The Iron Gym

concealer404

I'm sure you've all seen the infomercials about this thing....

http://www.getirongym.com/Default.asp?bhcp=1

Anyone have one, or know anyone that has one? Do you follow the full routine as directed?

Little back story....

I'm 5'9", and currently weigh ~140lbs. This is the largest that i've been in almost 6 years. When i was in high school, i was an active rock climber, both recreational, and competing in regional events, mainly for fun. I didn't have the finesse necessary to be truly competitive, i relied on brute force to get up a lot of routes. I weighed about 170lbs, was 5'7"-5'8" at that point, ran track, played soccer and Ultimate Frisbee, and had a body fat percentage of less than 7%. I was huge. (for a little guy)

I had a series of biking accidents, culminating in one really bad one where i was laid up for a long time, and lost all of my weight, down to 110lbs. I haven't had the drive since then to start working out to try to get back to where i was. Through the normal activities that i do, i've manged to gain back the 30lbs that i've put on since, mainly horsing engines around, working on cars, and rearranging audio gear.

I eat EASILY 4000+ calories a day. I have an extremely high metabolism, and a digestive system like a garbage disposal. Doesn't matter what i eat, i don't gain any weight just sitting around, i actually lose it. I can ONLY keep weight on through muscle. I don't eat a TON of fast food... maybe twice a week. I cook a lot, eat a lot of pasta, poultry, grains, potatos, salad, fish, and probably more red meat than i should, but i love it too much.

I'd like to get back to at least 160. I'll be bored most of this winter, i'm moving to the boonies this coming weekend, and will be at least 30 minutes from the nearest major entertainment, and i'm thinking that working out should be good for taking up at least 5-6 hours of my week. But, i don't have space for a full gym, i don't want to drive the hour round trip to the gym, and i'm not real worried about cardio at the moment, i would just like to bulk back up first, then i'll start running again in the spring.

In anyone's experiences, will this thing be a useful tool to help acheive my goal? I'd be happy with anything over 20lbs of pure muscle gain.

Thanks in advance!

jimmydep

If your looking to "BULK" up the best way is with resistance training.....Use Free weights, or if you have the room maybe a Bowflex as they are fairly compact when folded up.

Pull-ups and push-ups are great for toning but for building mass you need weights coupled with a high protein & carb diet. Do a high weight low rep routine (10 reps) and working out 6 hrs a week you should be able to add 20 lbs of muscle in about 6-8 months.

concealer404

jimmydep wrote: »

If your looking to "BULK" up the best way is with resistance training.....Use Free weights, or if you have the room maybe a Bowflex as they are fairly compact when folded up.

Pull-ups and push-ups are great for toning but for building mass you need weights coupled with a high protein & carb diet. Do a high weight low rep routine (10 reps) and working out 6 hrs a week you should be able to add 20 lbs of muscle in about 6-8 months.

Ah, so the Iron Gym wouldn't do much for bulking for me... What if i hung 50lb weights on my feet?

I'm already pretty toned, and i've got the high protein and carb diet as a habit anyways.

Guess i need to look around for used Bowflexs. Thanks!

Conradicles

The iron gym is great...my nephew has one and I promise the pull-ups will rip you up. It actually works much better than I thought it would.

concealer404

Conradicles wrote: »

The iron gym is great...my nephew has one and I promise the pull-ups will rip you up. It actually works much better than I thought it would.

Thanks! Do you have any thoughts on trying to use it to "bulk up?" I'm really just concerned about upper body at the moment... my leg strength is still fine from running/biking/etc.

Conradicles

You are much smaller than me (I'm 6'3" and 227 LBS.), but I KNOW it would bulk ME up.

I used it for one weekend only when I was visiting family and the pull-ups worked great for me.

concealer404

Conradicles wrote: »

You are much smaller than me (I'm 6'3" and 227 LBS.), but I KNOW it would bulk ME up.

I used it for one weekend only when I was visiting family and the pull-ups worked great for me.

Well, that's good news, at least. I do need to look into tying some weights to my feet or something.... i know for a fact i can do over 30 pullups with just my body weight right NOW.

I think i'll head out and grab one this week.... couple local places carry them so i don't have to deal with the shipping and handling bs.

fatchowmein

Bulk up? Rippe Toe's Starting Strength. That'll get you bulked up fast with the amount of calories you're ingesting but there may be a problem since you said space was a limiting factor. Just mentioning it in case you want to make time and room for it.

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=998224

I have the Iron Gym. I use it with P90x (almost finished) and dumbbells. I guess potentially you could add an additional 30lbs to your frame with the Iron Gym if you progressively strapped additional weights or people to you during pullups/chinups.

It's like $30. You could always try it out and sell it here if you don't like it.

SolidSqual

I've had a lot of success with BodyElastics.com (Terrel Owens Version) in combination with Dead weights and Machines. You and I seem to have the same body, although I'm a little taller. If I stop working out for a month, I'll lose 15 pounds, easy.

concealer404

SolidSqual wrote: »

I've had a lot of success with BodyElastics.com (Terrel Owens Version) in combination with Dead weights and Machines. You and I seem to have the same body, although I'm a little taller. If I stop working out for a month, I'll lose 15 pounds, easy.

Hrmmm... i'll have to check out the body elastics. Machines are probably out for me, though. Just won't have the space to keep anything at home, or the time to drive to a gym. There's a decent gym at work, but i'll be commuting 3 hours a day, working 8-10 hours a day, i won't want to hang around here any more than i have to. Just being realistic.

Losing the weight like that sucks, huh? I sit around and eat all winter because there's not much to do around here in winter, and when spring comes, i look like a white skeleton. Annoying.

bklynNupe

I’ve owned a couple of those home gyms over the years. The last was the Total Gym. While resistance exercises were ok, over time I don’t think it would out -perform old fashion calisthenics. Some folks get good results from these home gyms. For me, these home-gyms just don’t work for me because I get bored doing the same routine. All of those things just wind up becoming expensive clothing racks in my house!
Personally, I have benefitted most from joining my local gym and sticking with it over the last 14 months. Plenty of free weights, machines, and little attitude. It also feels good to get that little reimbursement check from my health- insurance plan. I’m able to clock in my 50 visits in about three months on average.

I’m not a big muscle head, but I’m pretty sure I can choke-out one of these young boys if necessary. So far as home machines, I know a lot of folks swear by those Perfect Push-Up hand grips. In fact, my gym which consists of mostly free-weights has a couple of them.

If you want to save some money, you might want to look for some of these on CL. Good luck.

concealer404

bklynNupe wrote: »

I’ve owned a couple of those home gyms over the years. The last was the Total Gym. While resistance exercises were ok, over time I don’t think it would out -perform old fashion calisthenics. Some folks get good results from these home gyms. For me, these home-gyms just don’t work for me because I get bored doing the same routine. All of those things just wind up becoming expensive clothing racks in my house!
Personally, I have benefitted most from joining my local gym and sticking with it over the last 14 months. Plenty of free weights, machines, and little attitude. It also feels good to get that little reimbursement check from my health- insurance plan. I’m able to clock in my 50 visits in about three months on average.

I’m not a big muscle head, but I’m pretty sure I can choke-out one of these young boys if necessary. So far as home machines, I know a lot of folks swear by those Perfect Push-Up hand grips. In fact, my gym which consists of mostly free-weights has a couple of them.

If you want to save some money, you might want to look for some of these on CL. Good luck.

I've actually got the Perfect Pushup hand grips already... i'll have to dig them out.

Like i said... i'd join a gym if i ever thought i would have the motivation to drive the hour round trip even twice a week, but considering i'm going to be stuck in a car commuting at least 15 hours a week already, i'm sure that won't happen, so for the time being, i'm going to stick with stuff i can do at home.



Fatchowmein, that Ripp Toe's starting strength thread is a VERY interesting read. Thanks! Ironically enough, i already eat almost EXACTLY what is laid out there, which is bolstering my enthusiasm a bit, knowing that i won't have to change much other than dedicating a few hours a week to working out. No necessary changes in diet or portions for that matter.

SolidSqual

concealer404 wrote: »

Hrmmm... i'll have to check out the body elastics. Machines are probably out for me, though. Just won't have the space to keep anything at home, or the time to drive to a gym. There's a decent gym at work, but i'll be commuting 3 hours a day, working 8-10 hours a day, i won't want to hang around here any more than i have to. Just being realistic.

Losing the weight like that sucks, huh? I sit around and eat all winter because there's not much to do around here in winter, and when spring comes, i look like a white skeleton. Annoying.

I used the BodyElastics as a way to exercise when I went to live abroad for several months this summer. They worked great, I actually gained muscle and definition instead of merely trying to maintain.

bklynNupe

Ok, I missed that you said you are trying to bulk-up in your original post.
Forget that Iron Gym, it will not help you reach your goal.
IMO, you are going to have to use free-weights. I’m 6’2” and also have a very high metabolism. I started at 168lb and went up to 225lb, now I’m down to 218lb

Squats, Dead-lifts, bench, etc. Dead-lifts are my favorite but like all weight-training, perfect form is mandatory.
I also eat plenty of complex carbs such as Steel-Cut oatmeal and Brown rice. You need a lot of lean protein for muscle gain. I also add protein shakes. I use a brand called Healthy –n- Fit from the Vitamin Shoppe which has 45g of whey protein.

jimmydep

bklynNupe wrote: »

Ok, I missed that you said you are trying to bulk-up in your original post.
Forget that Iron Gym, it will not help you reach your goal.
IMO, you are going to have to use free-weights. I’m 6’2” and also have a very high metabolism. I started at 168lb and went up to 225lb, now I’m down to 218lb

Squats, Dead-lifts, bench, etc. Dead-lifts are my favorite but like all weight-training, perfect form is mandatory.
I also eat plenty of complex carbs such as Steel-Cut oatmeal and Brown rice. You need a lot of lean protein for muscle gain. I also add protein shakes. I use a brand called Healthy –n- Fit from the Vitamin Shoppe which has 45g of whey protein.

I agree with BN. on the weights and the diet.... I have the Bowflex and it can do 60+ different exercises, with 300lbs of resistance. The nice thing about the Bowflex is it takes up a small amount of space, it's safer to use than free weights, you don't need a spotter, and you can easily change up your routine, so you don't get bored.

Jimmy

Sherardp

Well apparently you dont need any of that stuff. A car bumper, a street sign, a bus stop covering. Any of those will work bro. You just need a hood workout.

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CaligulaPolk

i heard this destroys trims or/ drywall plaster by ur door.

sTiLlLeArNiNg

suck's to hear about your accident i'm kinda in similar situation myself long story short: car accident ~2yrs ago caused pretty bad neck/back/arm injury preventing me from working and doing MANY "normal" thing's :mad: i'm just starting to be able to exercise again (albeit very light exercise) and it feel's great!

IMO stay away from universal type machine's! i owned a bowflex for some time and the thing was a TOTAL waste of money :mad: :mad: free weight's/resistance training is the best IMO

eat lot's of protein and supplement with some type of whey powder to increase "size" potential. another thing i'd reccomend is researching a lil' bit about nutrition to help improve the situation. good luck!

fatchowmein

CaligulaPolk wrote: »

i heard this destroys trims or/ drywall plaster by ur door.

Mine scratched up the paint on the wall section that is over the door frame. This is after 90 days. So far, no damage to the frame itself nor the paint on the frame on either side. I'm 155 lbs.