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The Phoenix 99226 Power Pro bench is currently one of the best weight benches available, based on its collection of attachments and variety of positions.
This review takes a look at its design in more depth, together with the exercises that are possible and a summary of customer reviews.
Design Features
If you are currently have membership to a commercial gym but can’t find the time to go as often as you would like, setting up your own home gym could be a better option.
Aside from a set of free weights, one of the essential pieces of fitness equipment to buy is a good quality weights bench.
This is where the Phoenix 99226 could be an excellent choice, with its variety of attachment options, angle settings, and low price making it ideal for home workouts.
In terms of the positions available, both the seat and back support are fully adjustable to support decline, incline, flat, and even military press exercises.
There’s also no complicated pins or rails to change the incline. You can simply lift the back support, move the support rail to sit at the position you need, then rest the back support pad on top.
As well as the seat and back pad, the barbell supports are another area that can be adjusted to better suit specific exercises.
Being an Olympic standard bench, these barbell supports have an impressive weight capacity of around 400 lbs.
This combines with a 300 lb user weight capacity to create a strong and stable bench, priced in the same range as the popular Bowflex SelectTech 5.1 but with many more exercise options.
Phoenix 99226 Olympic Bench – Features Summary
- Full Olympic-size bench with incline, decline, and flat bench positions
- Comes with leg lift, lat tower, and preacher curl attachments
- Heavy-duty 3-inch steel frame built for stability and long life
- Adjustable uprights and seat back includes decline position
- Built-in storage stands for Preacher Curl and Lat Tower
- 3 Olympic weight plate adapters and spring clips
- 1-year frame warranty
Impressive Collection of Attachments
One of the most attractive features of the Phoenix 99226 is the collection of attachments it’s supplied with. There’s even 2 storage areas at the back of the frame for storing them when not in use.
In terms of what’s available, you have the choice of using the leg developer, lat pulldown tower, and preacher curl.
Despite its height, the lat pulldown tower can be setup in front of the seat to keep the lat pulldown attachments within easy reach.
Instead of the resistance being created by heavy and often expensive weight plate towers, this is a bench that only requires a good set of Olympic weight plates.
While standard plates will also work for these attachments due to the adapter sleeves provided, the majority of 7ft bars will require full sized Olympic plates.
As part of the leg developer, you also get to use the curling yoke to help build your bicep peaks. This is used in combination with the separate preacher curl pad to provide a comfortable surface for your triceps when performing the exercise.
Exercise Options
Another of the major benefits that comes from having the attachments and not just the bench on its own, is the amount of exercises that are possible.
Even with those isolation exercises, the 3 position settings for the chair and different angles for the back support still allow you to perform all the important presses.
Despite the lack of a walk-in squat rack feature, you can still put together some highly effective upper and lower body workouts.
The list below shows a selection of the exercises available when combined with a basic barbell and weight plate set:
- Preacher curls
- Leg extensions
- Hamstring curls
- Decline sit ups
- Decline barbell bench press
- Tricep pushdowns
- Close grip pulldowns
- Wide grip pulldowns
Customer Reviews
Even though articles and images can be a great way to find out more about the features and appearance, it’s not always the best way to get a feel for the build quality.
This is where customer reviews prove so useful. The Phoenix 99226 has an impressive majority of its reviews around the 4 and 5 star range, together with a few useful questions answered by people who have already purchased this bench.
We would always suggest reading through the reviews and even asking any of your own questions if you need to, before making a final buying decision.
The following lists of pros and cons are summarised from the customer reviews currently available on shopping sites such as Amazon.
Pros:
- Adjustable seat angle provides better support for incline presses
- High build quality
- Olympic sleeves provided for converting the weight plate pegs on the attachments to support standard plates
- Greater range of tricep and back exercises than standard weights benches
- Excellent value for money
- High frame strength and stability means you can perform heavier pressing exercises in complete confidence
- Extra attachments help to provide many more exercise options
Cons:
- Limited back support positions
- Lack of an anchor point limits the weight on the pulldown to be no heavier than your bodyweight
- Instructions were a little difficult to follow
Review Overview
Overall Review Rating
4 / 5
The Phoenix 99226 Power Pro Olympic Bench has been tested to the following weight limits: 300 pounds for the bench, 400 pounds for the uprights, and 150 pounds for the leg lift and lat tower.
This is partly due to the heavy-duty 3-inch steel frame construction, helping to provide a stable lifting platform. To provide a bit more peace of mind about any issues, this is a bench that also carries a 90-day warranty on parts and 1 year on frame.
With so many attachments included to help you make the best use of your workout, you'll struggle to find a bench that can compete with the Phoenix 99226 in terms of the variety it can bring to your workouts.
Product dimensions: 88" (L) x 60" (W) x 83" (H)
USA Home Gym gives in-depth insights into gym equipment, supplements, and fitness training methods. The motivation behind USA Home Gym is to provide you with information that goes beyond what you can find in any user manual, customer review, or other online review sites.
We go to great lengths to ensure that our reviews are completely comprehensive, usually covering everything from the design features to the warranty coverage and exercise options. This is all to help guide you towards the home gym equipment that’s best suited to your goals and budget, whilst also being the highest quality option in your chosen price range.
