Bridges and Bars......

I can't begin to tell how many guys have been asking about bars that can be installed outdoors and able to stand the test of the weather extremes. The reality is that most products on the market are NOT made to withstand the elements of long term, sustained exposure outdoors.

Powder coated or other painted finishes are what is most commonly used and often described as weather proof. However, a couple years down the road, and the paint is chipping and rust is coming through......just like my black, wrought iron patio furniture. The painted finishes are just that; painted finishes.

So, Steelfit set out to find an alternative that would stand up to the test of time and the most extreme conditions possible. The steel industry's most durable solution, metalizing, is a substitute for painting steel that protects steel for decades longer than paint alone. This is a proven process, which has been used around the world for 90 years. Metalizing is the most versatile and effective coating available today for protecting mega steel structures, such as bridges and other exterior steel surfaces subject to the most extreme weather conditions.

Metalizing is a process by which a metallic coating is deposited onto a surface. Aluminum or zinc is sprayed onto a blast cleaned steel surface to form a protective coating. The metalized coating is both a barrier and a galvanic coating, which protects steel for 30 years or longer. Sealers and paint topcoats may be applied over the sprayed metal. The combined materials protect the underlying steel better than any of the materials.

Bottom line....there is no stronger or more durable finish and paint industry has been unable to counter with a painted only solution that compares in any way.

Introduced this month on the Steelfitstore.com, our wall mount bars and new Free Standing Bar are both available in a optional metalized finish.......serious durability for guys serious about bars.

So what does your STEELFIT pull up bar have in common with bridges around the country? They are built for long term durability and are finished in a top coat that is designed to withstand the elements....and then some. Bridges and Bars.....very cool!

Anniversary Celebration...Why Steelfit?

It was exactly a year ago that the Steelfit blog came to life along with the "pursuit of the perfect pull up".... and so much more. Looking back at the year, I thought I would re-publish that first post:

Why Steelfit?

There was a time when I thought that a good day in the gym meant working my way through a circuit of weight training equipment, doing 5 miles on a treadmill and dropping in some occasional free weights for affect. Most of the workouts were either pulled out of magazines or were a series of other simple isolated muscle group exercises I patched together.

It was a few years now that I was introduced to Crossfit by my friend Blair Morrison. Blair is a world class athlete and competitive CrosFitter. Check out his blog at www.crossfitmobile.blogspot.com. Needless to say, after my inaugural "Filthy Fifty", I was hooked and wouldn't look at exercising the same way again.

While CrossFit and fitness overall has become a passion and an integral part of my life, the ingenuity and creativity demonstrated by Blair and others like him is what inspired me to start Steelfit. There were more than one occasion when we would be working out in the early morning in Washington DC and I would be introduced to a new toy just acquired or proudly made by hand the day prior after a trip to the Home Depot; a giant slosh pipe, beer kegs for pressing/cleaning or a pair of parallettes made of PVC pipe. This always got us talking about the endless possibilities for using all sorts of things for the purpose of adding interest and challenge to a work out.

It wasn't long before I was ready to test my own sense of inventiveness. When the topic of conversation became the "lame" wall mounted pull up bar in our gym (too close to the wall to kip) or the only other options that were incorporated into a rack system, the mission seemed obvious. With a brother in the steel fabrication business (and the ability to build just about anything I could dream up), Steelfit was born along with a 12 foot, multiple station, varying grip, group pull up bar. The combination of my passion for fitness and my partners expertise in steel started us down a path that resulted in the formation of STEELFIT Strength Systems LLC.

As I travel, I try to check out boxes whenever I can and am always impressed with the ingenuity and creativity demonstrated in putting them together. While there are plenty of standard products out there, I love checking out the "bars" to see what the local guys have built.

The purpose of this blog continues to be a place to share ideas as a live "laboratory" or focus group of sorts. I will post images of new designs we have created and show previews of some of the custom pull up bar systems and other gym build outs we are working on. If you have seen something cool or have been thinking about a way to improve a current piece of equipment, share it.

The only limit we have is our imagination !!!

Bartendaz...Cool!

This past week was all travel, with the better part of the week in New York City. I LOVE NY! Took the time to get out and run a bit all over town and got a workout in at Crossfit Hells Kitchen one early morning.

As I was running uptown, across town and all around town, I started thinking back to some videos I had seen and some articles I had read on some guys in Harlem that had really popularized Free Style Pull up Work..... Bartendaz. Bartendaz Inc is the fitness division of Constellation a non-profit organization that unites physical fitness, martial arts, youth empowerment and hip-hop to push our youth and our communities to higher standards of physical, social and moral excellence. They promote a lifestyle that comprises the notion, that being healthy, intelligent and street smart is cool. Check out Bartendaz.com

While the moves the Bartendaz master also include push ups and parallel bars, its the incredible pull up bar work that has always piqued my personal interest.

They have been everywhere (articles, TV, etc) and a quick google search will return video after video. Take a look at a quick preview.



Earlier this year, I had been experimenting with some of the moves and as the year draws closer to the end, I will re-introduce some of this work into my morning gym time.