OYO NOVA: FirstLook

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Working out at home became a necessity for those who wanted to stay fit during this pandemic. With the right kind of gear, strength, aerobic, and many other types of training are possible. Some have even found the convenience of a home gym is worth the tradeoff of not having access to a fitness center.

We took a FirstLook at the OYO Personal Gym last Summer. Readers mentioned that OYO had released a bulkier version at the end of the year. We got our hands on one after the Holidays and will take a side-by-side look at the differences between the OYO Personal Gym and the updated unit call the NOVA in this FirstLook.

NOVA

The NOVA is the second iteration of OYO’s Personal Gym line. We can see two obvious upgrades with the NOVA: 15 additional pounds of resistance, T-grip handles.

Having used the original Personal Gym extensively during our “time at home,” we can say that 25 lbs, while great for a lot of toning exercises, is a bit light for working the larger muscle groups.

With the NOVA’s increase in total resistance to 40 lbs, it made sense for OYO to offer the more secure T-grip. 

FlexPacks Compared

The Personal Gym and the NOVA both use OYO’s patented SpiraFlex resistance pucks. However, the pucks are not the same for the two units.

When we asked Paul Francis, OYO’s CEO, on why the difference, he explained that “…the products are engineered for their specific level of resistance and are intentionally designed so they cannot be overloaded.”

That made perfect sense because it was EXACTLY the first thing we would have done! LOL. 

For users with both units, the difference is such that there is ZERO chance of putting the wrong puck on the units. A closer look at the units’ front and rear clearly shows why.

Handles Compared

We REALLY like the original handle on the OYO Personal Gym, especially how the cap can be removed to cleverly converts to an attach point for the ankle strap and door anchor. Because of the higher total resistant available with the NOVA, OYO beef-up the handle to offer a more secured means of using the device.

The change in grip does mean the two units feel very different to the hand while in use, especially when pulling on the handles. We have not had any problems with the ball handle, but we do feel the T-grip does offer a more secure hold on the OYO. We’ll have more comments once we have had time with the NOVA.

Strength & Balance

Our combo package for at-home workouts during our time of isolation have been the OYO Personal Gym and the Terra-Core Balance Trainer. The pair enabled us to do some very interesting exercises not possible with other gear. We can work our core, pay attention to our balance, and tone/strength train all at the same time. We’ll share some of   our RainyDayRoutine at some point. 

The Gen-1 is an intelligently designed piece of exercise equipment. What we can say about the NOVA after using it for a few weeks is that it is an excellent update to the original Personal Gym.