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THE COLORADO EXPERIMENT
In 1971, bodybuilding champion Casey Viator was involved in the now-famous “Colorado
Experiment,” which was financed by Nautilus and conducted by the exercise physiology
department of Fort Collins University in Colorado. The objective was to see
how much muscle could be gained on a 28-day program of brief, very intense
weight workouts.
Lean body mass and fat content determinations for two
subjects (Nautilus creator Arthur Jones and bodybuilding champion Casey
Viator) were calculated by the Whole Body Counter under the supervision
of James E. Johnson, Ph.D., who was the Associate Professor for the
Department of Radiology and Radiation Biology at Colorado State University.
The experiment was supervised by Dr. Elliot Plese, the then Director
of the Exercise Physiology Lab at Colorado State.
Viator trained from May 1, 1973 through until May 29, 1973. He trained a total
of 14 times in an every other day fashion (to allow a minimum of 48 hours off
for recovery to take place), with each workout averaging only 33.6 minutes
in length for a total training time of 7 hours, 50 ½ minutes.
Jones trained from May 1, 1973 through until May 23, 1973. He trained a total
of 12 times in an every other day fashion with each workout averaging only
24.8 minutes in length for a total training time of 4 hours and 58 minutes.
According to Jones:
Only Nautilus equipment was used in
the Colorado Experiment; equipment designed to provide all of
the requirements for full
range, rotary form, automatically variable, direct resistance… Full
Range resistance is provided only when the involved bodypart
is moving through a full range of possible movement against constant
resistance … from a starting position of full muscular extension
(a “pre-stretched” position) to a finishing position of full
muscular contraction. Rotary-Form resistance is an absolute requirement
for full-range exercise … since muscular contraction produces
rotary-form movement of the related bodypart it is necessary
for the resistance and the bodypart to rotate on a common axis.
Automatically Variable resistance is an absolute requirement
for high-intensity exercise … since movement produces changes
in usable strength, it is necessary for the resistance to vary
in proportion to the resulting changes in strength. Direct Resistance
is also required in order to avoid the limitations imposed by
the involvement of smaller, weaker muscle structures. The resistance
must be directly imposed against he bodypart moved by the muscles
being exercised. Conventional forms of exercise provide none
of these requirements; the results being that …muscles are not
worked through a full range of possible movement ... resistance
is limited to an amount that can be moved in the weakest position.
With this in mind, the experiment began. A mere 28 days later, the results
on these two subjects were as follows:
CASEY VIATOR:
Time: 28 days
Workouts: 14
Sets Per Exercise: 1
Exercises Per Session: 8-14
Total Hours Training: 7 hours, 50 ½ minutes
Average Length of Workouts: 33.6 minutes
Bodyweight gain: 45.28 pounds
Bodyfat loss: 17.93 pounds
Total Muscle Mass Gain: 63.21 pounds
ARTHUR JONES:
Time: 22 days
Workouts: 12
Sets Per Exercise: 1
Exercises Per Session: 8-14
Total Hours Training: 4 hours, 58 minutes
Average Length of Workouts: 24.8 minutes
Bodyweight gain: 13.62 pounds
Bodyfat loss: 1.82 pounds
Total Muscle Mass Gain: 15.44 pounds
Viator’s strength – tested before and after the experiment – demonstrated a
phenomenal improvement. An hour before his first workout he performed 32 repetitions
with 400 pounds on a Universal leg press machine. Three days after his last
workout, he performed 45 repetitions with 840 pounds on the same machine – despite
not having performed a leg press at all during the experiment.
In addition, Viator’s flexibility was tested after the experiment and was found
to be far in excess of that possible by any member then on the Colorado State
University Wrestling team – even though he now weighed in excess of 200 pounds.
PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES
The results of the Colorado Experiment inspired certain professional athletes
to embrace Nautilus and the high intensity training philosophy. Lou Ross of the
Buffalo Bills football team added 20 pounds to his bodyweight after a two month
Nautilus training program and cut two tenths from his 40-yard dash time, added
5 ½ inches to his high jump and doubled his strength in many areas of movement.
Mercury Morris of the World Champion Miami Dolphins football team after two months
of Nautilus training, reported to training camp 7 pounds of muscle heavier and
ran the fastest 40 yard dash of his career.
The secret to the success of all of the above lay in the fact that they were
using Nautilus exercise equipment and high intensity training principles.
