# At the Museum of Fitness (A Question About Old-Timey Gym Equipment)

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-the-museum-of-fitness-a-question-about-old-timey-gym-equipment/234679>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [March 16, 2004, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-the-museum-of-fitness-a-question-about-old-timey-gym-equipment/234679 "2004-03-16T18:36:50Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2004, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-the-museum-of-fitness-a-question-about-old-timey-gym-equipment/234679/1 "2004-03-16T18:36:50Z")

</div>

In an episode of _Seinfeld_, Jerry winds up with an old man for a personal trainer (I think it was Kirk Douglas). At the old trainer’s gym, Jerry remarks “What is this, some kind of museum of fitness?” upon seeing all of the old-timey qym equipment.

One of the devices in the gym was a wooden contraption, about six feet high and about five feet wide, with horizontal bars running the breadth of the contraption. They were spaced about eight inches apart.

Any idea what this was or what its purpose was? I vaguely remember my elementary school gym having one of those (mid to late 1970’s), but we never used it and were never taught its purpose.

TIA

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Frank\_2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8c91f0/32.png) [@Frank\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank_2)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2004, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-the-museum-of-fitness-a-question-about-old-timey-gym-equipment/234679/2 "2004-03-16T20:52:00Z")

</div>

[This site](http://www.funcal.com/en/aoursystem/a1movement/c3set3/c12ladder.htm) suggests the ladder is used for relaxing the spine and for abdominal exercises (crunches, I guess).