York Perform Multi-Gym Review

This guide will take you through everything you need to know before you buy your York Perform Multi-Gym. In this review we’ll be looking at what it does, how it can improve your fitness and also looking at the best places to buy this home gym. This is one of the more popular all-in-one gyms that is normally in stock on places like Amazon.

What is the York Perform Multi-gym?

The York Perform Multi-Gym (Amazon) is a free standing home gym that combines many different exercise machines into one station. The idea is simple – have one bit of equipment that does many different jobs.

Before I jump into my review and let you know what I thought about the York Perform, here are some basics if you’re completely new to this gym, or this is your first multi-gym.

By using the various exercises, you’ll get a full body workout, just as you would a commercial gym. The weight stack has separate plates that can be added or removed from each exercise quickly and offers a maximum weight of 100kg. This is ideal for new users up to mid-level weight training.

There’s separate bars for each exercise so you don’t need to alter any parts to be able to do each exercise. Pulleys and cables are used to lift the weight up and down and a 1:1 weight ratio is used. This means if you set it to 50kg for a pull-down, that’s what you’ll be lifting.

Are York a decent brand?

York Fitness produce everything from kettlebells to full blown home gyms. Their products are used in both commercial and home gyms. York are definitely a good brand and have reliable customer service.

York Perform: Exercises you can do with it

You get a decent exercise chart with the York Perform, showing you how to do each exercise and the best form to do it in. Although, oddly enough it’s not for this exact gym.

Still, it’s easy to see what you’re meant to be doing and it’s well worth getting the form right when you start training with the York Perform. This means you’ll be exercising the intended muscle group and there’ll be less danger of injury.

So what are the main exercises you’ll be doing with the York perform? I’ll cover each one, with an explanation for anyone just getting into training.

Upper Body

Chest press – This is one of the main exercises you’ll find on any decent home gym. It’s basically a seated bench press, where you grab fixed handles on each side of you and push forwards. This is a chest exercise but you’ll strengthen your shoulders, forearms and biceps here too.

Pec Dec – Another chest exercise which will also hit your back, the fronts of your shoulders. You sit down, grab the bars in a sort of strong-man position and then bring your forearms together in front of you. This is another gym classic and you don’t need a great deal of weight to do it.

Bicep curl – While you can do these with dumbbells in a number of ways, the York Perform has a preacher bench, a padded surface you lean against while curling the weight upwards with both arms. This one really focuses on your forearms and of course biceps. There’s ample weight on the stack for even the strongest arms here.

Lateral pull down – Reaching up and grabbing the bar above your head in one of several possible hand positions, you pull the bar downwards ideally behind your neck. This one hits pretty much everything in your upper body and your core. You’ll really feel this in your shoulders, upper back and your arms. Good for here is the key and keeping your back straight.

Low rowing position – This is great for core training and building a stronger lower back, which can help if you ever get back pain at work.

Legs and lower body

• Leg extension

York Perform Setup

It’s not as bad as you think…

As with any of this style of multi-gym, this one requires self assembly, a fair bit of it. There aren’t many of us who like stuff that you have to put together, so what’s the Perform home gym like to assemble?

Although it takes some time to put together, everything is clearly labelled and the instructions are clear and simple to follow. Like a good Lego set, everything is broken down into smaller chunks and the screws are meticulously labelled so you won’t get mixed up.

You’re looking at around the 6 hour mark for complete assembly of this multi-gym. The instructions are nice and clear, with the bolts being on laminated card and even separated into stages. Take your time, stay organized and you’ll be fine.

Review: What I liked about the York Perform

Decent sized weight stack should be enough for pretty much anyone

It’s always hard saying if a multi-gym has ‘enough weight’ and looking at the specs doesn’t really help. The pulley system can vary a lot between machines making 65kg on one feel more like the 100kg on another.

The stack here is 100kg and it’s hard to imagine most gym users maxing it out. Especially for the exercise where you need less weight like the pec dec or bicep curls.

Like a commercial gym, you adjust the weight by sliding a pin under the weight you’d like to lift. It’s clanky but then so are the expensive gym ones. Overall the weight stack here is one the heavy side, especially for a smaller footprint of gym like the York perform.

The footprint is compact, for a home gym

One big problem with a lot of multi’s is that they demand a huge chunk of your garage or spare gym. The floorspace required here is 115cm x 45cm which is relatively petite compared to a lot of other gyms in this space. I’d have to check but I think this is one of the smallest foot prints for a home gym we’ve featured.

Despite that, nothing feels cramped here. It’s a single station gym and you don’t need to leave too much room around it (although you will need some room to the front for leg extensions.

• One of the smallest footprints of any home gym
• Solid, rugged construction
• Safe way to train, even on your own
• ‘Y-Frame’ frame for extra stability
• Smooth movement, using sealed bearings
• Large 100kg weight stack
• Separate bars for each exercise mean you don’t have to adjust anything
• Comfortable padded upholstery
• Two year warranty

Bad points: What doesn’t this multi-gym do well?

So far this sounds like the best thing since sliced bread but it wouldn’t be much of a review without diving into some of the shortcomings. On the whole, this is a good, solid home gym but there are a few things missing here.

Leg extensions could be more comfy

To be fair, this isn’t exactly my favourite exercise on any multi-gym, or stand alone leg extension. The pads are rarely thick enough and here they’re a hardened sort of foamy affair. They’re better quality than the budget multigyms out there bit they still dig in a bit, especially if you’re doing a decent weight.

It’s worth noting you can buy replacement pads that are much better than the ones you’ll find on pretty much any multigym.

Weight increments might be too large for some users

When you’re ready to go up a level in your training, which hopefully you will as you get stronger! The York Perform ties you into jumping up in steps of 5kg at a time. There’s also no way to add on a mid-point weight as you can get on a lot of strength training gear.

This isn’t a deal breaker for me as I’m used to this kind of weight but if you’re new to home gyms you might find this step up a little steep.

Verdict

Let’s get to the crunch: is the York Perform any good?

There’s a solid home gym here that covers all the major exercises and comes from a reputable brand. It’s surdy, has a meaty weight stack and each of the ‘stations’ in are comfortable and get the job done.

It doesn’t hog the floor space that many mutli-gyms are guilty of and is suitable for sharing with anyone else in your home.

The weight stack could have done with smaller increments in weight but that’s a minor complaint. Overall, this is a top-notch gym from York.

Video and overview

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvH29iw90ws

FAQS

Is this any good for a tall person?

The max height for this gym is going to be around  6′ 2″. Anyone up to that height will find there’s plenty of room and that it feels comfortable to use.

Gym Specs