The original universal gym was invented by Harold Zinkin as he started his company, actually called Universal Gym Equipment, in 1957 and was available in mass production in 1963. Harold was a body builder and held the title of "Mr California" in 1941 and was the runner-up for "Mr America" in 1945. He wanted to open up the sport to more of the novice market and knew that free weights had alot of limitation associated with them including injury, cost, time between exercises, etc.
So, he invented a centralized fitness station that utilized weight plates and weight stations to allow for users to quickly change weight levels, to transition quickly between exercises, to help users focus in on specific muscle groups and to decrease injury. The invention was highly unique at the time and quickly became a standard in gyms and fitness clubs across the country. The new universal gym allowed for novice body builders and fitness-focused individuals to do strength training with less risk, less training and less time.
