Iron Gym: The Ultimate Low-Cost Answer To The Home Workout
The Pro Fit Iron Gym Total Upper Body Workout Bar is a multi-function, easy-to-assemble, extremely portable construct designed for practically anybody who wants to do pull-ups and sit-ups anywhere in their home. The Iron Gym is constructed of metal but is lightweight and sturdy enough to support an individual with a maximum weight capacity of 300lbs. With only a doorway, a little motivation, and as little as twenty-five dollars, the Iron Gym is designed to provide a simple yet satisfying upper body workout.
Easy To Assemble, Easy To Use
To assemble the Iron Gym no tools are needed. The interlocking parts and screws come inside the package. Easy-to-read instructions lead to complete assembly within ten minutes. Four pieces connect and are held together with screws. Once assembled, it’s one-piece design allows the Iron Gym to hook on any doorway 24″ to 32″ wide for instant pull-ups. In one motion, the top lateral bar hooks onto the outside, or opposite, moulding of any doorway, while the extended right and left sides of the lower pull-up bar provide complete resistance by pushing against the side moulding on the inner, or user’s, side.
Foam sleeves on the bar protect the doorway from any damage, though their black color can leave a slight stain on white or cream paint after extended use. The Iron Gym allows for three different grips: wide, narrow or the most popular, neutral grip.
For sit-ups, push-ups and dips, the Iron Gym can be inverted and placed on the floor in reverse position so that the pull-up bar hooks on the opposite side of the doorway for full resistance. The pull-up bar serves as “neutral zero,” or the lower-most point to which the user can descend. In upside-down position on the floor, the Iron Gym remains perfectly balanced with no wobble whatsoever. Push-ups and pull-ups can be performed without hindrance. Like pull-ups, sit-ups, push-ups and dips can thus be performed anywhere in the home where there is a doorway.
Too Portable To Ignore
Aside from its ease of use, the other most interesting aspect of the Iron Gym is its portability. It makes pull-ups instant and fun. Keeping the Iron Gym handy and by the doorway — not in the closet or the garage — invites motivation. Frequency of use increases simply keeping it out in the open. The Iron Gym also includes a nutrition guide and manual for additional exercises. For added variance in grip position, Pro Fit’s Iron Gym Xtreme Total Upper Body Workout Bar allows for an even wider pull-up grip.
Ab Straps Might Be A No-Go
The newer edition of the Iron Gym Workout Bar includes ab straps. Quite a few buyers of the old edition had to purchase the ab straps separately. Feedback about the straps proved inconsistent, with complaints about the stitching on some pairs, to blood circulation issues when using the straps as demonstrated by the trainer on the instruction sheet. Even by saving on shipping with in-box ab straps, users still preferred doing crunches on an inflatable exercise ball, or the old-fashioned way on the floor.
The Competition
More users of the Pro Fit Iron Gym appear satisfied with it over a similar product by Gold’s called the Grip Lock Door Gym. While nothing is perfect and some complaints have been logged with regard to the bolts that come with Iron Gym, more seem to be made about the Gold’s equivalent. The P90X system has been fuelled by a huge infomercial campaign and appears to be quite popular, but costs considerably more than the $20-30 average Iron Gym buyers report paying. The P90X workout contraption also needs to be installed on a doorway and cannot be removed with a wrist flick like Iron Gym.
Granted, it’s not practical to compare Iron Gym and P90X because the former is designed for instant gratification, while the latter is intended to substitute for a complete gym experience while targeting fat-burning and body sculpting. P90X is also more time-intensive system that involves a DVD library. Iron Gym is intended for immediate use.
A Drawback Or Two
Nothing is perfect, and neither is the Iron Gym. Or is it? Apparently the chief complaint isn’t with the Iron Gym itself, but with the doorway mouldings that are unable to support a user’s weight when employing the machine. If this is the case, a stronger, thicker piece of wood and several more long nails sound like the solution to the problem. It’s also important to remember there is a weight limit of 300lbs.
The other issue lies with the width of some doorways, which apparently exceed the pull-up bar’s length. Are there truly some houses with only doorways that exceed 32″ in width? It sounds a little hard to believe, but perhaps this is exclusive to homes in Bel Air and Beverly Hills. The Iron Gym’s portability would seem to counter this problem with little difficulty.
The Lowdown
The masses have spoken, and in spite of its limitations, the Iron Gym Total Upper Body Workout Bar continues to rise in popularity thanks to its efficiency. The following “magic seven” bullet points show why:
- Assembly in under ten minutes.
- Sturdy lightweight construction that can sustain up to 300lbs.
- Immediate use with any doorway: up top for pull-ups, down below for sit-ups.
- Workout bar inverts for push-ups and dips with lateral bar at neutral zero.
- Designed for maximum portability.
- More affordable and better than comparable devices.
- Most importantly, it is fun to use.
Making A Commitment, Or How I Learned To Stop Procrastinating And Start Working Out With The Iron Gym
With such a product like the Iron Gym, excuses have run dry for making even a limited workout a regular part of one’s day. With obesity on the rise and the alarming rate with which diabetes seems to manifest itself nowadays, routine exercise, normal body weight and optimal health has never been more important.
The hardest part is getting started; once the ball is rolling, it only gets easier to push. Exertion on any level for persons with sedentary lifestyles is beneficial. The contestants on a certain very popular prime-time fitness show are proof of this. And for those on a limited budget in a shaky economy, a device like Pro Fit’s Iron Gym Total Upper Body Workout Bar couldn’t exist at a more opportune time. It truly is the ultimate low-cost answer to the home workout.