Is that causation or coorelation?
Nautilus happened about when Arnold became popular.
They may have happened around the same time. But, do really think Arnold was responsible for sports coaches and Mr. average joe and especially womenās acceptance of resistance training? Football coaches in particular, frowned upon lifting weights and wanted nothing to do with what bodybuilders did. The initial acceptance of strength training in the NFL was because the Nautilus machine was different. Look, Iām not saying it was better, Iām just giving you some history.
I believe youāre correct. Kim Wood and Dan Riley were two of the first and most successful strength and conditioning coaches in football and they came from Nautilus. As well as Sparky Anderson with the Cincinnati Reds being sold on Nautilus in the Big Red Machine Era. Nautilus did definitely help usher in a mainstream usage of weight training in sports and amongst lay men. While the relevancy in todayās weight training space may be minimal, the impact of Nautilus to history can not be denied. It was big business!
Donāt forget Don Shula from the dolphins and Mike Ditka endorsed nautilus back in 70s
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I lived it. My first contest was 1970.
At NC State (1966 thru 1970) only two football players lifted weights and did so at the school weight room along with the rest of the student body.
When I returned home in 1971, there were only two real weight room gyms. The Sparta Gym and the downtown YMCA (which I used). There was a Roman Health Spa that was all chrome with rollers and vibrating belts and a few light weights. It catered to women and old rich men. Membership was expensive.
Lifting weights was considered esoteric by most everyone through much of the '70ās. It wasnāt until the late '70ās did larger funded gyms began to give it a go. By the early '80ās American Fitness Center opened a gym with many Nautilus machines. The popularity of Nautilus seemed to wane in the mid '90ās.
Disclaimer: I was pretty much removed from the business side of weight training, as was focused on competition for three decades.
Yup!!
Scott
But it was better than just about anything out then. Now thereās zillions of other machines out there that may be better than the old Nautilus but many of them are just improved knock offs of a Nautilus!
Scott
fitafter40, Right team, wrong player man. It was Dick Butkus.
Completely disagree with that, especially lifters over mid 30s. A factor everyone is leaving out (besides PEDs) is age. Metabolism slows WWAAYYYY down after 40. From what Iāve seen in over 35 yrs in gyms is overtraining. Not even close a comparison of over/under training. I still see the kids today doing 2 hr workouts
Scott, It WAS miles better than anything out during that time (machine-wise).
Machine design would not be where it is today without Nautilus. Even if some of his designs were not perfect.
By the way, I canāt speak for him, but my impression was Ken Hutchins agreed with most of Arthurās training concepts (Intensity, low-volume, etc.) Obviously, he didnāt agree with some machine designs and other aspects. As far as the books: evaluating 50 years later is a different deal to me.
You are free to disagree my dude.
So far so good being over my mid 30s personally.
Get real, dude.
(I canāt tell if this will come across jokingly or seriousā¦so my joke is now ruined.)
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I assure you I only get surreal.
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== Scott ==
I think at first Hutchins agreed with much of Arthurās ideas and when he didnāt heād pay a price for trying to correct him ! I donāt think there was any question that Jones was a hard fellow to work for but then Iām sure so was Howard Hughās.
Hey Strengthmaster, are you on Facebook ?
Now Mike Ditka endorses diapers or something equally stupid on TV
Scott
Scott, Sorry, teacher and coach, donāt do social media. Well, now recently retired teacher and coach. But still donāt do social media. Now that I just found out thereās a pharma forum (?) I may be done here. Probably not, but I wonāt say what I think about that.
I can agree on this if we are talking about those coming back to the gym after a decade layoff, have FA work capacity and are trying to show everyone they still got it. But maybe I can provide a slightly different perspective on veteran lifters:
At 20, I pumped out some hard sets, I ate semi reasonably and I got bigger and stronger.
At 40, I do the work I did back then and eat the way I did, the result is regression. I have a lesser response to training stimulus, I donāt move as fast, my body wants to drop weight, has no interest in building muscle, etc. The only thing I can have on my side is working harder and eating better than I did back then.
Itās a losing battle for everyone but the alternative is just to give up or donāt pump the brakes as hard?
On the 2 hour workout thing, I see time as one variable. Training 12 hours per week when the highest intensity you are going to hit through out the week is an RPE8 isnāt necessarily harder or more exposes you to over training than a 45 minute session where you hit failure or close on a number of movements.
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I was impressed by the reps you did on the your PL Biceps and your Super Pullover though. Better than Boyer Coe on the Nautilus Network video! Itās clear to me you know what a hard training set with good form is. .
One of my old gyms had a couple of Nautilus machines. The one that sticks out the most was a blue leg extension with steel chains. I actually hated this thing haha It felt less like a piece of gym equipment and more like a military vehicle. It was a climb to get into and the chain made it sound like there was a working engine hidden somewhere in it.
Anyway, browsing this thread got me thinking about what the new line of equipment looks like and instead I found a gym which is filled with Nautilus equipment (apparently 50+ pieces) near me - 1.5 miles away 
I had no idea, I assume only Nautilus as well as it is pretty small and I have difficulty seeing 50 pieces getting in there let alone other equipment.
I might drop in one night for shits and giggles if itās not too expensive.
Anyway, this is the class/vintage of equipment:
Is this the stuff you guys still swoon over or is it past itās prime (looks at least 15 years old haha)
Thats the Super Pullover 
Probably the best of the pullovers. Iām partial to the chain driven, older machines myself.
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