JML Iron Gym Review: How good is it?
The Iron Gym by JML offers an upper body workout, but how good is it? As part of the Body Blog and my dream for a sculpted body without the cost of a gym membership I purchased the Iron Gym by JML. I got mine on eBay for about £15 including postage and if it does everything it boasts, that represents a definite bargain.
- JML Iron Gym – What’s in the box?
It arrived this morning and you can see in the picture on the right the pieces that came out of the box. It took me about 10-15 minutes to assemble and even though the instructions are very simple, the assembly of the Iron Gym isn’t that difficult so you should have no problems. Basically there are 5 parts to the Iron Gym which need bolting together, included are 2 basic tools which are suitable for constructing it. I did have a few extra pieces left over, presumably these are spares.
So now I’ve got my Iron Gym built, it’s time to put it to the test – but first off, one of the main concerns I had was potential damage to the door frame it could do. So I hooked it on the door frame and did a simple workouts using every combination of pull up the Iron Gym boasts you can do. See these images below for how the Iron Gym hooks on your door frame.
My doorframe has a width of 30 inches (76 cm) and a height of 76 inches (193 cm). Using the 2 inside grips for pulling myself were fine, but using the outside grip was uncomfortable as my little fingers were touching the door frame and as I was pulling myself up, my forearms touched the door frame – so I’m going to pretty much rule out using the outside grips. It’s worth noting I am 6 foot 4 and have large hands so if your a bit smaller I dont think you’d have a problem.
A different view
The Iron Gym itself hangs about 6 inches (15 cm) from the top of the door frame and left me 70 inches (178 cm) from grips to floor to perform the pull up. As I’m 6 foot 4 (192 cm), that caused a few problems – I had to keep my legs bent during the whole movement. Is that a bad thing though? It forced me to keep the movement controlled throughout every single repitition which isn’t a huge negative. However, compare it to a pull up bar that fits over the top of the door frame – it gives you less room.
Did it leave marks on the door frame? Due to the design of the Iron Gym, the pressure is on the plastic bar that fits over the top of the door frame and the straight bar that rests on the vertical part of the frame, both have soft gel padding and I admit, I was dubious to start with but the Iron Gym left no visible marks at all.
So far – so good, I’ve built it and installed it with no hassle. Now I’m going to test each exercise it claims it offers, the real test!
How the Iron Gym fits on the door frame
Pull ups (using inside grips that point outwards)
Only potential problem is that I must keep my legs bent at all times, but that encourages me to keep the exercise controlled which isn’t a bad thing. Plus, be under no illusions when you purchase this – if your tall, any home pull bar will probably mean that you have to bend your legs although a bar that fits on top of door frames might give you a bit more room. So I think as far as pull ups go, the Iron Gym must get top marks as its stable, doesn’t shake and you feel safe throughout the exercise. 5/5.
Chin ups
Again, the only point worth mentioning is the height of the user but that takes nothing away from what it offers. 5/5.
Wide grip pull ups
My hands and arms were just too close to the door frame for this exercise to work properly. I had someone who was 5 foot 8 (173 cm) test it, and they had the same problem. So perhaps if your doorframe is wider than mine, it will work better. 1/5.
Push ups (press ups)
The Iron Gym offers 2 versions of a push up you can do using it, one using the inside grips that give you a push up similar to a clenched fist push up and the other is a wide grip that’s more similar to a standard push up. Both work brilliantly and give you the movement you want. The Iron Gym remains sturdy and rigid throughout the push up. 5/5.
A different view
Ab crunches
I tested this out on laminate flooring and carpeted flooring,it had no effect on the outcome for both floor types – pretty useless. It moved about when I put pressure on the bar with my feet and offered very little in the way of stability. Ab workouts using no equipment at all are easy enough to do and work better. It looks like this feature was added for advertising purposes to try and encourage the sell. 1/5.
Hanging leg raises (ab workout)
With the box you get free ab straps that support your arms while your doing leg raises with the bar. My height made this workout next to impossible and only gave me a restricted movement which was the point of most strain so I couldn’t hold it at all. I had someone who was 5 foot 8 test this workout and it didn’t really work either. However, if you’re smaller than 5 foot 8 (173 cm) I can see this workout being useful. 2/5.
Tricep dips
When your doing dips using the Iron Gym it just feels like there isn’t enough room to complete the full range of movement required – a bit like using the bottom step of a staircase to do them. Although I did feel a strain on the triceps when doing the dips, but I wouldn’t include them in my workout on a regular basis. The Iron Gym gets marked down here, only 3/5.
A free DVD that runs through the movements for you is included, but its basic. You’ll only need it if you are a beginner.
Iron Gym - no damage to the door frame
Overall: 4 out of 5!
I think it’s important to think about why you want the Iron Gym. For me, I wanted something that was easy to install and enabled me to perform pull ups and on both of those accounts it performs brilliantly! It literally takes seconds to put on your door frame and that means you can store it away when it’s not in use. I don’t think I’ll be using the Iron Gym for anything other than pull ups or chin ups on a regular basis, but that’s exactly why I purchased the Iron Gym. The only let down is that it promises so much, however that’s just advertising for you. Don’t kid yourself if you are planning to buy this, you can do your abs by doing V-ups or crunches using no equipment at all and that has a better effect. Get some dumbbells and use these for your triceps, it will work better. The push ups that the workout offers are quite useful, but I prefer to do Spiderman or Hindu pressups so I dont think I’ll be using it for that either.
Taking everything into account (price, how easy it was to build, what functions it offers) the Iron Gym scores an impressive 4/5. I only paid £15 for mine and there are places that sell it for up to £30, so shop around before you buy the Iron Gym.
The Iron Gym by JML offers an upper body workout, but how good is it? As part of the Body Blog and my dream for a sculpted body without the cost of a gym membership I purchased the Iron Gym by JML. I got mine on eBay for about £15 including postage and if it does everything it boasts, that represents a definite bargain.
- JML Iron Gym – What’s in the box?
It arrived this morning and you can see in the picture on the right the pieces that came out of the box. It took me about 10-15 minutes to assemble and even though the instructions are very simple, the assembly of the Iron Gym isn’t that difficult so you should have no problems. Basically there are 5 parts to the Iron Gym which need bolting together, included are 2 basic tools which are suitable for constructing it. I did have a few extra pieces left over, presumably these are spares.
So now I’ve got my Iron Gym built, it’s time to put it to the test – but first off, one of the main concerns I had was potential damage to the door frame it could do. So I hooked it on the door frame and did a simple workouts using every combination of pull up the Iron Gym boasts you can do. See these images below for how the Iron Gym hooks on your door frame.
My doorframe has a width of 30 inches (76 cm) and a height of 76 inches (193 cm). Using the 2 inside grips for pulling myself were fine, but using the outside grip was uncomfortable as my little fingers were touching the door frame and as I was pulling myself up, my forearms touched the door frame – so I’m going to pretty much rule out using the outside grips. It’s worth noting I am 6 foot 4 and have large hands so if your a bit smaller I dont think you’d have a problem.
A different view
The Iron Gym itself hangs about 6 inches (15 cm) from the top of the door frame and left me 70 inches (178 cm) from grips to floor to perform the pull up. As I’m 6 foot 4 (192 cm), that caused a few problems – I had to keep my legs bent during the whole movement. Is that a bad thing though? It forced me to keep the movement controlled throughout every single repitition which isn’t a huge negative. However, compare it to a pull up bar that fits over the top of the door frame – it gives you less room.
Did it leave marks on the door frame? Due to the design of the Iron Gym, the pressure is on the plastic bar that fits over the top of the door frame and the straight bar that rests on the vertical part of the frame, both have soft gel padding and I admit, I was dubious to start with but the Iron Gym left no visible marks at all.
So far – so good, I’ve built it and installed it with no hassle. Now I’m going to test each exercise it claims it offers, the real test!
How the Iron Gym fits on the door frame
Pull ups (using inside grips that point outwards)
Only potential problem is that I must keep my legs bent at all times, but that encourages me to keep the exercise controlled which isn’t a bad thing. Plus, be under no illusions when you purchase this – if your tall, any home pull bar will probably mean that you have to bend your legs although a bar that fits on top of door frames might give you a bit more room. So I think as far as pull ups go, the Iron Gym must get top marks as its stable, doesn’t shake and you feel safe throughout the exercise. 5/5.
Chin ups
Again, the only point worth mentioning is the height of the user but that takes nothing away from what it offers. 5/5.
Wide grip pull ups
My hands and arms were just too close to the door frame for this exercise to work properly. I had someone who was 5 foot 8 (173 cm) test it, and they had the same problem. So perhaps if your doorframe is wider than mine, it will work better. 1/5.
Push ups (press ups)
The Iron Gym offers 2 versions of a push up you can do using it, one using the inside grips that give you a push up similar to a clenched fist push up and the other is a wide grip that’s more similar to a standard push up. Both work brilliantly and give you the movement you want. The Iron Gym remains sturdy and rigid throughout the push up. 5/5.
A different view
Ab crunches
I tested this out on laminate flooring and carpeted flooring,it had no effect on the outcome for both floor types – pretty useless. It moved about when I put pressure on the bar with my feet and offered very little in the way of stability. Ab workouts using no equipment at all are easy enough to do and work better. It looks like this feature was added for advertising purposes to try and encourage the sell. 1/5.
Hanging leg raises (ab workout)
With the box you get free ab straps that support your arms while your doing leg raises with the bar. My height made this workout next to impossible and only gave me a restricted movement which was the point of most strain so I couldn’t hold it at all. I had someone who was 5 foot 8 test this workout and it didn’t really work either. However, if you’re smaller than 5 foot 8 (173 cm) I can see this workout being useful. 2/5.
Tricep dips
When your doing dips using the Iron Gym it just feels like there isn’t enough room to complete the full range of movement required – a bit like using the bottom step of a staircase to do them. Although I did feel a strain on the triceps when doing the dips, but I wouldn’t include them in my workout on a regular basis. The Iron Gym gets marked down here, only 3/5.
A free DVD that runs through the movements for you is included, but its basic. You’ll only need it if you are a beginner.
Iron Gym - no damage to the door frame
Overall: 4 out of 5!
I think it’s important to think about why you want the Iron Gym. For me, I wanted something that was easy to install and enabled me to perform pull ups and on both of those accounts it performs brilliantly! It literally takes seconds to put on your door frame and that means you can store it away when it’s not in use. I don’t think I’ll be using the Iron Gym for anything other than pull ups or chin ups on a regular basis, but that’s exactly why I purchased the Iron Gym. The only let down is that it promises so much, however that’s just advertising for you. Don’t kid yourself if you are planning to buy this, you can do your abs by doing V-ups or crunches using no equipment at all and that has a better effect. Get some dumbbells and use these for your triceps, it will work better. The push ups that the workout offers are quite useful, but I prefer to do Spiderman or Hindu pressups so I dont think I’ll be using it for that either.
Taking everything into account (price, how easy it was to build, what functions it offers) the Iron Gym scores an impressive 4/5. I only paid £15 for mine and there are places that sell it for up to £30, so shop around before you buy the Iron Gym.
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