Tonal is an at-home strength training machine that uses electromagnetism to create resistance and mounts to your wall for a personalized workout with over 200 exercises, like deadlifts, bicep curls, and overhead presses, and on-demand coaching.
With Tonal, performance anxiety at the gym could be a thing of the past â no more feeling self-conscious in front of your seemingly more experienced gym-goers, no more 30-plus minute round trips to the gym, and no more gym memberships.
That is, if you can afford the $3,000 price tag.
Tonal was invented by Aly Orady, a Hewlett-Packard veteran who wanted an easier way to stay in shape at home that didn't involve sweaty, used equipment and tedious trips to the gym.
It operates similarly to its cardio cousin Peloton, whose stationary bikes retail for $2,000. Both are a part of a growing trend that is seeing digital, at-home fitness systems on the rise and gym attendance and boutique fitness studios declining in popularity.
Tonal is one of the first products in the market with a focus on strength training. Fitness experts have increasingly stressed the importance of resistance training in addition to cardio to maintain good health. And in an interview with TechCrunch, Orady said that a significant amount of Tonal users also own a Peloton bike (amounting to a collective $5,000 investment, if you were wondering.)
I recently tried a Tonal workout for myself at the company's San Francisco showroom. It was a bit hard to get used to at first, but I knew that if I were to own one, I'd adjust and would eventually have a convenient way of staying fit in the privacy of my home.
Too bad it's way out of my budget and that even if it wasn't, mounting such a piece of equipment onto a wall in my rental apartment would likely make my landlord less than pleased.
Here's how my workout went.