Titanic's Bizarre Gym: A Look Inside

Welcome aboard the time machine we call the Titanic! Using an extract taken from a live stream we did back in July of 2023, we’re jumping into an in-depth analysis of the Titanic’s gym and the uncommon equipment used in1912. I’m joined by Jack and members of the Titanic Honor and Glory team including Matt DeWinkeleer and Kyle Hudak. We examine contraptions that look more like Rube Goldberg inventions to exercises that seem straight out of a slapstick comedy, this gym is really a blast from the past in more ways than one! Get ready to laugh, cringe, and maybe even break a sweat (from laughing too hard) as we uncover the weirdest, wackiest workout equipment ever seen on a luxury liner. It's a journey back in time that's guaranteed to leave your abs sore... Get it? Let’s educate ourselves on some of the bizarre exercise machines the passengers and crew used to stay in shape.
00:00 INTRO
02:14 Electric Camel
02:33 Abdomen Rubbing Machine
03:33 Back Rubbing Machine
04:37 Trunk Rotation Machine
06:46 Vibration Machine
07:58 Rowing Machine
08:05 Pulley Machine
08:12 Cycle Exercisers
08:35 Gym Rules
10:40 Missing Gym Equipment
11:51 Weight and Height
14:18 Analogue Cycle Distance Tracker
16:38 OUTRO
Oceanliner Designs explores the design, construction, engineering and operation of history’s greatest vessels- from Titanic to Queen Mary and from the Empress of Ireland to the Lusitania. Join maritime researcher and illustrator Michael Brady as he tells the stories behind some of history's most famous ocean liners and machines!
#Titanic #fitness #gymgear #1912 #strange #unconventional #workout #exercise #vintage #history #explore #shipwreck #fitnessgear #throwback #retro #sweat #fitfam #oceanliner #museum #luxuryfitness #GymEquipment #History #Strange #Unusual #Unique #Shipwreck #Fitness #Workout #Exercise #Vintage #Rare #Museum #Travel #Explore #Curious #Fascinating #Ocean #Discovery #Famous

[@OceanlinerDesigns]

Which bit of equipment surprised you the most? I know some of them are funny and just plain bizarre but I was impressed by the weight pulley machine - it wouldn't look out of place in a gym today!

[@christopherrosindale3175]

Mike, the Abdomen Rolling Machine's control lever was still in place in 1986, when Jason Juniour moved past the Gymnasium windows on one of Ballard's Alvin dives to the wreck. There is a photo of it inside one of the windows in Ballard's book "The Discovery of the Titanic." Another photo in the same sequence shows a fragment of the protective mesh elsewhere in the room.

[@GrimLock0027]

⚓🚢

[@ShadowDragon8685]

My aunt and I have been sitting here in New Jersey, just watched the Trunk Rotating Machine, and I've been *slapping my thigh* and snapping my fingers because it was _so_ familiar but I just couldn't place it, then the other fellow described how it works. We have those *all across America,* usually in Honkey-Tonk bars, and turned up to eleven: it's the ancestor of a mechanical bull that simulates a rodeo ride event where the you put your quarter or whatever into the machine, and it does its best to throw you off whilst you do your best to stay on. The Trunk Rotating Machine is *that,* but slower and not as drastic; it's not *trying* to throw you, but it's still forcing you to maintain your balance, by moving your body.

[@JefferyHall-ct2tr]

I like the dual bikes! That would have been fun at the time, and you would get some real exercise from those.

[@tarstarkusz]

You're laughing at 12:50 and 13:23 in total ignorance of how metabolism and weight loss happens. YES!!! You lose weight while exercising. It's called metabolism. The body burns the sugars or fats which creates byproducts, specifically heat and CO2. You breathe out the CO2 and that is the mechanism by which you lose weight. It doesn't come out the other end.

[@Tindometari]

The rowing training came in handy later in the voyage.

[@951258tike22]

Woah, too soon! lol

[@ricardohuante4729]

@@951258tike22100 plus years

[@irwinisidro]

There was a deleted scene in Titanic where they visit the gym, and Rose's mom makes a snark comment about who needs that skill. And apparently Cal was in a rowing team.

[@GreenJeep1998]

Not gonna lie, I did laugh.

[@cats2927]

​it's was over 100 years ago.... I don't think that's to soon lol

[@rrice1705]

Vibration machine? Rubbing machine? Measuring stick? Sigmund Freud would have had a field day writing about this so-called "gym."

[@LongJumpingSurprise]

Freud? Is he a passenger?

[@cyrilio]

I think the vibrating machine was used a lot differently between genders.

[@Sabrinajaine]

@@LongJumpingSurprise His ideas about the male preoccupation with size might be of particular interest to you

[@JacquelineLanceTenor]

​@@LongJumpingSurprise you beat me to it. I came to comment this line 😂

[@coogar39]

Lmbo!! Right!!

[@AlecFlackie]

I approve of a gym with equipment whose major interaction involves sitting.

[@murph64]

I might just be in a silly mood anyway but this vid has made me laugh so much 😭 “Explain, Mike, how you think you would mount this” incredible question, no notes

[@chrysalisamidst]

Have to agree 😎😅

[@roseswife]

yeah that's why his channel is like paid therapy ahahhaa

[@jefferinno]

LMAO that shit was hilarious

[@jefferinno]

I just went back, the music😂

[@GlamorousTitanic21]

I love the opening with the Mauretania plowing toward the screen ^^

[@whillard2447]

I think this is actually Lusitania, but I might be wrong ^^’

[@BalhaMilan]

@@whillard2447 It's Lusi, if you set the quality to the highest you can make out the ship's nameplate on either side

[@Ship.nerd.433]

@@BalhaMilanyou can also tell it’s Lusi by the fore peek on Maure more of the railing had a section of it bulwarked

[@MiniMC546]

It's Lusitania, not Mauretania

[@jLoRaineK]

I wonder why he chose the Lus? It's beautiful for sure.

[@Randomstuffs261]

Mike Brady, friend from OceanLiner Designs And Gym Instructor

[@cyberleaderandy1]

Expert on vibration machines no less 😊

[@jajssblue]

Clearly an opportunity to a second channel.

[@tarstarkusz]

It's a shame him and his buddies are wrong. They are laughing(12:50) at the concept of losing weight as you exercise. This is absolutely how you lose weight. Your body brings in oxygen and oxidizes either food or fat which converts it into water, CO2 and heat. You breath out the co2. IOW, if you lose 50 pounds in one year, you breathed most of that out of your mouth. Laughing at someone who you think is wrong when you are the one who is wrong is messed up.

[@jj-if6it]

And Brady Bunch father

[@maxonite]

@@cyberleaderandy1👀👀

[@TheLuisg92]

“What a horrifying room” I couldn’t agree more as that those things look more like torture devices than exercise machines. It seems to me like you’d get injured before managing to burn any calories.

[@Stanty16]

Its funny that they went to the effort of designing different bikes for men and women, mounted them side by side infront of a measuring device so that people on said bikes could compete against each other... and then segregated the times so that men and women had to use the gym separately! Of course, both men and women could physically use either bike without issue, but the logic of it is fantastically bizarre

[@jimjellyjinjamjimbo]

It’s the same reason why men and women have differently-designed bicycle seats, because what’s between their legs…

[@Master-im7jc]

One of the saddest things was as the ship sank the on board gym instructor keeping passengers entertained

[@BrownEyePinch]

They made a choice to stay?

[@Drew791]

He kept screaming at them to give him 20!

[@jj-if6it]

Hmm never heard this before

[@IreneWY]

Back rub machine sounds like a massage chair and I love it 😅😅

[@GreenJeep1998]

Was thinking the same, wonder how well that belly rubbing machine would work on the lower back too!

[@ruatnec66]

Never did I think I needed a video about the gym in titanic, but I love it

[@marhawkman303]

Now I wanna see a 3-d model of the Great Eastern in her original configuration. She had a 3-story grand ballroom... just... I've only seen a few snapshots, doesn't give much idea of just how grandiose it was.

[@ruatnec66]

That would be impressive. Seeing it in person would be something else

[@scoobdoos]

It’s our friend, Mike Brady, from Oceanliner Designs!

[@F-Man]

Mike Brady, our friend from Oceanliner Designs, never fails!

[@trainnerd3029]

Me… “He’s gotta be running out of Titanic stuff”! Him… “Hey… Want to hear about the weird stuff in Titanic’s gymnasium“?

[@jec1ny]

Some of those contraptions remind me of these strange vibrating beds you could find in many motel rooms (USA) back in the 1970s. They called them Magic Fingers and it cost a quarter which you put into a coin slot on the nightstand. They were supposed to be some kind of mechanical massage but all it did was shake the bed. It was great fun for kids though.

[@MGower4465]

I just remember those. You usually were ready for it to be over well before time expired but you couldn't sit up and you didn't wsnt to roll off into the shag carpet of doom.

[@GreenJeep1998]

I forgot about those!

[@richardolko6660]

Mike, the Edwardians might have been onto something. My wife uses a elecrtic platform machine which rapidly skakes and is intended to reduce leg swelling (Lymphedema). It won’t reduce much weight, if any, but supposedly helps the lymphatic system.

[@marhawkman303]

Heh, this is actually one of the dozens of uses Hitachi lists for their magic wand vibrators. They actually are a great massaging tool.

[@evil1by1]

This is one of the reasons I think it was there. The single biggest cause of lymphedema (globally) is worms. Parasites block or damage lymph channels causing lymph to pool in limbs and extremities and I image this was much more common then than now. I also imagine palsy and contracture of the limbs was more common as well due to polio and other diseases. External massage and movement of the limb can be very useful in reducing pain and stiffness. I could also see where folks would think it might help with gout and arthritis. Its certainly not harmful and you can buy devices to this day that do things like this.

[@marhawkman303]

@@evil1by1 yeah modern "medicine" and I use the term loosely, is obsessed with pharmacies. If it's not approved by Big Pharma docs treat it as snake oil... but... Big Pharma's track record is getting worse every year. So, they're not exactly trustworthy.

[@beauthaven6280]

The moment this popped up on my screen my face lit up. Ever time Oceanliner designs uploads I know it’s going to be a good day

[@user-et2xc2ww6q]

The machines in the Titanic Gym were fascinating Mike . Thanks for this . Awesome .

[@WheelzSingz]

I believe the lay down back running machine was actually a very early of a chiropractic table that was laid on and the rollers rolled up and down the spine to loosen and relax stiff muscles in the spine. The trunk machine should be like the riding camel machine...while the camel or horse trots in a forward motion to practice balance and posture in horseback riding. The trunk rolling machine should strengthen core muscles by rolling from side to side and helping achieve balance with different muscles than the forward riding camel. You can hold the frame for the trunk machine for balance to accompany the foating camel. Remember many of the ship's passengers were equestrians and would have loved the machines while they cannot ride their animals on the voyage. The seat with the rope might actually be a thing to sit on and pull up on the rope as if it were a climbing rope but safer for people so they didn't fall a far distance while using the climbing rope. You put your butt on the seat, put your feet on the foot rest and pull up on the rope to simulate a climbing rope.

[@AmbuBadger]

Ah, nothing like waking up on a Sunday morning to see a video how people over a hundred years ago had better fitness habits than me... On a side note, I remember seeing equipment like this in older cartoons, kinda gave you a vague idea of how they're supposed to be used (just without the mouse and tomcat trying to kill each other during your workout).

[@user-yi3yx2fn7g]

I never knew I needed a crossover between gym bros and Brady, but here we are and it is amazing! Thankyou!!

[@cyberleaderandy1]

I remember that the Queen Mary had a similarity wacky gymnasium like this on display when we went in the 1990s 😊

[@RexImperatorTerra]

I have waited so long for a video on the Titanic's gym!! Thankyou so much!! It will be great to see videos on the other health facilities - the squash court, pool, and Turkish bath, with its own odd fixtures. I've always been fascinated by the peculiar little passenger spaces on Titanic - the gym, the dog kennels, the hospital, the barber salons, the a la carte restaurant. So excited to see them coming up! Is there evidence of the gym on Olympic being popular? Did passengers actually use these facilities, or were they more of a novelty? And I really wish my gym had an Electric Camel 💪

[@thequietobserver3498]

I could imagine these machines making a comeback in some hipster crossfit gym

[@christopherweise438]

Exactly. With a Penny Farthing as an exercise bike.

[@Alscyom]

Each time a pleasure to have a notification from our friend Mike Brady from Oceanliner Designs !

[@bingcoteeagle6932]

I wouldn't say these machines were weird at all. When one looks at them in a social/historical context, the time period covered; the late victorian to early edwardian period. It was a time of extensive discovery and experimentation of the human anatomy. The myriad of exercise types of contraptions are an extension of this. History viewed without context tends to lead to a misunderstanding of the subject viewed. Love your content, always interesting and informative.

[@AulusClaudiusNero]

Indeed, without some of these trials and the inevitable errors that came of them, there would have been no development into the machines people know today.

[@DistractedGlobeGuy]

Just the fact that they understood the importance of a post-workout massage to prevent stiffness is more than a lot of people would expect of a period where feudalism was still the official mode of production for the majority of the white populace.

[@ericalbany]

They were big on Passive Exercize - machines that moved you about without the need to expend a great deal of physical energy.

[@hsmith6281]

Wish someone would replicate that crazy equipment and show how it works! Would be very interesting. Thank you!

[@michaelcanty4940]

Thomas W.McCawley was the instructor for the gym. His picture using a rowing machine was taken by Fr. Francis Browne (SJ) was taken on the third phase of the voyage. He did not survive the sinking.

[@dereks1264]

It's never a bad day when my friend, Mike Brady, uploads a video.

[@BrownEyePinch]

A gym with ashtrays I'm sure

[@spergnation1859]

I hope so. God I wish I had a time machine. Take me back.

[@DistractedGlobeGuy]

Not so sure about that-there were several rooms that were specifically designated as smoking areas for first class, and a whole lot of plaques all over just about every interior wall and bulkhead admonishing passengers not to smoke outside those spaces.

[@argusfleibeit1165]

@@DistractedGlobeGuy I think at that point, there was still a lot less smoking overall. The age of "cigarettes everywhere, all the time, for nearly everyone" didn't really catch on probably until the Second World War, after the Depression was over. Movies really normalized it, so that people didn't feel like they looked right without one in their hand, and surrounded by clouds of smoke.

[@DistractedGlobeGuy]

@@argusfleibeit1165 cigarettes were only just coming into style on the eve of WWI-but dip, pipes, and cigars were *the* gentleman's passtime. Still, one would expect the austere and wealthy denizens of first class to be respectful of White Star's policies regarding which areas did and didn't allow smoking. Those looking for a place to light up already had the Versailles lounge *and* the gentlemen's club on A-deck, the tea room on D-deck, the palm court on B-deck, the exterior boat deck, the A-deck exterior walkways, their own private rooms, and apparently even the bathrooms. They didn't need to also smoke in the gym.

[@External2737]

Cigarettes came into style for men during the civil war. Soldiers' diaries called them coffin nails. It was the era of TB when smoking was thought as healthy. Actually, until Sulfa antibiotics, smoking was neutral on lifespan. Afterwards, detrimental.

[@Echo2-2]

I think the abdomen rubber was the strangest pieces of equipment

[@jedimasterpickle3]

Well TIL Titanic even had a gym to begin with. This was very entertaining seeing all these machines.

[@metallicasnake]

Mike, you and the team provide videos that give us so much to learn every time. Thank you for what you do.

[@OceanlinerDesigns]

Thank you very much!

[@TheDisneylover23]

I can not imagine exercising in full dress with a suffocating corset on. Those people were different.

[@matthewmozingo3625]

Introducing the Athletic Corset! Now with elastic sides for ease of motion…. and plenty support without restriction. lacedunlaced.wordpress.com/2016/11/21/1895-1910-corset-advertisement-ferris-bros-athletic-waist-bicycle-corset-waist/

[@danielintheantipodes6741]

How amazing! Seriously fascinating! Thank you for the video! Have an amazing week Mike!

[@maxonite]

Looking good Mikey! Seeing a new vid from you my timeline always brightens the day!

[@maicon.93]

so much to still learn about this amazing ship! thank you!!!!

[@EIbereth]

This is so interesting, thank you! ❤

[@brucekinghorn4961]

Not only interesting Mike. Some of that equipment is bloody hilarious!🤣

[@Sumermak]

This is awesome!! Do more ❤❤

[@Hairnicks]

Absolutely fascinating.

[@SlurpySOT]

Hey mike love ur vids and keep up the great work🎉🎉

[@OceanlinerDesigns]

Thank you!

[@jacobduncan2142]

I grew up with the Titanic: Adventure out of Time PC game, and you meet your contact Penny in the Gym. That's the only reason I know of the odd machines so well. The game sent me down a rabbit hole of early exercise equipment, and boy are there some weird things People used to think were good for Vim and Vigor. 😂

[@SawChick249]

Hey its my friend Mike Brady... Seeing a new video by you in the morning is always a good omen for the day and starts every day out right. Thanks for another great installment and I hope you have a good day. 🍻

[@danesorensen1775]

Always cool to hear Kyle's voice, without whom I never would've found Well There's Your Problem podcast.

[@laa0fa502]

I WAS HOPING FOR THIS VIDEO. IM ESTATIC. Such an underrated piece of history that can tell us so much as well as provide so many head scratching chuckles

[@CelestialCaboose2472]

Watching them try to stay serious while talking about the "trunk rotation machine" was something.

[@justinrizzo1724]

The trunk rotating machine.. you see the handle? Sit and rotate 😂

[@michaelbizon444]

Every single piece of equipment in that gym was better for you than sitting like a bump watching TV for hours.

[@T3ki1a_]

How is that any different than any current gym? I fail to see the point

[@brodriguez11000]

Watching a Kukla, Fran, and Ollie puppet show while exercising.

[@GreenJeep1998]

@@T3ki1a_ There’s no TVs to look at in that gym.

[@ano_nym]

@@T3ki1a_ In a modern gym you will actually gain muscle when using the equipment.

[@xtina6569]

What did tv ever do to you

[@ksull72487]

New favorite guy. Subscribed

[@c1v1c59]

I’m so happy this video was made I was literally trying to figure out what was going on with this gym

[@ceeg88]

What a nice treat for a Sunday evening 🙂

[@Alexey_ldk]

Thank you 👍

[@julieputney4317]

I did learn things I didn't know I always do!

[@chriscothran8744]

Watching this video while doing my own morning exercise has gotta be some sort of meta 😂

[@chcknmr]

I love not just all the stuff you learn and see from these videos but the ships whistle when the logo first appears at the start of each video.

[@JesusLovesYou-nd1rz]

Titanic's gym is more advanced than I had thought. A great video from Oceanliner Designs.

[@enjoythemoment6596]

I want a membership to this type of gym. I found the equipment very interesting. Thank you for sharing, this was very informative and engaging.

[@xtina6569]

Me eating chocolate whilst watching this vid thinking 'pffft you wouldn't get much of a workout there'

[@Quenstar]

The term "trunk" refers to the human body between the legs and shoulders, so the machine makes the body sway to work your core muscle groups.

[@richardsweeney197]

Around that time a woman at the beach in Revere MA. Was arrested because her bathing suit left her ankles exposed, she was charged with indecency. So separate bikes and mechanical camels/horse is no surprise.

[@macalroy3810]

Oh I love this channel. Even the early vids are great. I just came to this after the "How did Titanic's design change" video. Have to ask Mike can we get a bloopers vid at some point? The bloopers at the end of that vid were great.

[@mike.4277]

The gym now is completely collapsed 😢. Great video 💯💯

[@jj-if6it]

Have been a Titanic buff since before the movie and only ever knew what a few of these items were! So cool

[@jo34719]

Mike very nice video those guys really have done a nice job on that recreation. It brought something to mind when Bob Ballard dove down to Titanic with the robot JJ he looked into the Gym window and there was a handle sticking up in the middle of that window. That must have been that Trunk machine to bad he couldn't have gotten more inside to see what was left.

[@ApatheticGod0]

5:15 i think it makes a lot of sense. the trunk of a tree is the body so if i had to guess, it's a type of torso torsion machine designed to make you roll (slightly kinda similar to mimicking the motion of hula hooping) and is meant to exercise your lats and back. whereas we have lateral torso machines (where you face forwards and turn against a weight so when you turn you lift them), i think this is a more antiquated design which is more akin to a hula hoop. Far from being insane, considering the time, modesty (which likely prevented in depth university and company exercise testing), and an overall comparative lack of exercise knowledge with regard to relatively modern equipment, this is quite impressive. then we had ab massagers, now we have crunch machines. (i think there is also an argument that perhaps the first class gout passengers the ultra rich, probably wouldn't want to do crunches and pull ups, so perhaps there's the additional point of 'tell them what feels good IS good and they won't complain' but that's more of a tinfoil had point from myself. either way, hi mark, i appreciate your work and your videos; i look forward to catching you with THG on the 9th.

[@MW-bi1pi]

Hi Mike, Love your channel. The machine on the left side that you lay down upon is a form of Spinal Traction machine. The bronze colored roller travels from the Thoracic Spine down to the Lumbar Spine as it goes back and forth. The cut out where you lay on your back is so the rotating wheel can make contact with your spine. The amount of pressure and travel can be varied to the length of the person using it. They are still in use in some Physical Therapy and Chiropractic Offices in much improved forms. I have been on them a few times and they actually work quite well for back spasms and pain. The machine that vibrates when you sit on it is also still used today in modern form; it normalizes Neuro-Muscular Proprioception and is used for balance and strength in the Lower Extremities.....They look weird as did old cars of the time, but they would still get you from point A to B; just a little slower. Not too shabby for over a Century ago.

[@ericlew9992]

Very interesting Mike. I'm glad they mentioned the dial, I couldn't imagine why the bikes were facing the wall instead of the middle of the room

[@viannedemirel]

Thank you for this video, my friend Mike Brady from Ocean Liner Designs, indeed a horrifying room lol

[@Shinzon23]

Surprisingly modern looking for some of those machines.

[@borisromanoff4244]

Great video!

[@AleksLazar]

Fascinating

[@MultimediaIreland]

Chiropractors definitely still have mad contraptions like those, physios use massage guns today which are similar. I'd guess those vibrating machines are for working out knots in muscle tissue, how a foam roller or massage gun work today.

[@DistractedGlobeGuy]

That's exactly it. You can actually see by how the room is laid out what the general purposes of the machines were: The forward-outboard quadrant has all the torsion and tension equipment for your pre-workout stretches; then you warm up in the forward-inboard quadrant at the cardio stations; once you get your pulse up into yohr target range, the aft-inboard quadrant has all your weighted resistance machines for strength training; and finally, a nice post-workout massage provided by the various oscillating contraptions in the aft-outboard quadrant so that you don't come out of the gym all stiff and bruised. There was clearly a good deal of thought that went into how people would actually use all this stuff, even more than a decade before anybody had ever heard the word "ergonomics".

[@skyden24195]

It looks, from what could be seen, that on the "back rubbing" machine there seems to be small wheels underneath the bench opening that were attached to the motor. That could be assessed as a person was to lay on their back (upon the bench) and then adjust the bench level to the desired depth of the wheels' contact to the person's back, and then the wheels would, via the motor's operation, "rub" the person's back as they lay on the bench.

[@LRSNRCNG309]

Ive never actually seen the gym before so this is pretty cool

[@dueljet]

Awesome!

[@katie.edwards]

Very interesting! I think I need the back massage machine 😂😂

[@JPOP2010]

It always makes my day when our friend Mike Brady posts a new video.

[@bradfry5403]

Thanks Mike great video, you would think that the Titanic's gym would be bigger than that

[@jj-if6it]

Love the rare photo of the gentlemen using the gym equipment

[@phaasch]

Brilliant, Mike, and thank you- I have so often wondered about the gym, and you've answered a lot of questions, although I still can't get the image out of my head of the whole place filled with Edwardian clones, all in long johns and with prominent moustaches, taking the whole thing very seriously! I credit you for keeping a straight face through a lot of that, particularly the back-rubbing, and trunk-rolling machines! Does anyone know whether Thomas W Mcawley survived or not?

[@brodriguez11000]

Titanic Wiki says no.

[@WillowExpensive6636]

I didn't know I could be this interested by a place I never go to, on a ship that's not my favorite...

[@AllTheHappySquirrels]

This reminded me to go look up Zander machines, because i forgot after the live stream. Was not disappointed.

[@Heggie42]

I'm thinking the trunk rotating one was a bit like a more genteel bucking bronco. Quite good exercise, I should imagine! The massage stuff probably helped with tight muscles for those who who couldn't be as active as usual on an ocean voyage? We don't think of the upper classes being massively active perhaps but the huntin' shootin' fishin' lot or landowners might well struggle with the forced inactivity.

[@indygeo4267]

The gymnasium is among one of my favorite areas/rooms on the Titanic. My favorite would have to be the first class smoke room. The squash court is also one of my favorites.

[@Feline_Frenzy53]

Fascinating, Mike. I've always wondered what those things were. The one that got me the most was the belly rubbing machine. Wonder what it was supposed to really do?

[@brodriguez11000]

Rub for good luck. Apparently didn't work.

[@DistractedGlobeGuy]

Massage the abs after a workout to prevent stiffness and bruising. Not a bad idea, but definitely a primitive implementation.

[@serendussuyer8938]

Love these videos, Thanks Mike! Would love to see videos on Titanic’s Galleys and restaurants. I’ve always wondered what the kitchens and what each meal service would look like.

[@alexw.7097]

Just the other day, my boyfriend was delighted to find out about the Titanic's Potato Room!

[@DistractedGlobeGuy]

Matt deWinkleer (the 3D artist doing most of the explaining in this video) has a video on his channel about that very subject.

[@DistractedGlobeGuy]

​@@alexw.7097 and of course, you then showed him the ice cream vault on the deck just below.

[@alexw.7097]

@@DistractedGlobeGuy I FORGOT ABOUT THAT, I need to find the whole video

[@minecraftshipbuilder]

Not don’t make me sound bad but it’s really funny hearing a bunch of nerds talk about a gym

[@MxCraven]

Love the side by side racing bikes. They're still a feature at almost all cycling events! Sometimes we hook smoothie makers up to the wheels.

[@noyb7920]

Several "participatory museums" like to connect exercise bikes to generators and use that to power something nearby. Smart method of reducing rambunctious child energy to something slightly more manageable.

[@renegadetenor]

That right there, is the only way you're going to get me to cycle indoors!:)

[@FawnGesicht]

Great vids

[@JefferyHall-ct2tr]

Hello! It's an amazing thing about history that things repeat themselves over time. Nowadays when practically everyone is obsessed with diet and excercise, that WAY back, people were concerned, too. Some of the devices and theories are strange, but some are still used today! And here are Olympic and Titanic with Gym facilities that are universally found on passenger ships today! White Star Line pioneered a lot of health related amenities on these two ships! Very COOL!

[@mclatchyt]

This room feels like it should come with its own dominatrix. I feel like I need a safe word just to enter it!

[@cafiend]

A bike racing club near Washington DC held roller races in the off season. The two riders on the stationary rollers were connected to a dial apparatus that showed who was ahead. Heats were three minutes of anaerobic hell, as I recall. They may still do it down there. I was around the scene in 1980.

[@jonathanlee7355]

Was always curious about the equipment.. do the Turkish bath next! Lol

[@Maddd17]

I’m mystified by the gym having separate exercise times by gender AND separate machines by gender. Seems like one or the other would suffice 😂 Edit! 15:45 my comment still stands but I did forget about side saddle

[@tarstarkusz]

12:50 If any of you understand metabolism, you would understand that you DO lose weight while working out. The way you lose weight is fat is metabolized (oxidized) into CO2, water and heat (just like hydrocarbons). The co2 goes out of your body through you lungs. That is where your body weight goes when you lose it. This is also how ethanol leaves your system. It's why the breathalyzer cannot be defeated by mints or bubblegum.

[@AceOfHerts]

Have you considered a livestream or a recorded playthrough of Titanic: Adventure Out of time, that game started my interest in Titanic and other ships like it and the gym features

[@michaelmclaren7373]

The trunk rolling machine’s handle, I recall seeing in a video, was visible through a window on early expeditions as the gymnasium was intact when Ballard originally found her. I think the roof has since collapsed, however…?

[@gregorymoore2877]

I had Ballard's book, written shortly after the discovery. Seems like the walls were intact, but the roof was partially collapsed or starting to collapse.