I’ve been writing about Powerlifting a lot lately. It’s been brought to my attention that I have been neglecting a big part of the TPS member base and the EliteFTS.com readers, so here is some Strongman advice.
Before I go over how to start becoming a Strongman, or Strongwoman, I’d like to let you all know about my annual Strongman show.
Next week on August 6th, TPS and Titan Barbell present the 14th annual ASC Massachusetts State Strongman Championships.
If you are in the Boston area, please join us at TPS at 9:00 am for one of the USA’s best Strongman events and help us raise money for the Chelsea Soldiers Home. We give 100% of the profit to them.
Oh, and also, a huge thanks to Dave and EliteFTS.com for sponsoring the show as they do every year. They help to make this a success with their constant support.
OK, so how do you start training to become a Strongman?
Well, it’s not that complex. You just start doing events right?
Not really.
I think that if you look at this objectively and intelligently, you’ll see that just tossing in some events is a pretty stupid idea if you want to be a Strongman.
To get good at events, you’ll need to practice them.
You’ll need to practice them a lot.
You’ll also need to maintain proficiency on your basic barbell lifts and continue building strength on them.
Let’s go back to practice.
Here’s a quote from a music course I am taking now, and it applies to you, the fledgling Strongman.
"Don’t think about practicing – Practice!
Don’t buy more stuff to practice – Practice the things you have!
Don’t buy more equipment – Practice on the equipment you have!
Don’t put it off – Practice now!
You’ve got to practice. It’s the only way to get better. If playing bass didn’t require practice, everyone would be able to do it. Think about how few people you encounter that can play a musical instrument well. Playing well is not easy to come by. It takes a lot of work. And, it is work anyone can do if they want it badly enough.
Practicing will be one of the most rewarding things you will do for yourself. The skills you develop are yours through hard work. They can’t be bought. They can’t be taken away from you."
Andrew Pouska
Studybass.com
I recently went back to playing Bass after a 27-year layoff.
Now I have no intention of going back to playing gigs or being a rock star. I just really missed making music.
Playing an instrument is good for your brain and your spirit. It relaxes you, clears your mind and makes different motor pathways in your brain wake up.
It’s gotta be a good thing, and it’s AWESOME.
You need to practice your instrument; just like you need to practice your sport.
When you start learning an instrument, you’ll learn faster with a higher frequency of practice.
This means how many times per week you play, not necessarily how long you play.
They say 20 minutes 5 times a week is better than an hour and a half once a week.
I agree.
So how does this apply to Strongman?
Strongman events, much like the squat, bench and deadlift, are very technical.
Being as strong as a Himalayan Mountain Yak is good, but being as strong as a Himalayan Mountain Yak with really good technique is better.
Let’s look at one of my sponsored athletes, Nick Cambi. Nick was as strong as a herd of Himalayan Mountain Yaks when he came to TPS but his technique was not up to par on basic lifts or events.
I told him that if he learned good technique he may take over the world, or something like that.
Well, he is getting close. He practiced, a lot. He found great training partners to teach him and he also got professional coaching from quite a few world class people.
Nicky is a pro Strongman now due to his unyielding work ethic and drive to be the best, his quest for instruction and his frequency of practice.
I would bet that his frequency of practice is the second most important factor in his success. You can’t be the best without the drive to be the best, so that is why I say his frequency is second most important.
If you don’t want it, it isn’t going to come to you.
OK, so back to practice.
Through the years I’ve trained quite a few people. I’ve learned a few things along the way and I’ll share that with you now.
When it comes to Strongman, I feel that you need to practice the events daily in your training.
I realized this when I started training Strongman, and came up with our Conjugate Strongman template.
I am not saying you need to use a Conjugate system. I trained Westside style for powerlifting and it worked for me and I liked it.
Why not adapt it to Strongman?
Looking back at the program, there are quite a few things I’d change from what is in the article, but the basics are still there.
For a true beginner, I think that learning the technique on the events is critical as is building a base of strength.
I’ll gear what we are talking about here to those who need to do both as I was already somewhat strong.
I say this because the Novice class is always FULL in my shows and is growing steadily over the past few years.
The Novice class is for beginners.
Beginners need to spend time every training session getting familiar with events using weights they can manage, just like when you learn the basic barbell lifts.
You wouldn’t go in the gym during your first month and load the bar with 900 pounds right?
I hope not.
Strongman is no different.
You can get a variety of Strongman implements nowadays that are plate loadable and pretty light when empty.
Back in the day, this was not the case. Yokes were 500 pounds empty, logs were well over 130 pounds, there were no stone molds so you had to find someone with stones or suffer at a show because you didn’t know how to do it and the list goes on.
Times have changed. There is an abundance of implements to train with at a lot of gyms and on this site that are easy to learn on.
Next week, I’ll give you ideas on how to do it.
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Vincere vel mori
