Iron Asylum – Review

OK. Straight away I cannot translate what the Iron Asylum (Facebook link) is without you experiencing it in person, but I will give it a good go. Iron Asylum is located in Redcar with is a coastal town in the North East of England. From their Facebook and especially Instagram pages this gym looked hardcore as hell, with artwork adorning all the walls, heavy duty machines and members who certainly dedicated a significant part of their lives in there (see for yourself, click the links above).

It was a usual British summer day, wet and miserable as I arrived in Redcar. Soaked to the bone I arrived at the Iron Asylum, which is just off a main road and down an alley way. I recall reading a review of how a new member was nervous upon visiting and I was too. The large shutter with Monster Factory and massive muscular character sprayed on in it. Like the guy doing the review I was nervous too. I’ve been to a lot of gyms all varying in what they offer, what they specialise in, but this was probably the first gym I had been to that I had been told was hardcore. If the images on social media didn’t fully tell me this place was hardcore then that shutter hammered it home. I entered through a door to the side of the shutter and when I looked around I was in awe. This gym had that old skool hard as fuck vibe but it was more than a gym, it was like an exhibition of very impressive street art from the brand Monster Factory (more on that later). I was now excited; I walked through the ground floor of the gym and turned left into the shop/office space and met with Mick and Amy who are the Iron Asylum. I don’t know what I expected but Mick and Amy were incredibly welcoming and friendly, as if I had been a member for years. We had a great chat about all things gym related, about the online magazine I am doing and we obviously discussed their gym.

Iron Asylum has been opened approximately 20 years. It certainly was an authentic gym, that real hard working atmosphere. Both Mick and Amy’s passion for the industry was so apparent and their knowledge was impressive. I said to Mick that my initial impressions was this was the most hardcore gym I had been into by far. Mick casually told me Kai Greene had stated that it was the most hardcore gym he had been to in the UK and I’m not going to argue with him. The gym has had most of the top bodybuilders and some top strength sport athletes workout there. It has a reputation that proceeds itself.

To my workout; in this block of training Thursdays are the day I do my out of area gym visit and in this block it was back and biceps so I stuck with that. I was told that back and leg equipment was upstairs and shoulders, chest, arms and dumbbells where downstairs.

I was warned not be scared of the coffin on the way up, I was thinking I might have needed that if I was doing legs. My eyes were all over the place as I walked through the gym, not just at the heavy ass machines – which don’t match and this is something I agree with for a hardcore gym, Mick had hand selected all the equipment – but also the various art work, there was so much and I’ve littered this review with them. I warmed up and began on a seated cable row made by Savage. My warm up set almost buried me. This was so heavy, I had to put my ego well and truly in my pocket. The same goes for the close grip pull down and machine seated row. Those first three exercises were tough! But with atmosphere in the gym I felt compelled to keep pushing my limits. I done way too much on back as there was so many variants of pull downs and rows hitting all angles and areas of your back. A truly comprehensive section and selection of equipment for any back workout.

Also upstairs was the leg machines. So many leg presses, various squats, extensions, curls, calf raises. All hitting different angles, there is no excuse to ever skip legs here. So much so I am returning to do a heavy leg session in a couple of weeks. I have a feeling that coffin will be needed then!

Also upstairs was a deadlift platform and a couple of squat racks but a play area of sorts. I rope attached to a bag that you can load up and pull up down, simple but effective. A bar with big arse tyres on it, wagon wheels, kegs, a training log – it turned out it was a bit of a strongman section. I am definitely taking some of these ideas to the strongman gym I train at.

Downstairs there was copious benches, arm machines, chest and shoulders with a free weight area that had a cable that was fenced off and had the feeling of a prison yard. Imagery was all over again. Slogans are also on the walls throughout, but these aren’t the ‘keep going’ softly soft ones, these are littered with profanities. After overdoing it on the back, I also overdone it with the guns. The energy was insane in there. Every set was one more rep and then it was one more set. I definitely chased the pump and beyond. Then I saw this old chain triceps extension machine in the corner. That was heavy, seriously heavy, I could only crank out a couple of reps and I knew I was done.

I got changed and met with Mick again. Mick also has a clothing brand called the Monster Factory which he runs on his own. You can see the artwork from his gym on his clothing brand, or is it the other way round? I failed to ask but will find out. I don’t know when Mick sleeps, he has so much going on. Projects he told me about that aren’t for me to share right now but you seriously have to follow this gym (links at the top).

I left Iron Asylum as feeling part of the family. The members I spoke to were all friendly, Mick and Amy were extremely accommodating and I’d like to thank them for that, Finally, this was hardcore, truly hardcore. The equipment sets that tone, all hand picked and various brands but all of extremely good quality. If you want to experience a genuine hardcore gym then this is well worth the visit, form no matter were you’re from.