Whiteflash: I knew I had heard it before and it took me a little bit to remember the reference, but didn’t need to look it up. You would be proud!
law8: Yea man, ruptures and tears happen A LOT! I am sure that others who are more seasoned in the sport would have a better answer for you, but from my short time in the sport I would contend that it is due to the cumbersome nature of the implements and failure of form.
Just about everything in strongman training is large, unstable and doesn’t have built in handles. If you look at a barbell in the overhead press as an example, even letting the bar slip out of the grove an inch or two will cause a missed lift. As you know, keeping a weighted object as close to the midline of your body is the most efficient and powerful way to lift it. But in Strongman, a log, stone or keg has such a large circumference that finding ways to biomechanically lift the object is very challenging. Because of this, people (myself definitely included) will get the object moving out of the “hole” get it partially lifted, but then have to adjust their movement pattern to complete the lift. Usually this is with an object out away from your midline where ALL of the stress falls on your biceps. Unfortunately no one is strong enough to reverse curl a 300+ pound log or 800 pound tire for very long before something gives.
Also, you spend a tremendous amount of time under tension with extreme weights with your biceps in hyper flexion…Also a big problem. The first time mine got pretty jacked up was when I did a workout with about 1,000 tire flips with a 800-900lb tire. My form wasted away and I still pay for it.
Finally, I would say that another reason for the injuries is the nature of the competitions. A last man standing, 1RM event is kinda rare comparatively to an “As Many Reps As Possible” in 60 seconds event. For the most part the winning rep number for said events is usually only barely in the double digits…Because the weights are always very heavy. And when the judge calls out, “15 Seconds left”, you will always find yourself doing all kinds of terrible form junk just to get 1 or 2 more reps.
Still, I have only been to 3 Strongman shows now and have seen, on average, about 3-4 people drop out each competition due to an actuate injury. It is the redlining it week after week, month after month in training that usually gets people. The sport has only really begun to grow in the last decade in popularity and programming is still pretty spotty. Most Strongmen I have met are super cool, classy guys, but they all have the “more is better” and “always push harder” mentality. I am no different, just look at my workouts!
Even in competitions the regulations on weights are shotty. If a certain plate weighed 48lbs in a powerlifting or olympic meet, people would lose their minds and the plate would not be sanctioned for competition… At a Strongman show, If a keg is supposed to weigh 250lbs but really weighs (and is labeled) 275, the promoter will just shrug and say, “this is STRONGMAN…deal with it.”
I love that about the sport. Complaining is STRONGLY frowned upon, no one sugar-coats anything and everyone ponies up and gets shit done while cheering for the people they are competing against.
There are plenty of stories about guys’ luggage not showing up for the show and competing all day using their strongest rivals gear. If you ask the guy why he helped out the other even if it means him not placing, you will always get an answer something like this: “I want to beat the ‘best’ version of that guy, not win on a technicality.”
It is what makes it such an awesome sport, but that mindset is usually synonymous with push the limits constantly and a willingness to always do one more rep or set, which also probably plays into the injuries.
I know a lot of guys will do some curls as part of their warm-up to get blood to the biceps, and I know it is something that I should do, but I just have trouble bringing myself to actually pick up the weights and doing it. Even in my bodybuilding days in high school I never liked curls and thought they were a waste of time. This may change and I try to stay open-minded…but curls…ugg
Sorry for the long winded answer, but there have not been many questions on this log, so i try to be thorough when i get them! I hope that answers your question, brother!
Regev: Thanks brother! I was very encouraged by what the paper said! Didn’t know if they would twist my words around or not! and absolutely, I will try to add some more of my food intake, I just haven’t been posting it because i am being lazy with the log! I’ll start today.
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“If a man has a talent and cannot use it, he has failed. If he has a talent and uses only half of it, he has partly failed. If he has a talent and learns somehow to use the whole of it, he has gloriously succeeded, and won a satisfaction and a triumph few men ever know.” --Tom Wolfe
TUESDAY, 18NOVEBER2014 - Work For Today
CONDITIONING
20, 18, 16, 14, 12, 10 Reps of
Rope Pull-Ups
Ring Dips
Medicine Ball Slams
SPEED
At the Top of Every Minute for 10 Minutes, Completed 3 Paused Flat Bench Presses @ 300lbs. Controlled eccentric, pause, explosive concentric.
GIANT SETS - 6 Rounds, Adding Weight Every Round
8 Single Arm Inverted Ring Rows (Each Side)
5 Incline Bench Presses @ 275
10 Deficit Handstand Push-Ups
10 Toes to Bar
NOTES:
- Normal Rucking first thing in the morning.
- Back to the grind. Nothing felt heavy, and I want to do more weight, but I know this program works and I need to stick to it…10 Weeks from now hopefully i will reap the benefits.
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Fuel From Today:
Meal 1: 3 Scoops of Metabolic Drive, Coffee w/ Coconut oil and grassed butter (2Tbs Each), 1 Flameout, Milk
Meal 2: Turkey Meatballs, marinara sauce, 1 Flameout, Asparagus, Milk
Meal 3: 2 Scoops of Metabolic Drive, BCAA’s, 2 Fish Oil Caps, Milk
Meal 4: 1lb of ground beef, Onions, peppers, 1 avocado, 1 Flameout, Milk
Meal 5: Chicken, Salad, Balsamic Vinegar, Avocado, Almonds, Milk
Meal 6: 2 Scoops of Metabolic Drive, 4tbs Peanut Butter, honey, 1 Flameout, Milk
