Everyone Needs One of These...

Your facility NEEDS an EFS Monolift.

The Monolift

The monolift is a source of great controversy in the powerlifting world. Purists say it’s not a “real” squat unless you walk it out, while advocates say it adds to safety and your total. I'm in the second group. I think anything that allows you to lift more weight with less risk of injury is a good thing. Drawing from personal experience, I can tell you that if it wasn't for the monolift, I wouldn't have squatted at all for a few years.

Many years ago, I needed several knee surgeries after a catastrophic injury (not training-related) and the only form of squatting that I could do was box squats. I also couldn't walk the weight in or out without serious instability and a high degree of danger. The monolift saved me, allowing me to squat as part of my rehab.

OK, I know what you're thinking, "I don’t own/work in a hardcore powerlifting gym and it is not something that I would ever use." Well, you're wrong. If you think outside the box, you’ll find a number of reasons that you should get one as soon as you can. Every facility needs one, from the high school/college weight room, to the 1000-square foot personal training facility, to the boot camp places. They're so important to success that we have two at Total Performance Sports (TPS).

Why You Need It

Here's why you need one, no matter what kind of place you work in:

1. Efficiency – the Monolift is height adjustable in seconds, which means you can train more people in less time. If you're a strength coach, your Athletic Director will be happy because you're getting the job done FASTER and BETTER. The monolift allows you to put athletes together by their strength, instead of having them squat in a power rack by height. Now all of your athletes can train with those of similar ability and strength instead of guys who are about the same height. So, no more adding and removing weights, it’s rising bar all the time now.
2. Greater Profit  – Using the lift in a team/group setting is without a doubt, the best way to move a large group of people through their squats/good mornings fast. This translates into more profit for the owner of a small personal training center, especially if they train groups or boot camps. At TPS, we can run 4-8 people at a time on the monolift faster than we can with racks. This translates to more results because we can get the squats done quickly and then move them through more exercise. More exercise means more fat loss, which means more repeat customers in our camps. It also engages them to work as a team, by encouraging them to load and spot together.
3.  Space-saver – TPS was originally a 900-square foot hardcore gym, with a thriving personal training business. A monolift is one of the reasons why we had such success with the training business. We had limited space, and needed to choose our equipment wisely. We purchased items that gave us the most use for the floor space they take up. There was never any question about getting a monolift in addition to the other key pieces we ordered (power rack, GHR, dumbells, Safety Squat Bar). Our guess about the usefulness of the monolift were quickly realized because we found that three different coaches could be training three different clients of different abilities and heights at the same time on the same piece of equipment. One client could squat, while the other two were resting. There was no need to worry about three people of different heights at the same station. This was a HUGE problem for us before we had the monolift. We only had space for one rack, and the trainers had to get together to program the workouts for individuals based on when the rack was available. Of course, all the above listed reasons all held true for group training.

When we moved into a 40,000-square foot facility, we added an EFS Signature Monolift right next to our old one. This makes us twice as awesome now. When the budget allows, we will get a third, unless Dave wants to donate one.

EFS Signature Monolift

Another concern that I hear all the time is that coaches want their athletes to walk the weight out. Well, just because you have a monolift doesn't mean that you can't walk the weight out – just make them do it. We found that when teaching the squat to beginners, having them not walk the weight out makes them learn the squat faster because they have one less thing to focus on. This increases safety. Beginners are generally about as tight as a soup sandwich and wiggle all over in the walkout. Getting them used to un-racking the bar and staying tight as they begin the lift and all the way through, which will make the lifter learn faster. Once they achieve a decent level of competence, we add the walkout to the equation. I know this sounds ridiculous, but it works very well...especially with those very new to lifting.

I’m sure that if I stay on my PC for a while longer, I could come up with more reasons, but here's what immediately comes to mind...

• The monolift increases the efficiency of moving a group of lifters through a workout.
• When used PROPERLY, the monolift increases safety.
• The monolift allows a smaller training center to have multiple trainers work with more than one client at a time while squatting. This also saves floor space.
• The monolift looks awesome. Do not underrate this. When a client comes in and sees it, they have no idea what it is and having one makes you look more awesome. They also feel more bad ass when they tell their friends that they train in a gym that has the most awesome equipment that no other place else has.

Start budgeting for one today.

Total Performance Sports

If you are in or visiting the Boston area check out C.J.’s gym, TPS.

TPS was started with one thing in mind, to give our clients the best. The best training environment, the best equipment and the best coach/coaches. Our philosophy is if a customer spends one dollar, we must give them two dollars in value, each time, every time. Come by TPS and see how we can help you achieve your goals, you'll be happy that you did.