tonal, I wanted to buy an adjustable bench so I can do more exercises on the Tonal, but now I don’t think that is such a good idea because an adjustable bench is heavy and not easy to move in and out of exercises.
As for the Tonal itself, it has a sleek, minimalist design. It feels very compact especially when the arms are stored back onto the side of the machine. Other than the screen and the arms, the rest of Tonal is made of plastic. The front of Tonal looks like a giant vertical screen but the actual screen only takes up half of the vertical surface. The screen easily tracks fingerprints which are hard to see when the screen is on but noticeable when it is off. I can easily wipe them away with a cloth and Tonal even has a cleaning mode where it’ll deactivate the screen so I can clean it and then reactivate it.
The power cable is located beneath the machine and has an arm to wrap and hide the excess power cable which is great. The power button is also located at the bottom of the machine; however, I never turn off my Tonal and just let it go on sleep mode (the screen turns off with inactivity until I touch the screen again).
5. Music
Tonal‘s radio plays licensed music of various genres(a) with no commercials. The speakers on Tonal are loud and clear and volume is adjustable during workouts. I can skip, like and dislike songs. I can also connect to Apple Music through the Tonal app but I haven’t try that out yet.
(a) Music genres include: Top 40, Electronic/Dance, House Beats, Techno Remix, ’80s Pop, early ’00s Pop, ’90s Hip Hop, Early ’00s Hip Op, Hip Hop, Country, Hard Rock, Indie Rock, Yoga Ambient, and Yoga Flow
6. Camera
There is a camera on the Tonal but at the time of this article I haven’t found any use of it. It may be of use during virtual partner/group workout. And hopefully, Tonal can leverage it to incorporate capability to check forms and provide feedback to correct bad forms.
Where I think Tonal can do Better
1. No Feedback to Proper Form
Tonal provides on-screen feedback if it senses my range of pull is not correct but it doesn’t check my forms, detect if my back is straight, or if I’m only lifting with my legs. There is a camera on the Tonal which isn’t currently being used so hopefully this is something they will implement in the future.
2. Spotting is Inadequate
I genuinely liked the idea of this feature but I think spotting often kicks in too late and doesn’t adjust correctly. In more than one instance, I was benching and struggling until Tonal finally noticed and lowered the weight. However, after only completing 1 rep, it quickly readjusted back to the original weights and I couldn’t complete the set and gave up.
3. Speaker
Although the speakers on Tonal are loud and clear. The sounds are flat. I prefer some bass in my music which energizes me during a workout, however, this might not be practical for someone living in an apartment.
3. Cost of Monthly Subscription
At the time of writing, Tonal is priced at $2,995 plus tax, delivery, accessories, and a $49 monthly membership, Tonal is one of the more expensive connected fitness machines on the market and a substantial investment.
Final Thoughts
Overall, I like the workouts and programs that Tonal offers. They have so many options and each one is very different. Although it isn’t perfect, Tonal really fits my lifestyle – it’s compact, saves time, and it encourages me to workout. I feel accomplished after completing a month-long workout plan and enjoy finding another one to commit to.
It’s neat to see my strength score increase over time, and I also like that it shows me how much weight I lifted week by week after I complete a workout plan so I can see true progression. I also like the variety of exercises to choose from. I tried a couple Yoga routines in the morning, some ab workouts after my actual workout, and also some boxing workouts (these are really intense). Tonal has expanded my workouts and I am doing exercises I would have never done before.
All in all, Tonal is a great investment for me, but there is room for premiums – for instance, a lightweight adjustable bench, a bigger screen, and addition of bass on the speakers. As its initial rollout, I think Tonal did an excellent job to provide everything needed for great workouts.
