Review: Gymboss Interval Timer

This week, we take a moment to review the Gymboss Interval Timer.

Item: Gymboss Interval Timer
Price: $20 USD
Manufacturer: Gymboss
Purchase: www.Gymboss.com

In my first year training out of a CrossFit gym, I avoided Tabata workouts like the plague. Partially because I pukied in the first one I ever did (Tabata This, and it still gives me shivers), but also because it was a pain in the ass keeping track of the time all the time.

For those who don’t know, Tabata consists of 20 seconds of workout, followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated for four minutes. While it can be a great exercise for cardio and strength conditioning, keeping an eye on a stopwatch all the time can start to get annoying and demotivating.

As a result, a number of Tabata workout soundtracks have been created to help us get through the workouts and prevent us from having to stare at a timer all the time. For those of you who don’t like the music on offer, there’s always the Gymboss Interval Timer.

I was given a Gymboss as a Christmas present in 2011, and while it was quite skeptical of it at first. But it’s fair to say i’ve used the device numerous times since.

The Gymboss Interval Timer is essentially a mini stopwatch that can be set to beep at any given intervals. So if you were to do a Tabata workout, you would set it to 20/10 seconds, and it will beep at every interval to tell you when to stop and start. Or if you were doing a Sparticus workout you can always change it to 50/10 seconds.

Using a Gymboss has made my workouts a hell of a lot easier, and allows me to concentrate more on training, than trying to count numbers. In the past, there has been many occasions where I have completely forgotten how many reps I was up to, or what set I was at, but now that I’ve got a Gymboss, it does it all for me!

The Good

Easy to Use: The Gymboss Interval Timer is light and compact and rarely gets in the way of a workout. It’s light enough to keep in your pocket during a WOD, or you can also choose to clip it onto your clothing while you train. It’s also very easy to set interval times, read the screen and to change settings.

Improves Your Performance?: It’s hard to believe, but i’ve actually noticed an improvement in my workout times since using this little gadget. While using the Gymboss, I am able to actually rest, mentally and physically, during my break (10 seconds when doing Tabata) and not have to worry about sets and reps. It is also a lot easier to resume working out when you hear a beep, rather than silence. There’s no excuse for stopping earlier, or starting later, when you hear the beep.

You Can Still Listen to Music: The Gymboss also has a vibration function, which allows us to listen to our iPod while working out with the device. The beep is loud enough to be heard over most standard speakers.

Cheap and Durable: A Gymboss can be picked up online for around $20, and for what it does, it’s well worth the money. Also, in the few months I’ve had mine, I’ve dropped it, spilled water over it and stepped on it by accident a few times and it hasn’t shown any signs of ageing.

The Bad

Loudness: While some people like the loud beep the device produces, others don’t. It’s not uncommon to get a number of evil stares, or puzzled looks when your Gymboss goes off, especially if you’re working out in a packed gym.

It Looks Cheap: Maybe because it is, but the design of the Gymboss Interval Timer is still a little bit tacky, and isn’t the most attractive gadget to look at, and the variety of colors to choose from isn’t that large either.

Conclusion

Overall, the pro’s of the Gymboss far outweigh the con’s. The device is cheap, effective, easy to use and may improve your performance, especially during tabata workouts. For $20 it’s a worthy addition for any CrossFitter’s bag.

Update: It should be noted that this product was purchased at our own expense and not provided to us.