How It All Started
Okay, so you finally got suckered into trying a strongman competition. Whether you saw random people picking up rocks at your gym, maybe an Instagram post came across your feed, or that one friend finally annoyed you long enough, here you are, signed up. I know what you are thinking, “What the hell happens now?”
I had been competing in powerlifting for quite some time and was just burnt out from training the same three lifts. There happened to be some weird guys at my gym that had a few rocks, a barbell that looked way thicker than a normal power bar, and some other things that looked super annoying and awkward to carry. I approached the one guy and simply asked, “What the hell do you guys do?” It was received with a few laughs and a simple, “Strongman,” for a reply.
I sat and spoke to my new friend, Derrick, for a few minutes as he tried to explain everything. If you are a strongman competitor, you understand just how difficult it can be to explain. Anyways, Derrick had informed me that it was my lucky day. Here, a competition was coming up in a month that was less than an hour from home. Without knowing anything at all, I signed up on the spot.
For the next month, I went on to train for this competition. To me, it was the biggest deal on earth. I began obsessing over everything strongman. How should I train and eat? What should I be wearing? Googling my fellow competitors. My life revolved around anything related to this contest. I told myself I MUST win.
Spoiler Alert: I did not win.
To make a long story short and get on with the purpose of this article, I had an amazing day. I got second out of, I believe, five or six guys in the lightweight novice class. I made new friends, and I fell in love with strongman. Fast forward six-plus years, and I now own a strongman gym, I won the 2022 Strongman Corporation National Championship, a lot of my best friends are strongmen, I have a weekly podcast about strongman—hell, even my wife (who had no choice but to like strongman) got top 10 at her first nationals! It’s safe to say that strongman is a large portion of my life.
Alright, so enough about me. This article is designed to help you easily navigate through some of the things that come with signing up for your first show.
Signing Up
If this is your first contest, you will most likely be registered in the Novice class. Strongman classes can be super confusing the first time you look at them. Here is a quick and non-politically correct breakdown:
Novice
These are the beginners – it is my opinion that every first timer should do novice. I am super thankful for Paul Mouser, who was the promoter of the very first contest I did. Within that year, I had deadlifted 645 in a powerlifting meet under 200 pounds. I had a good baseline of strength from years of powerlifting and training for rugby and other sports. After signing up, I messaged Paul to boast about my 645 deadlift, and was surprised that he responded with his opinion that I should still do Novice. Part of me thought “F*** that guy, I’m no novice!”
Let me tell you something, I am so thankful I messaged him. I made many mistakes, learned so much, and benefited significantly from starting in Novice. So thank you to Paul for the great advice and for running an amazing show. It is probably a huge reason I fell in love with the sport.
Open
The two different federations in the U.S. have slightly different weight classes, but the purpose is the same. These are where the weights will be heaviest, there will be bids to Nationals for placing in a certain tier, and the competition will be the highest.
Masters
The old guys and girls. This name “Masters” is confusing to many people because, from afar, they associate it with a professional level. That is not the case in strongman. Although I will say, many of the people in the Masters' class have done so much to get this niche sport of ours to where it is now.
Pro
Nobody really knows anymore. I call the best people “Pros,” even if they technically aren’t. The “Pro” system in the United States is severely screwed up. That is not to take away from those who do have their actual Pro Cards. If you are reading this article, you probably are not a pro strongman.
Suppose you are like 99% of first-time competitors and signed up for the Novice class. We are back to talking about the primary purpose of your first contest and, quite frankly, what all contests should be—and that is fun!
Do not take this day too seriously as far as where you place. Don’t get me wrong, whenever they call your name, it is your turn to do whatever one of the five events you are doing. Take it seriously and do your best. But don’t be that overly closed-off guy/girl the entire day. One thing I vividly remember taking from my first contest is just how friendly and supportive everyone was. I told so many people about how bizarre it was. People who were competing against each other were also rooting for one another? I couldn’t believe it.
So, talk to people and make some new friends. You will be very surprised by how many of the same people you will see at future contests. Watch the “good” people. Take mental notes on how they conduct themselves the entire day. Remember, some of these people have been doing this for well over ten years.
Training
Now that you’re registered for the competition, we can start getting ready!
Strongman training can be insanely difficult and frustrating at times. Even though over the last six-ish years, I have witnessed strongman equipment become much more readily available, there still aren’t always a lot of options for strongman equipment. It’s one of the main reasons you will see a lot of athletes stuffed into small corners of CrossFit gyms, garages, or even storage units.
If you have access to a lot of strongman equipment, that’s awesome! It will make training a lot easier for you. If you do not, that is fine, and don’t panic. There are a lot of great resources out there to do most of the training in a simple commercial gym or with limited equipment. We can’t underestimate the importance of simply working hard in the gym to get ready for the competition, no matter what equipment you have.
If you do not have the equipment, I would recommend going to Instagram or Facebook and searching for gyms with strongman equipment or strongman “crews” near you. At my gym, we have a lot of “out-of-towners” who come join us once a week. Like us, a lot of gyms or training crews typically get together on Saturdays for what you will often hear referred to as “Strongman Saturday." This is such a great day for a multitude of reasons: If you are a beginner, you will be able to see how experienced competitors train. You will also be able to ask questions about form and anything else strongman-related. Plus, when it comes to strongman, you will quickly find out that it often takes a team to set up and tear down for event training. Don’t forget, we can often see events like truck pull, atlas stones, multiple implement medleys, yoke, all pop up in just one competition. It takes a lot of work to just set these things up!
When it comes to the actual program you do, my advice is to just pick one. The best program for you is the one that you will stick with and enjoy! We are so spoiled in today’s strength training world with the number of readily available resources. A simple search on elitefts and you can find a handful of different programs written by experienced and accomplished strongmen competitors and coaches. If you want a free program for your first show, do your research, pick one, and start training!
Another option is to hire a coach like me. If there is someone near you whom you can train with in person, that’s amazing. You can’t underestimate the value of having eyes on your lifts in real time. Also, online coaching is so prominent now. I have utilized online coaching for years with great success. There are so many great coaches out there who are ready to help you prepare for your competition. If you go this route, do your research and find a coach with whom you feel comfortable. Do not feel like you must go with the first coach you speak with, especially considering how many awesome options there are. I recommend a handful of coaches, so if you feel lost, message me and I can get you pointed in the right direction!
The Night Before
It has always been a ritual of mine to get my gym bag and make sure I have everything I need for my competition. It helps me do some spring cleaning, because you don’t realize how much unnecessary stuff you have accumulated. I go to the competition page where the promoter has all the events, rules, etc., then go event by event. Take your time and envision yourself doing the event.
What do you need?
What shoes will you wear?
What belt?
Do I need tape?
Tacky?
Consider everything needed from head to toe. I have learned about preparedness from one of the greatest strongmen ever, Andrew Clayton. Andrew is often known for his over-preparedness and ability to travel with so many items. He thinks about every single little detail, and so should you!
You will quickly learn that the sport of strongman can sometimes look like a fashion show with all the different gear people use nowadays, so make sure you have it all!
Also, ensure your cooler is full of drinks, snacks, and other miscellaneous items. You probably won’t eat and drink it all, but overpack. You never know how long a competition can run, or what unexpected breaks you may come across.
Lastly, have all your clothes ready to go. You trained hard for all these months leading into the competition, so you might as well look good on gameday!
This will all make the morning a lot easier on you, allowing you to focus on the competition.
Competition Day
Rules/Warmups
The day you’ve been waiting for is finally here. I hope you got a good night’s sleep (even though you probably didn’t).
My first piece of advice is to show up early. As an athlete, coach, and promoter, I can say there is nothing worse than showing up late.
In strongman, a lot happens at the rules meeting. Typically, this meeting takes place about an hour before the competition begins. If you don’t know when this is, ask! I have my phone out during the rules meeting with any questions I have (wait until the end to make sure the promoter doesn’t answer them). I also use my notes app to jot down any information I hear during rules that I find important. For example, maybe they are now doing split times on an event when they previously were not, you are in a particular grouping, event order, or they just flat out changed an event (unfortunately, this happens). Pay attention and write it all down!
Almost every competition I have been to has allotted time after the rules to warm up. If that seems to be the case at this show, do not warm up before the rules. I don’t find it productive to spend a lot of time and effort warming up just to stand still for the 15-plus minutes the rules will take to complete.
This is your first competition, so it’s going to feel overwhelming. But when the time comes to warm up, try to stay focused, and stick with simple things you have done before training days. This is another thing I would recommend leading up to competition day: Warm up in ways you can do on gameday. Things like bird dogs, planks, sprints, and band exercises can all be performed pretty much anywhere. Fancy equipment warm-ups are great before training if they work for you, but if you’re training to perform at a strongman competition, you should warm your body up accordingly.
Another warning for you regarding warming up is to expect a non-optimal warm-up room with non-optimal weight jumps. When it comes to that warmup room, it can be absolutely chaotic and oftentimes frustrating. Don’t get discouraged by this, but it does suck. I advise paying attention to what implement/bar weights are currently at and jumping in when you see fit. Be persistent in jumping in. All these competitors have been in your shoes before, so everyone is typically understanding, kind, and helpful. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to take sporadic (but safe) jumps during event training to properly plan for this. But remember, don’t get bummed out if it isn’t the exact warm-up you wanted. Unfortunately, it’s how it usually goes at competitions.
Competition
Okay, we signed up, trained hard, showed up early, and warmed up. Now it’s finally time for the fun part.
When it comes to strongman, almost every competition can run differently. Some promoters are fast, some are slow, some implements break. Pay attention to how the competition is flowing and be ready when they call your name.
When you do finally get to go out there and do an event, stay focused and remember how you trained it. Try not to be a deer in headlights and avoid changing anything at this point. It sounds obvious, but you’d be surprised how often people do this. I say that with personal experience. You’ll see the strongest guy/girl doing something you’ve never done. They are probably right, but during the competition isn’t the time to change it. Stash it in the memory bank or write down the interesting things you see/hear, but stick to the plan!
In between events, sit down, relax, and snack. You can watch the competition and make new friends, but don’t let it wear you out for the other events. Keep relaxing, but pay attention to how the competition flows, so you know when to start warming up for the next event. Just don’t be that person they need to stop the competition for and start screaming out for. Some promoters may skip your turn, and you will receive a zero for that event.
Have Fun
Seriously. This one cannot be overstated enough. I don’t mean to be harsh, but it matters 0.00% where you finish at your first contest. This doesn't mean you shouldn’t care—of course you should. My point is that there are way more important things to take away than worrying about where you place. This is the most important part of the article.
Have fun, make new friends, and lift some weights!
Josh Hendrickson is the proud owner of 580 Barbell, a strength training facility located in the Pittsburgh area. As a top-level strongman competitor in the 80kg class, Josh won the title of National Champion in 2022. His passion for strength sports extends beyond personal competition; he is also an Online Coach with Andrew Clayton at First Called Strength, where he helps athletes achieve their peak performance.
In addition to his coaching and competitive endeavors, Josh is a dedicated event promoter, organizing multiple large-scale strongman competitions annually. His commitment to the sport and the community is evident in every aspect of his work, making him a respected figure in the world of strongman.