As a boy scout and an aspiring researcher, I have always admired the “Swiss Army knife” from an early age. Despite being considered as the most universal piece of equipment for every adventurer, the knife had a solution for every obstacle, even the most specific one, with its individual attachments. I always wanted to have it, but they always rejected me, saying that I wasn’t a big enough adventurer yet (yes, in these circles you could only have such a tool when you were experienced enough) or that I didn’t deserve it yet, and I mean that literally. Since the Second World War, the Swiss Army knife has not only maintained its reputation, but also its price.
My admiration and passion for things that have full functionality and consequently an added value remain to this day. Not only as a young adventurer, but also as a young designer and an aspiring gymnast I have therefore made the decision to develop a device that would be a real Swiss Army knife in the gym. The device must be universal for all types of movements of the human body, yet very specific to each muscle group. I wanted to develop a device that would arouse interest and awe at first glance. Despite the slightly elevated posture, at times even boasting, everyone could have the option to exercise on this device, even young promising gymnasts.
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And so the decision has been made …
At FIBO 2019, the leading international trade show for fitness wellness and health and for us the first fair in general, we presented a device like no one has ever before. We wished to create a device that would have the option of performing squats with a belt (the so-called belt squat), as this is a solution for everyone who has spine problems and cannot perform the classic squat with a bar. Great! We now have a special tool for one problem, but if we want a Swiss Army knife amongst fitness equipment, we have to maintain universality, so we still kept all of the functions of the rack and thus the possibility of performing classic chest presses, squats or pull-ups.
We were thinking about how to use the belt squat cable for some other type of movement. We all thought intensely for a few days and looked for a solution, however, it was all in vain. The weekend came and with it the time for relaxation in nature. So, quite by chance, while rowing on a nearby river, I came up with the idea. What would happen if we added the possibility of rowing on our device? And voila! We started developing the device so that the cable for performing squats could be used for rowing as well.
Great, the device now offers us a solution to perform all exercises involving the use of a cable except vertical pull-downs. Of course, this is not acceptable. Can you imagine using a Swiss Army knife to cut a leather belt, open a bottle of wine, but not be able to file your nails? Well, neither do we, so we added another pulley system to solve the problem of vertical pull-downs.
Did you know that a Swiss Army knife has a toothpick as well? Do you know why? Because it can! And that’s why we added Jammer Arms to our device as well. We have truly made a universal device with very specific tools.
But how can we now manifest all this in our well-known “sharp” style!?
Everyone involved mulled over the question, not just me, a young designer and an avid gymnast. Without the right idea and with negative thoughts, we went so far as to almost abandon the project. The idea of making a multifunctional fitness device with a typical, flat look did not come into consideration even during the craziest dreams during the cycles of sleepless nights. We started to wonder if we even want a multifunction device, as this is not our area of expertise. We support functional exercise and don’t want to compare ourselves to the typical, stereotypical fitness industry. Why even get into something like that? After well-crafted ideas, desires and problems, when we have solved almost all the problems of the world, we came to the conclusion that we need to start with the basics.
Back to the basics it was …
We determined that the device will be shaped by the structure of the rack, i.e. by our already tested Mighty columns and profiles. All auxiliary elements of our assembly are made of square 80 mm profiles and tiles designed in our typical, rough style. As we are dealing with a revolutionary product, a detail of arrows >>, which are seen as the symbol of development and movement, was added to the product.
What about the color combination?
Our wish was to sharpen all the previously listed properties with a properly selected color combination. We could not have done this better than with the color combination of gold and black with chrome details. The golden color represents victory, strength, charisma. At the highest level, gold is even associated with higher ideals. The black, however, complements gold with the meanings of discipline, elegance and sophistication. The walking plate and rollers are covered in chrome, which give off a feeling of harmony with their reflection.
End product: Mighty Squat Pulley System
Mighty as the flagship of our line of 80 mm profiles, Squat as a device with which both classic and belt squats can be performed, Pulley as a reminder that you are dealing with a pulley tackle and System as a system that connects everything that is specific into a universal piece of equipment, like the Swiss Army knife.
In short, the Mighty SPS is a universal device for practicing specific movements. It contains solutions for the movement of each part of the body, you just need to know how to handle it (like a knife).
Conclusion
As a developer and sports fan, I am very happy with the device. And not only because I was entrusted with the development of the main product, with which we showed ourselves to the public for the first time at the fair on a worldwide scale, but also because thanks to KingsBox, I was personally responsible for designing the model registered with the European Union Intellectual Property Office. But the greatest satisfaction comes from the feeling that I can be a part of something I admired as a young researcher, and that is the development of a great product for universal use.
