Arthur Jones was the man who turned the gym world upside down in the 1970s. He designed the Nautilus and MedX machines and developed the HIT method – short, ultra-hard training that promised better results than hours of moving iron around. In this story we look at who he was, what he did and why his ideas are still hot today.
Who was Arthur Jones?
Arthur Jones was a self-taught engineer and experimenter. His path ran from traveling crocodile hunter to inventor of gym equipment – and that is how Nautilus was born. He didn’t believe you have to spend hours in the gym to build muscle. His message was bold and at times provocative: less is more, as long as the effort is serious.
Jones openly opposed the volume-based school known from Arnold Schwarzenegger’s methodology, which meant grinding away in the gym for days on end. His conviction was simple: the body grows during rest, not during the workout.
Arthur Jones and the HIT method
High Intensity Training means short, single sets (6-10 repetitions) in which you go to complete muscle failure every time – the point where you can no longer squeeze out a clean repetition. You train once, at most twice a week. The idea behind this rhythm is to give your muscles time to recover and supercompensate, which leads to hypertrophy and strength.
The list of people who trained under his guidance is impressive: Casey Viator, Eddie Robinson, the brothers Mike and Ray Mentzer, Sergio Oliva (the only one to win the Mr. Olympia title ahead of runner-up Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Boyer Coe.
Jones also published Nautilus Bulletins, in which he made a reasoned case against the exercise and workout-plan myths of the day. His research looked at how muscle structures respond to different training loads, in exercises with both limited and unlimited range of motion. Jones classified the results as specific (S-type) and general (G-type).
He was also one of the first to experiment with exclusively eccentric training – the phase in which the weight is lowered under control – and he stressed its importance for building strength. In his machines, cams replaced ordinary pulleys for the first time. This meant the resistance varied along the strength curves produced by the body’s muscle structures – a technical step whose effects are still felt in the gym industry today.
Arthur Jones and the Nautilus legacy
The arrival of Nautilus machines turned gym training into a mass sport. They were intuitive and safe for ordinary users too – not just for experienced strength athletes. This is exactly what kicked off the fitness boom of the 1970s and 80s and brought Nautilus gyms to shopping malls across the United States.
Commercially, it was a triumph. The Nautilus equipment and the sales company made Jones a multimillionaire and put him on the Forbes 400 list of the richest people. At one point, financial analysts estimated that Nautilus was earning $400 million a year. Arthur sold Nautilus Inc. in 1986 for $23 million. The same year he founded MedX Corporation, which he sold before retiring in 1996.
Jones died at his home in Ocala, Florida, on August 28, 2007, at the age of 80. He was survived by two daughters and two sons, Gary and William Edgar Jones. In 1989, Gary Jones founded the Hammer Strength Exercise Equipment Company.
What can today’s lifter take from all this?
The HIT method isn’t for everyone. If you enjoy spending long evenings in the gym and finding peace there, packing a whole week’s volume into one short set may seem far too harsh at first glance. But it’s worth trying – especially when a high-volume program no longer delivers results or you simply don’t have the time.
A simple truth: HIT demands clean technique and the ability to really push yourself. If you let the first slide and don’t know how to do the second, don’t expect miracles. Done well, though, it is one of the most effective ways to build muscle mass and strength – and with just one or two workouts a week.
Curious about going back in time and trying first-generation Nautilus machines? You can do that today at the HC GYM gyms in Tallinn. Besides Nautilus, Arthur also built up the brand of uncompromising machines MedX. You’ll find MedX machines at the Sikupilli HC GYM club.
FAQ
What sets the HIT method apart from regular gym training?
In regular volume-based training you do several sets for each muscle group, and often several times a week. HIT puts the emphasis on one hard set taken all the way to failure, and then lets the body recover for several days.
Is HIT suitable for beginners?
Yes, but only once your technique is in place. Training to muscle failure requires control – otherwise the risk of injury is real. In the first few weeks it’s worth going a little more conservatively and learning the exercises properly before you start doing single hard sets.
Can you actually try old Nautilus machines in Estonia?
Yes. HC GYM has brought both first-generation Nautilus machines and MedX equipment to Tallinn – both bear Arthur Jones’s signature.
Author: Timo Majuri
Come and train! ArtGym
