Found a possible Fitstix sub - cheap!

[horsemom2]

I bought one of these large wands at Walmart but doubt it will work as well as Pringles and Lays chips cans. I removed the thinner part of the wand cuz do not have the tools to cut it off at its thicker base. The wand would definitely interfere with filler movement. Even with most of the wand removed, I doubt it will be able to handle enough filler to slide freely and to be as heavy as a Fitstix.

Barb S
who is waiting for the wand to dry fully before trying to add rocksalt.

[tigger]

Originally Posted by horsemom2

I bought one of these large wands at Walmart but doubt it will work as well as Pringles and Lays chips cans. I removed the thinner part of the wand cuz do not have the tools to cut it off at its thicker base. The wand would definitely interfere with filler movement. Even with most of the wand removed, I doubt it will be able to handle enough filler to slide freely and to be as heavy as a Fitstix.

Barb S
who is waiting for the wand to dry fully before trying to add rocksalt.

Barb- what is the diameter of a Fitstix? It seems like a Pringles can would be uncomfortable to grip. Also, on the website, it says that the Fitstix weigh less than 1 lb. Did you make your homemade ones heavier?

[horsemom2]

If you look at photos, the XCO walkers and trainers are much wider than Fitstix. I think one of the reasons Fitstix are so expensive is the kind of filler being used which is obviously much denser granules than the filler in the XCO line.
Believe it or not, Karen Joy doesn't make that much profit off each set.
It does cost her $9 to ship and she cannot cut the price much if she does want to make any profit. Even when bought in bulk by schools, etc they cost $30 a set. I hope Mary may be able to cut at least the shipping costs, making them more affordable.

The Lays cans are shaped differently from the Pringles cans so there is a way to hold the can at a slightly narrower diameter. If you fill them too much, you will not get as much sliding action which is the limitation of the Zumba sticks which would actually be better if slightly lighter with more slide. A friend tried sand in a Pringles can but it didn't flow smoothly. If anyone can find a cheap filler that slides freely and is dense enough to make these homemade sliding weights heavier, I am all ears LOL
I did make some heavier weights by adding pennies and less rocksalt but there again, I needed that extra diameter of the chip cans.
I had juice bottles with built in handles and made light kettlebells with a sliding filler as well (combination of rocksalt and pennies).
I also have a large long bottle with an hourglass shape that I think will make an excellent heavier homemade XCO trainer to use with 2 hands like a medball but there is no way I can come close to the narrow Fitstix feel for single hand use.

Barb S
who is going to eventually try combining a sliding filler weight with a band for boxing (yes, I am crazy LOL)

[antbuko]

Funny, but I didn't read this thread until now. I already had Fitstix and the bubble wand. The funny part is I bought the bubbles for me, I don't have any little kids. Anyhoo, I think this is a great idea. The wands are only $1 at Walmart and Diane's suggestion of rice would be perfect, IMO. They are the same length and the circumference of the Fitstix is a little over 4.5" while the wand is 3.5". Well, now that I've compared the measurements, maybe the rice wouldn't be heavy enough for some people, but for the price and just to see if you like the concept I'd say it's well worth a try.

[horsemom2]

I finally tried HeavyHands Walk Plus with fitstix, Zumba sticks and my homemade XCO trainers and the winner is .....
the XCO trainers!
Both the Pringles cans and Lays Stax cans felt pretty good.
The Zumba sticks worked the worse with Walk Plus (least amount of sliding action). Can use any light dumb bells for the same effect as the Zumba sticks.
The Fitstix could be used when I want to do more bouncing on the rebounders with the workout than work the upper body.
The movements in the Walk Plus just felt more pronounced and intense with more filler moving in the wider cylinders. Since these were designed for heavier weights, I believe it was safe to go heavier. My XCOs are just about a pound, maybe alittle higher but have alot more movement in the wider cylinder so can feel much heavier from filler momentum and impact. I did have to tweak some moves like hold the hands at a different angle (palms upwards instead of facing the body) to get more flow.


Barb S
who should have expected the XCOs would be better since the XCO walking clips and weights do look like Heavy Hands weights

[horsemom2]

OK the bubble liquid tube was dry so I poured in a combination of pennies and rock salt about 3/4 full and its flow seemed to be much better than the Zumba sticks though not as smooth flowing as the Fitstix but close enough to be worth trying! Much much better than the Zumba stick. Weight seems darn close to the Fitstix. Will definitely be the next best thing to try with the Fitstix dvds. No tape needed to secure the twist top (actually bottom) and a handle to hold so better than the homemade XCO trainers for lighter upper body like Fitstix workouts. This was the larger $2 wand bottle at Walmart.

Barb S
who may or may not buy a second one to make a pair or may just use it for one sided moves, switching hands

[donnadc]

Ok, how many pennies. And why pennies?
I wonder if the rock salt will eventually erode down to just granular salt? Hmmm.
Thanks so much for the info I'm gonna make some.

[horsemom2]

it was the larger 9 oz version of this *baton* bubble wand
http://www.viewpoints.com/Wal-Mart-B...k-review-ff4f4


Rock salt was just very convenient for me to try since we had a huge bottomless bag staring at me at the end of winter.
When I used rock salt alone, it wasn't heavy enough and since we had hundreds of pennies, I decided to try them for extra weight.
Think it is about 2/3 rock salt and 1/3 pennies.
To go heavier, add more pennies
To go lighter, remove some pennies
The rock salt seems to be holding fine and even if it does grind down a bit, that may actually make the flow smoother.

just do not overfill the container cuz you need room for the filler to slide

Barb S
who hopes somebody tries kitty litter cuz am curious about that as a filler

[horsemom2]

I think it may be best to start with 3/4 of the tube with rock salt and try it.
May not even be necessary to add pennies till after you get used to the Fitstix movements and want to up the weight and intensity. These bubble tubes are very easy to open and close for adjustments. Also they are clear enough to see how far you have filled them.

Barb S
who now has a half dozen empty chip cans that I will probably never use

[keilan00]

A couple weeks ago I was at Target and looked for the sword bubble wands. I found them but passed because the handle was long and I could see myself knocking into things or bang myself in the head.

I went to the drink aisle and found this:

It was $1 per bottle. The bottle is 8 1/2 inches in length. It might be a little short but hey, it's only $1 and I get to quench my thirst! The plastic is very sturdy, the circumference feels nice in my hands, and the opening had a very wide mouth to facilitate easy filling. I liked the color and the shape of the bottle would allow free flow movement. Plus, I fell down the stairs last month and my knee has been acting up. I killed 2 birds with 1 stone with the Joint Juice fitness water. It comes in 3 different flavors: Lemon, Berry, and Kiwi Strawberry. *end of commercial*