it is not till after the show, that I realize the reward; when athletes come to me and say they had fun and can’t wait till next year.  It makes it all worthwhile and fuels my energy to carry on with the sport that I have grown to love over the years.

When I do have the time and energy to train. I actually have a great time doing it!   Oddly enough,  I still surprise myself by what I am able to achieve…. despite the fact that I am undertrained and a bit frayed around the edges!

When I first began strongman in Western Canada, the sport was not well known.   There was one-off events but nothing stable or constant.  Now after five years, our organization has continued to grow as more and more guys discover this “best-kept secret”! Strongman offers a true test of the human spirit along with sportsmanship and camaraderie.

Recently I have observed a trend amongst certain strength athletes who suffer from burnout.   Unfortunately they enter into the sport with the notion that they need to overtrain to achieve their goals.  In addition they end up spending lots of money on travel to compete as much as they can.   This often leads to burnout especially when executed too quickly.  Like most things in life, there are no shortcuts in strongman and pacing yourself is important.

My advice to anyone who participates in this sport or any sport is to maintain balance in their lives.  Train in a manner that is sustainable, eat healthy and do your best during competition while still having FUN.  Prize money for  this sport is normally small and it does require a passion to be strong and competitive.  The upside is the confidence and sheer joy of fulfillment that is shared by those who participate,  not to mention the friendships that evolve over time.

If you find yourself feeling burned out, maybe it is time to stop and ask yourself whether you are still having fun.  Often making a few adjustment to maintain the balance that best suits you  will go a long way and will allow you to ultimately continue to enjoy this sport for years to come.

Robin Wright
Founder and Director, BCEAA.org

Robin Wright, rwright@bceaa.org, Kamloops, BC Canada

Founder and Director of the British Columbia Extreme Athletics Association www.bceaa.org

Special thanks to my webmaster Diane Roberts: www.sbwebstudio.ca

Justin Cuzzetto: Reflex Nutrition, Kamloops, www.reflexnutrition.com

The City of Kamloops, BC, Canada Tournament Capital of Canada, www.kamloops.ca

and many more sponsors who have helped and are helping make the BCEAA strong in its continued success.

So you’re Gym-strong!  Great, that’s a good start.

If you wish to pursue the sport of strongman, you better be deadlifting and squatting. Your core strength is crucial. You may have great power in your chest, biceps, calves or maybe you have balls of steel, but if you can’t grip it, you can’t lift it! Work your grip and increase the strength in your forearms. Core strength and grip strength together represent a powerful combination that can be applied to a variety of strongman disciplines.

Personally I do heavy hammer curls. First I pre-exhaust my biceps with alternating dumbbell curls until I can no longer curl with proper technique. Then I transition into hammer curls keeping the dumbbell tight to the body, curling to my mid chest. I start at 80 pounds and finish to my max at 190. Low reps say six reps to your max with sets of two to three.

Following this, apply classic wrist curls, standard and reverse. Light weights and reps of 10-12, total -  three sets.

Another important exercise is wrist rotation with dumbbell in hand (hammer position). Slide the weight to the top, away from the hand. Supporting your forearm on a bench, give the dumbbell enough space to rotate from side to side. You can even do this from front to back. The primary goal of this exercise is to stretch and rotate to the max. So go light and maintain good control.

Strongman disciplines’ where grip strength is crucial:

• Farmers hold / walk
• Car deadlift
• Tire flip
• Atlas stones
• Hercules hold

GET A GRIP and go far!!

Yours in Strength,

Robin Wright.  Founder / Director www.bceaa.org

Robin Wright, rwright@bceaa.org, Kamloops, BC Canada

Founder and Director of the British Columbia Extreme Athletics Association www.bceaa.org

Special thanks to my webmaster Diane Roberts: www.sbwebstudio.ca

Justin Cuzzetto: Reflex Nutrition, Kamloops, www.reflexnutrition.com

The City of Kamloops, BC, Canada Tournament Capital of Canada, www.kamloops.ca

and many more sponsors who have helped and are helping make the BCEAA strong in its continued success.

ATLAS STONES:

In the world of strongman the Atlas stones are by far the most recognized by the public. From the time of the Celtics, Romans and now modern athletes, the Atlas Stones have been and remain to be one of the most technical and whole body events.

For those of you who don’t know what the Atlas stones are here is a brief description: Take one large stone (concrete sphere), pick up and place onto designated platform. The weight of the stones will vary depending upon the level of competition entered into. A typical starting point might be 220 pounds progressively moving up to a weight of over 400 pounds. The height of the platform may also vary depending the competition; you might find a progressive height up or one consistent height.

STRONGMAN AT A GLANCE:

There are many different events in the sport of strongman. The different leagues sometimes have different events for their lines ups. However there are recognized staples by everyone, such as Atlas Stones, Log Press and Farmers Walk.

Strongman contests have common roots with Highland Games and Powerlifting, but still differ from both. Many great strongmen have come from these two sports. My personal favorites are the novices who come out to compete; generally they have no experience but have a ton of heart.

This sport is not only for the monster size men of the world, we also have light weights, teen, women’s classes, team events and we have even seen husband and wife teams, as well as the big heavyweights.

INTENSITY TIPS:

Some athletes will use music, smelling salts (ammonia) and other methods to get ready for their big lifts. I prefer to use visualizations – see it and do it.

Don’t over analyze it, JUST DO IT!

INTRUCTIAL:

For starters, the athlete must stand over the ball. Next squat down over the ball and essentially hug it getting the hands down under the bottom. Once you have a good grip on the ball, push through with your legs and start pulling through with the back, drop the bum and place the stone on the lap.

The ball should be balanced. Re-grip if necessary, roll-up the body and place the stone. I have tried to explain this as if you were to do the lift in slow motion, however in real life you will want to move faster to help keep your momentum going. Some athletes do the lift in one motion.

ONE MAN’S OPINION:

Like in any sport you need to enjoy what you are doing! If you don’t it is time to try something else. I got into strongman because I was bored of just training for the sake of training. My genetics are not that of a body builder and powerlifting did not peak my interest. I saw the sportsmanship and functionality of strongman and an opportunity to direct my energy in a positive direction.

A friend of mine asked me in the gym one day, “Robin, you have all this strength and power! What are you going to do with it?” I did not know how to respond. I did not know about strongman at that time. But that statement had great implications in my life and lives of my wife and children. So I pose that same question to YOU!

You have strength and power!  What are you going to do with it?

Robin Wright, rwright@bceaa.org, Kamloops, BC Canada

Founder and Director of the British Columbia Extreme Athletics Association www.bceaa.org

Special thanks to my webmaster Diane Roberts: www.sbwebstudio.ca

Justin Cuzzetto: Reflex Nutrition, Kamloops, www.reflexnutrition.com

The City of Kamloops, BC, Canada Tournament Capital of Canada, www.kamloops.ca

and many more sponsors who have helped and are helping make the BCEAA strong in its continued success.

In my view, Strongman is a combination of the discipline of Bodybuilding, power and technique of Powerlifting and essence and age of Highland Games.  Blend them together with heavy implements, shaken rigorously with several years of training and “BAM” you have a well rounded Strongman.  However there is one ingredient that only the athlete can bring.  That is the special blend of heart, passion, and mental fortitude to endure.

By the way, a great strongman may not come from any of the backgrounds described above.  He/she may appear from the woodwork with an immense dedication to the sport and a 110% attitude applied to every training session and competition.  Beneath this lies a positive outlook, true sportsmanship and a healthy competitive appetite.

You may find Strongman competitions most anywhere;  community fairs,  part of Celtic festivals, stand-alone competitions, and often as an extension of large bodybuilding events.  In Europe, strongman sports are HUGE!  European strongman stand shoulder-to-shoulder with many football and hockey players here in North America.  Some are even sponsored well by their respective governments…. I wish I was!

Personally I am a fan of ‘Olde-time Strongman’ including guys like Louis Cyr, Eugen Sandow, and Paul Anderson.  These men were phenomenal!  Strong from morning to night.  I like the fact that we are stronger than 95% of the general population.  We can walk into a gym in our street clothes bang off 5-6 plates for reps in a deadlift without the use of belts, wraps or straps. We can throw up some stones on the platform, and pound out some heavy hammer curls quicker than the guy warming up to do his circuit training routine while sipping on his low fat Chai Latte, rocking  to ABBA and checking e-mails on his Blackberry.  Not saying anything’s wrong with ABBA…. merely that I have a different opinion of what a training routine should be.

I believe in grass roots and novice competitions.  We need to build up the new athlete bases to be able to produce top-ranking international athletes.  Competitions should be challenging for the athlete but fun!  I want them to come back next year or to the next level of event.  My hope is that  athletes will  feel well recognized for their efforts even if they do not win.  It takes a lot of courage to stand up in front a big crowd and perform. It requires strength to be composed when you fail.  It takes a Strongman to encourage and push their fellow Strongman to succeed even if it means they get beaten.   All these elements make up the incredible sport of Strongman!

Yours in Strength,

Robin Wright

Robin Wright, rwright@bceaa.org, Kamloops, BC Canada

Founder and Director of the British Columbia Extreme Athletics Association www.bceaa.org

Special thanks to my webmaster Diane Roberts: www.sbwebstudio.ca

Justin Cuzzetto: Reflex Nutrition, Kamloops, www.reflexnutrition.com

The City of Kamloops, BC, Canada Tournament Capital of Canada, www.kamloops.ca

and many more sponsors who have helped and are helping make the BCEAA strong in its continued success.