My home gym is in the unfinished basement of our house. It is filled with several weight benches including two York Multi-Purpose Benches, two York All-in-One Benches with all six attachments, and a York Flat Bench. As you can see in the above photo, the primary color of the York equipment is red.

I also have the York Portable Power Rack, which is used to safely squat or bench heavier weights. I have three of the attachments that were originally sold with the Power Rack--the 7’ Powerbar with inside collars, dipping/parallel bars, and the squatting attachments that hold the barbell when performing squats. I hope some day to add the wrist roller with strap, weight holder, and the special 5’ bar.

In future blog entries I will focus on individual York items, describe them, and then explain how I use them in our workout routines. Today I will talk a little about the York Portable Power Rack.

The WW Portable Power Rack was a weightlifting item ahead of its time. This little beauty allowed the lifter a safe means to push the envelope and lift heavier weights safely. The J-hook bars are inserted into the rack and would safely stop the barbell if it was dropped, a lifter ran out of juice, or an accident happened. The top of the rack was secured with a 46” bar that also served as a pull-up and chin-up bar.

I’ve been doing chin-ups since the beginning of this year. I will admit that at first I couldn’t do many chin-ups in a row. However, over the period of the last 2 1/2 months I have slowly been able to increase my reps on this exercise. I currently do three sets of 5 reps each. Stronger lifters will do more reps, of course, or add additional weight by strapping a weight plate or dumbell to his or her waist.

I also perform my squats in this power rack. There is plenty of room to do this exercise in the rack with its inside dimensions of 41” x 14”. In the future I plan on doing dips with the attachments I just obtained yesterday. They are sturdy and can be attached anywhere up and down the metal frame with the long rods.

Here are two photos of the safety pins that protect the lifter in case of a slip or drop. It was an ingenious idea!

Here is a picture of the squat attachments that hold the barbell for when doing squats.

Here is a photograph of the dipping/parallel bars. They attach to the sides and are kept solidly in place with long rods. It is very sturdy and when I do my dips there isn’t any slipping or sloppiness in the rack or attachment.

Finally, here is a picture of the 7’ powerbar with inside collars that was sold by York back in the day. It is a very sturdy and heavy barbell. The barbell is thicker in the grip area and turned down on the ends.

So far, I am using my York WW Portable Power Rack for chin-ups and squats. Today I hope to add a few dips to my routine. Eventually, I hope to acquire the wrist strap attachment so I can do wrist exercises with the rack, too. I really like the way this power rack looks and it is used literally every day in my workout routine. The versatility and attachments make this an important item in my home gym. I am also fortunate that this specific rack happens to be in excellent condition. I purchased it from a gentleman who originally bought it from York Barbell. He obviously took great care of this rack and I am honored to be able to have it on display and in daily use in my home gym!