About

MBG was created by Jon Hinds in 2000 and was the beginning of a fitness revolution. MBGs are the only gyms in the nation to integrate full-body skills training for strength, speed and stamina; Eischens Yoga for restoration and healing; and a plant-based diet for the health of people and our planet. Full-body skills training, Eischens Yoga, and Plant-based Nutrition is the MBG3.

MBG Mission:

To change the way the world looks at health and fitness

To open people's minds to experience how their bodies truly function. To follow the roots of nature in everything we do - we run, jump, crawl, climb, roll and react like on the playground as children. With a unique type of exercise that engages the entire body and mind we build useable skills along with lasting confidence. Members are empowered to progress in a challenging, non-discriminating environment.

We strengthen ourselves through full body workouts and the foods the Earth provides us. Now its your turn, Join us!

Let the Revolution Begin!

Want to get back in shape or train for a marathon? Whether you want to lose weight or enhance your athletic abilities, the Monkey Bar Gym will provide you with a unique fitness experience. Our certified trainers, led by Jon Hinds, will revolutionize how you think about movement and nutrition by teaching you the basics.

At the Monkey Bar Gym we step off of the machines and get away from the mirrors.  We teach and train the four, basic functional fitness skills: Running, Jumping, Crawling and Climbing.

Mastering these movements will provide you with the stability, strength and power you need for all of your favorite activities. What's more, you will never work out alone because in our gym, we're committed to teamwork, too. Many of our members consider MBG their "third home," because we are a community of people who work hard and play hard to help you stay fit for life.

Find out what makes the Monkey Bar Gym so special by visiting one of our gyms.
History of Monkey Bar Gym
The history of the Monkey Bar Gymnasium began when Jon Hinds was a little boy, playing on the playground or at home. He remembers running after (or away from) friends, jumping on and off obstacles, crawling across the ground or over logs, climbing trees like a little monkey. Parts of these experiences were also spent reacting to others, thrown balls or surprise attacks from his dogs or cats. Fitness came naturally to Jon as a child, because staying active was a natural form of movement that was both instinctive and intuitive.

Jon recalls that, "No one had to show me the skills from my childhood, I just did them and the more I trained them the better I became at all the games that involved these skills." Playing skill-based games was a big part of Jon's life, until traditional training methods took over when Jon started to play high school athletics. To Jon, he felt that "the skill playing was replaced by a machine and it took one-hundred percent of the natural fun and movement out of the equation. This new way of developing my skills was the norm, all the kids did it, but the goal of staying active had changed as well. Instead of having fun or staying in shape, it was 100% about how you looked, then if it helped you out in your sport, great!"

Jon continued on this new isolated "skill" training path off and on for several years following those early days in the gym. It wasn't until Jon was training an NBA player named Lucious Harris when he realized he wasn't having fun working out and he wasn't getting the results he truly wanted. That experience restored Jon's focus not only on what defines the phrase "great athlete," it also forced Jon to re-evaluate what true health and happiness really means. In Jon's mind, "results" from working out equate to a tri-fold approach that includes an increased skill level, better overall health and happiness.

That single moment of realization led to a philosophy and the opening of the first Monkey Bar Gymnasium in August of 2000.

Today, the Monkey Bar Gym is recognized world-wide as a health and fitness leader. By incorporating whole body training, restoration and plant-based nutrition, Jon Hinds has started a fitness revolution, forming one of the most unique gyms that exist today. Here are some of the milestones the Monkey Bar Gym has achieved in its short history:

• First skill-based gym in the country that does not use exercise or weight machines, mirrors, or require shoes to train members.
• First gym in the country that incorporates plant-based nutrition to achieve power and strength, rather than relying on animal by-products or supplements.
• First gym in the country to integrate Eischens Yoga and balance activation into each workout.
• One of the first gyms in the country to offer challenging, partner-based training regardless of fitness level.