My last comp releaed events and weights the week of, haha
Ok you beat me here, haha
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Definitely the way to do it for sure. I miss the wild west days. Becoming too organized, haha.
For someone who embraces the chaos constantly, I can understand that.
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Mine changed the details of some of the events about a week ago, just small things like changed distances for carries etc. Also descriptions of some of the events has changed slightly which now means I am not 100% sure of the details.
I am guessing they tried some of it out and it didn’t work in terms of space and time and how they run the show. I am still not 100% sure whether the deadlift ladder is just 2 reps on each of the 3 implements, or go back to the start and repeat for time or rep the last implement for time. There are no description or weights for the third and fourth implements to shoulder, it just says heavier.
But I have an idea of what I am doing and the rest I will learn at the briefing and just do what is in front of me on the day.
Starting to look forward to it now. My dad is coming to watch and also my son (10 yrs). My son is very excited about going which is really cool. I told him on Thursday that he would need to be up early as we were leaving home before 8am. Friday morning he sets an alarm and comes down to breakfast before I leave for work and asks me if this is early enough to get up for the competition. I guess he is a planner like his dad.
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I wish you all the best mate, @simo74 ! I hope you have an awesome experience. You’re all set up for it, it sounds like.
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Kick some ass Simo!
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My last comp they changed the loading implements when we started the event. And they made it fairly significantly heavier. I have learned that if you hate that sort of thing, strongman may not be for you. It’s just kinda the nature of a sport that is so varied. There will almost always be some sort of issue, so just relax and roll with it. Everyone is dealing with the same stuff.
I think everything has been mentioned. Go through each event and check off the equipment you use on each. Don’t forget the stuff that you may not normally have in your gym bag (chalk, rollers, whatever).
Remember, it’s a LONG day. Pace the caffeine and such appropriately and make sure you are eating. Try and remember you are there for fun and stay present and enjoy the experience. Relax as possible between events and have a good time with the people you are competing against. I (an introverted autistic engineer that I am) come away with lifelong friends constantly.
Good Fucking Luck, give’m hell, and let us know how it went.
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Depends on venue, but here it’s pretty common to do that, I would say about half of the athletes will bring one to most contests. I do it as well, unless I’m flying to a show.
Pretty much everything has been covered here, the only thing I would personally add that I bring is my massage gun, in case you cramp up. Or a massage ball, or roller, or whatever you use to ease cramps.
And on that note, potassium pills and a bag of salt are a good idea, just in case you need them.
There will likely be things that you bring that you end up not needing, but that’s totally ok. I’ve learned to over-pack for every contest.
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Yup! Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it. One of my “dirty tricks” is to pack my “less than” gear that I have in my gym. Cheap belts I bought that didn’t work well, junky straps and sleeves, etc. Primarily because strongman is really “family style” and people will ask to borrow ANYTHING at a competition. I’m fine to share, but I don’t want to share my good stuff, especially if I’m gonna need it soon and need to get squared away.
“You need a belt? Sure thing man: I got one right here!”
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Good luck dude! You’re gonna do great : )
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Have at it mate! Im tipping a podium!
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First strongman comp - 1st April 2023
I entered the Challenge which is for novice competitors and is meant as an introduction to the sport. Weights are a little lighter but were plenty heavy enough for me. I entered the 90KG class and there were 2 other guys in my class. Both young kids compared to me.
Got there early to weight in and to set heights for yoke and Viking press. Weighed in at 89.9KG dressed and with runners on. Good job I went to the toilet before I went or I would have had to take my shoes off.
Got to pick up the yoke for the first time and take a short run back and forth. The yoke was 135KG unloaded (300 lbs). Calf muscle immediately cramped up and the big knot that is still in there let itself known. Fk you calf. Other than being sore it didn’t really affect me for the day which was good.
I felt ok warming up with the yoke but knew 210kg was going to feel a lot different.
Athlete briefing was good and got to ask some question and clear up a few points. Everyone was friendly and in good spirits. I was getting pretty excited and nervous now.
Yoke:
Did a couple of warm up runs, the heaviest at 190kg. Upper back was getting tight even from thr warm ups.
210KG felt Fkn heavy, calf didn’t play up but I was wobbly like a new born deer. Dropped it a couple of times. Managed to finish it and then onto Viking press. This felt pretty easy. Got 8 reps but would have had lots more if I had more time.
The other guys were a fair bit quicker with the yoke and got 16 and 10. I was happy to just finish the yoke. It was tough and definitely something I need to train on if I want to get better.
Back was fried after yoke. Muscles of the middle back were all cramping. They stayed sore for the rest of the day.
Second event was farmers 10m turn 10m into sandbag 10m turn 10m into farmers 10m turn 10m all in 60s.
Farmers were 80kg and sandbag was 80kg
This one I was really worried about the time. In my head I was going to struggle to finish it.
Ended up finishing in under 45 secs and Was really happy with this one. I was blowing out of my ar$e after this. Literally just laid in the floor gasping for air for 2 mins.
Finished in 43:58 which was 0.3 sec behind the next guy in my class. The guy who won it did 33 secs… WTF
Deadlift ladder was next.
130 2 inch deficit
150 axle
170 14 inch
2 reps of each for time.
I have trained axle and the weights weren’t too heavy. Then realised on the day that the axle was smooth compared to the one I trained on which has knurling.
I didn’t use a belt or straps for this one. I had the figure 8 straps on my wrists just in case but didn’t need them. I decided to go grip and rip and it went ok. Flew through these 6 reps in 19:08 but still came last. Other two guys were 19:02 and 18:58.
Only half a second between us all. Was really happy to keep up with the young boys.
Last event was sandbag and stone to shoulder.
70kg bag
70kg stone
80kg bag
80kg stone
You had to do the light ones before the heavy ones but you could do them in any order. What ever one you did the 4th rep on, you kept repping til the time ran out. Time was 75 seconds.
I touched my first stone doing a warm up rep with the 70kg opening weight. It felt ok.
I decided to go bag, stone, stone bag. I am more used to the bag and decided it would be best for me to have this last and do xtra reps if I had time.
Got all 4 reps and then did an extra one with the sandbag at the end. Upper back was jacked up going into this so wasn’t looking forward to it. Have never touched a stone before so I was happy to get both reps with the stones. Last sand bag rep was a big fight. Happy I gave it everything.
Finished 3rd out of 3 in my weight class for the novice against 2 young blokes but super happy about my performance. I gave 100% and didn’t leave anything in the tank. The event was well run and everyone was friendly and helpful. It was great to cheer the other athletes and have them push you along too. If anyone reading my log is thinking about competing I would say do it. You learn a lot about the sport and even more about yourself.
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Videos for everyone’s amusement
I took the @T3hPwnisher approach to yoke and watch for me nearly falling on my face at the farmers finish.
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So cool to read!
All that bag training paid off eh.
What do you think of stones - harder or easier at the same weight compared to a bag?
Kiddo got to see how crazy strong you are right?
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Congratulations on your first comp! Looked fun, fun, fun!
Now, you know what to expect and will do even better next time.
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Awesome Simo! Great write up and loved the vid.
The run back with the yoke was clean.
I think I would have also selected the same order for the atlas stone/sandbag event. Nice fight on that last rep.
The last flexed photo is great, they caught you checking to make sure the bicep peak was visible for the photo, haha.
Great work brother!
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Awesome work, @simo74! Sounds like your first competition was awesome, and that video is fantastic.
Great job!
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Outstanding showing dude!
When you get more comfortable under the yoke/with moving, you’ll really shine. Short, choppy steps will go far compared to trying to stride it out, which I’m sure runs completely counter to your running background, haha. Think of it like going up a hill. Same with breathing: it’s too easy to want to make it into a squat and brace the whole way, but you’ll be breathing like a swimmer: in/out/in/out. Will be the same on those farmers. You did a GREAT job letting the farmers carry you when it came to the pick up: that’s a super valuable skill. Same with holding onto the back of the handles vs the middle. Taking it like a pro.
Solid tempo on the viking press. Looks like the back issue mighta come into play, as I can see you leaning to one side. Great work fighting through! That’s really what the sport is about.
Heartbreak on the deadlift to be so close. That’s the shame about those kind of events: it really comes down to details.
Handled those stones and bags like a champ! Goes to show the value of just being plain old strong.
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Great job and video, Simo!! Your return carry with the yoke was much smoother than the first, so you learned and improved on the fly - very well done! Your confidence with the deadlifts, yoke, and bags is evident. Since you train them regularly, I reckon regular yoke and stone training would rocket your performance to the next level.
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