i purchased a bareley used total gym in the early 2000s. black rails, black vinyl board cover with blue lettering.

i am a little over 6'2" right about 200lbs with about 35" arm length..a little odd.

by placing myself on the total gym board with legs folded i had no problems with the roll-down excercise, chest press, flys, curls, shoulder rotation or tricep presses/extns.
if my knees were on the board facing the top of the machine, because my arms are long, if i did a row type excercise , the board would touch at the bottom somewhat.
but it was fun and a pretty good workout without joint aches.

i did have to place the column end onto a 10 inch high stool (maybe not so safe) and raise the incline to the top level to get an adequate resistance workout for some flys and presses (chest and single leg).

and by doing so one of the nuts that held in one of the the pulleys stripped...i was able to get a replacement and kept on doing that with no further problems.

so i guess all in all it held up pretty well considering the way i used the machine.

i am considering the vigorfit due to durability claims...and i guess at 6'2"ish icould probobly adapt comfortably.

If you are 6'2", which I am , I would suggest looking at he Total Trainer. Much longer board than the Vigorfit.

I had a Total Gym XL that I got from a man that was giving his away. I wanted to try the Total Gym but the price was out of my range. I was taking my normal morning walk when I saw the Total Gym in front of this guys house and decided that on my way back I would stop and ask him if he was selling the Machine. I was happy to find out that all I had to do was be willing to take it because he was giving it away! What a blessing.

I used it for about three months and then the bench on it got tore up buy a neighbor's dog that somehow got through the fence and decided that the Total Gym was his next meal (we were away for a week on to visit my parents). It was basically unusable and so it went into the trash. (we have a program in our town that lets you disguard items like the TG). I was somewhat bummed out because that was my workout buddy and I could not afford to buy another one.

Fast forward. I started to research for the Total Gym because we had received our tax money and so I found the VigorFit 3000XL for under $400.00 and that was within our budget. But even better a friend of mine was moving and I found out that he had bought the VigorFit and wanted to sell it because he had to move. I got it basically brand new for $150.00 US.

I like this machine more than I did the Total Gym XL for many reasons but mainly because it came with all the attachments that would have cost me more money if I had purchased the Total Gym's accessories. It also have greater resistance and I have been able to add weight plates (up to 100 Lbs depending on your weight of course), and it has the resistance bands that help add extra resistance too.

All in all, I think the VigorFit 3000XL is a better deal for the money and you get bumper to bumper lifetime on everything. I am not sure how it would feel for someone as tall as 6' 2" but I have read that those who are tall still enjoy it. I am only 5' 10" and my wife is only 4' 11" so its size is right for us.

I hope that helps. The Total Gym is a good machine but I think it is way over priced and you don't get the warranty that you get with the VigorFit. I have read many reviews on the company Fitness Bargains and when or if something breaks on the VigorFit they are quick to get that part to you asap.

DannyBlaze:

I am glad you had the chance to experience both. I have the TG 2200 and I have not been able to wear it out yet!! I have 50 pounds on it and it is a great workout. If/when this wears out I am going to try the VF and see how it is. The price looks great so it should not be an issue later on.