Arthur Jones and
High Intensity Training
Casey Viator before and after the Colorado experiment
Arthur Jones was one of the giants of modern body building, and his ideas are still controversial in the body building world today. He was famously the originator of High Intensity Training. A training method he developed in the 70’s that relied on short, single sets with high intensity (always to failure), which, according to Jones, triggers maximal muscular growth.
Jones was a highly unconventional man. Born on November 22 1926 in Mrilton, Arkansas, both his parents were doctors. Jones taught himself to read and by the time he was 5 he could understand both German and English Newspapers [1]. He started flying planes at the age of 13 and maintained a log of every flight he ever made (14,090 flights, 17,393.6 hours, across every state in America and 56 countries [1]. He joined the Navy in 1941 (at only 15) with almost a perfect test score on the entry exam. After the war Jones lived in Mexico, South America and Africa, before returning to America where he invented several weight training exercise machines and most famously created the Nautilus company to produce and market his Nautilus machines. He then went on to founded MedX Corporation, in which he invested millions to develop medical-based exercise and testing equipment. Jones was also the creator of the “Jumbolair” estate, 350 acres (1.4 km²) of wildlife sanctuary for orphaned African elephants and other wildlife.
