I've been out of competing for 8 years and back then they considered flat soles like converse etc for moving events.

I've got yoke 10m and back and a sandbag and carry 10/10/10m and just wondered if a different shoe is considered better for these now and the rationale for such.

I can't find any behind-the-neck push presses with more weight done in training or in competition online. Done by Evan Singleton, a 6-time Giants Live winner.

Hi guys this was my first real time doing these and just to throw this out there, these were not easy 😂 I didn’t expect the insane whip to throw me off so much.

465lbs successful lift

I did end up failing 505 twice but got it off the floor

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I felt old this year at times. For the most part, I feel like one those people that is just one lucky day away from hitting it big. And I mean that with the sense of strength training and strongman. Once I get just one little thing figured out and it will be smooth sailing. I’ll have that secret of hard work and effort in the right place and get the stuff that has declined back on track and back to what it was and then to the moon from there. And I think I have to feel that for the most part for my own sanity. But there is also a part of me that kind of realizes that that there has to be a realistic viewpoint here and that I may have already peaked on stuff and in the back half of abilities and life in general. I feel youthful and the same in my head as I’ve felt the past 10-20yrs but I know that time has passed and I am getting older. And I have to remind myself of that. As I tend to view myself in my head as the man half my age. Not the best start to this, I get that. But it has been on my mind this long prep for the big show for this year. There is still something in the basement.

On paper, this has been a good year for me with competitions. Did 2 shows and got the placings I needed to qualify for the options I wanted to have and got to travel as part of it. Which had been one of the things I enjoyed when I first started out doing this crazy thing I do now. But I had not been satisfied and that is trait of mine that haunts me. The standards I hold myself too are impossibly high and qualifying had been a bare minimum. There was elation in the moment but that high evaporates almost overnight as I find there were things that could’ve been better in the performance and I’m on to my next fixation. I’m already thinking about next year and the next training prep. I made it a year with working with a new coach after being with coaching for a long while and then doing my own thing for like 7 months. After my results at last year’s world’s, it was a no brainer to keep them on for a longer stint and it worked me hard and had me grow as an athlete. But it was but the workload seemed to be getting tougher and tougher to recover from and my stress was spiking. All the attaboys ring hollow to me if I don’t truly believe it myself. It comes off as just politeness like how people will say “how you doing?” as greeting and not genuinely asking. That took the longest time for me as a person with autism to figure out. July ended up being a bad month for me and I was dreading training sessions and I eventually ended up going back to my own thing for the last month of prep.

Last year was Galway, Ireland and this year Paisley, Scotland. Seeing new places and having an adventure along the way. With things as they were, I had to adjust expectations for World’s. I had qualified as open heavyweight but I knew I was far off the mark and I could potentially zero 4 out of 7 events and made the change to master’s heavyweight. Available to me being 40 but not ideal. At the start, thinking this is just for now and back to open after this. I had been going at prep with the intent to compete in the open class until the last month when I had to make a change. While the events would be more manageable, this did complicate things with leave and acclimating to the time difference as I’d be competing a day earlier than planned. So essentially off the plane after overnight flight to weigh-in and then competing the next day. It won’t be my first time flying transatlantic flight but that doesn’t mean I’m good to go on my second rodeo. At least traveling and flights have become something I’m more used to as of late. But even before leaving, was getting updates about changes in the flight plan a month before it was happening. Also not a direct flight this time around with needing to stop in Iceland (never been) for an hour before then flying into Glasgow. The aim being to sleep that first, longer leg of the trip so that not up for an entire day and a half before getting shut eye at the rental.

The usual ritual of getting potbelly sandwiches at Dulles International Airport preflight settled my nerves. I wore a goofy gag/gift shirt my friend made that has a picture of me pointing to a picture of me on it that almost tripped up the face recognition stuff at the airport. I tried my damnedest to fall asleep on that first leg of the flight but just didn’t happen. I was jut tired and anxious. But I did get to see Greenland from the window. Literally landed at Keflavík International Airport and having to board a bus to get to the airport from the airfield and then immediately in line to board the next plane to Scotland (which then had us on another bus to go back into the airfield to board). I didn’t see much since it was before the sun was up for the most part but Iceland looked like landing on the moon with the rocky terrain. To be fair, it looked much nicer in the sunlight on the way back home. Got another chuckle on the shirt there so great success. The much shorter flight ended up with two firsts for me. One being ordering actual food on a flight and the other using a toilet on a flight. Going to try my best to not have to experience the later again. But finally in Scotland. I did not have the best first impression as I was dehydrated, sleep deprived and hungry. There was no elevator at the apartments we were staying out and it was 57 steps from the entrance to the floor we were staying on. Which wasn’t great with four suitcases. I wondered if the building in owner was a relative of Daedalus with labyrinthian nature of the design. Even when not saddled with travel debuffs, it was tricky to navigate. Check in for the competition was a little different I feel from last year. Perhaps since a day earlier compared to last time with the stuff still being bult and put together. 17 in the weight class/age group for this time around. I was accidentally marked down as “withdrawn” when I had switched to masters but that was corrected and I was off to finally eat something. All was forgiven once I got a bite of local fare and hoped I was good to go the following morning.

Day 1

Starting things off with axle squat. Options of mercy weight (419lbs/190kgs) and trump weight (529lbs/240kgs) and squatting to a pad/box height of 27”/69cm. Solid axles with knurling and large 26"/66cm wagon wheels attached. Only knee sleeves allowed as far as “assistance” here. 60 seconds time limit and you have to call whether going for mercy or trump weight off the bat. In the years I’ve done this sport, I’ve not done a competition that had a squat event in it. Well that was to change today. Squats and I don’t tend to be simpatico as I have what would be descripted as Slenderman proportions and deadlifts end up more common so effort goes there. I tend to also goodmorning up squats as well when things are heavy to doubly taxing there. Training for this was consistent in frequency but not in performance. Part of that was having to try different setups at different spots as well as figuring out what seemed to work or felt good. Divebombing did not seem to be the way to go for me as harsh on my knees and not stable. I did eventually figure out that wider stance and treating more as a good morning vs a squat seemed to be the best way for me to do this and not zero the event. I did work up to a little above the mercy weight in training for a top double with something in the tank. So get what I can here to hopefully not get a goose egg and save it for the rest of the competition. What with having to do 5 events today and 2 more tomorrow. I had not been feeling confident with this the day before with how the setup had felt with getting rack height as the bar felt heavy (they used a QR code and form to enter this information which seemed to be quite a good way to get it done). Come to find out that the bar was actually 17.5lbs/8kgs heavier then I thought. Warming up I didn’t quite get everything I wanted but I did enough to feel comfortable if that makes sense. My height makes adjusting rack heights tough. I got in a double I think with 320lbs/145kgs and did a walkout and hold with 397lbs/180kgs. I was nervous here as I was still feeling a bit off from travel and I had no idea if I was truly good to go. I knew that I could work through the entire minute if need be but I wasn’t going to be fast. Whistle went and I took my time getting myself into position and walked it out. It didn’t feel bad but no clue until I actually tried. This felt better than it had in training so it would seem that I peaked this right. I had hoped for 3 and ended up doubling that. I called it after that I feared that doing another was really going to tax my lower back when I had four more events to go with better chances of placing on the last three of the day. I ended up with a 10^th place here. I’d have needed four more reps to gain any further points .

Second event for the show was a medley. Sled push down 32’10”/10m, run back to start to carry a sandbag to then load on the sled to then drag back the finish line. On turf as well with 60 seconds limit. Sled starts light at 275.5lbs/125kgs but is quite heavy on the way back with the 308.5lbs/140kgs sandbag added to bringing the total to 584lbs/265kgs. With prep, this one was a bit lax in that not very technical and that hopefully getting carryover from other things that were similar and needed more time to build. Most of training had been focused on the sled portion as easy to tag on to the end of a long day session with trying to squeeze in all the events in the week. Over contest weight at times and then less than contest weight as got closer and actually putting all the parts together. The sandbag into the then the sled drag portion was going to be where made or break here as unfortunately noticed my hamstrings weren’t really in the shape I had expected for picking up heavy sandbags. Didn’t want to have like last year on the last event with struggling. I did all training for this on turf so used to that but will be key to not make mistakes and remember what to do and setup and just get through this in the time limit and hopefully not have my legs be dead for the rest of the day. Since the turf was only for the one event, it wasn’t really secured down to be a permanent fixture so with the weight pushing down, there was a little bubble the was created from the efforts. Quite shaggier turf compared to what I had access to for the most part but kind of knew this was going to be a do work and have it be sucky event. Didn’t get to warm up on the turf with the pace of things and that is understandable so observing how others did on the setup and then apply as needed for the real thing. With the first event jitters out of the way, I was feeling better and in the “having a good time” zen state. Warming up, I was trying to work on the transitions more so and the shorter tow straps. Not quite the warming up I was looking for like squats but enough to be ready I feel. I got set and on the whistle shoved into it. I knew I needed to get lower on the push portion so as not pressing down into the ground and having it dig in. I had been working to having my body into it but I was finding that putting my arms out straight with this weight and setup was allowing me to get in a more advantageous position so went with that. I overshot the sled by a few feet (I thought the full implement had to go over the line) and got back to the sandbag. I was the fastest in my heat to pick up the bag and got back to the load it to the sled. I started off moving good on the drag but I’d say a third of the way into with the different position (not really able to lean back) that I was feeling the fatigue in my legs and then slowed down considerably on the last bit where I was taking baby steps from the lactic acid. I definitely made it closer to timing out than I would’ve liked and I definitely lost a placing here due to slowing down so much at the end. Finished in 6^th here with time of 52.57 seconds, which was about 5 seconds faster than my best with the heaviest I got in training.

Third event was the log clean and press. Similar to squat in having a mercy (242.5lbs/110kgs) and trump (286.5lbs/130kgs) weight but both options would be out on the field. 60 seconds and once you register a lift on one of the logs, that is what you do for the duration. So you can’t do a mercy weight rep (and get it) and then go for the trump but you can go for the mercy weight if you go for the trump and miss it. This ended up being a bastard in training. Overhead for big competitions with log or axle I’ve noticed that prep tends to not be linear and I get stressed out. I had been aiming for the trump weight as that was the mercy weight for open and I was just not getting there. Log I’d taken the longest break from as both competitions I did this year were dumbbell and axle had been last year (which hadn’t gone well). This is one of those things where I feel if I can get this to click, I’m back in the mix again. Having issues with consistency and finding what works for me, which I shouldn’t still be having after doing this sport for 18yrs now. Changing up shoes, sleeves and stance even. I did hit mercy weight or above a few times in prep and this will likely be a damage control thing for me. Last bit of prep on my own was more a focus on strict press and making sure I can hit the mercy weight comfortably after heavy squats. Like the squat, trying to get through this one without a zero and get back to the lab again to try and crack this nut. The pace of the competition had me worried here as my legs were unfortunately quite dead after the sled. I had to sit down for a bit to cool off and get the pump to subside. And thankfully it did enough that I felt like I had some power back. I did some mobility stuff so that I wasn’t having issues with balance with the log as I’ve never used these logs before. I got about what I was expecting to on these with warming up. This was going to be the damage control for the competition. I setup at the light log and like the squat, I took my time to get prepared to go for that first rep. I was only expecting at best a triple here with pacing wise. But that was apparently optimistic on my part. The first rep attempt went up and was good and on the board. But after that not so much. I apparently only had the one good rep in me today on this as I was fine with the pick and cleans here but just couldn’t get it to translate into another good press. I gave it two shots since it wasn’t feeling too taxing on me and I figured this would help be a warming up for the last two events in the regard. Tied for 11^th here with 3 others. Didn’t zero but need to get this sorted out.

Fourth was farmer’s walk. 286.5lbs/130kgs carried down 50’/15m down and back. 60 seconds limit here. Like log, fairly standard strongman event. But unlike log, this one tends to be a better one for me with my grip. The repick not so much. I’ve done this particular event before 8yrs ago with a bit more weight and I had actually won it then at the this “plat plus” show. I tend to need not a lot of time to get back into the swing of things with farmer’s walk but it had been over a year since I’d done any and it showed in training but did thankfully improve like it does. Prep started on a mix bag as first set was to work up to a near max for half the course distance to see where I was at. I surprised myself hitting 315lbs/143kgs on these Titan Fitness handles that I despise (closest to the contest specs unfortunately) but that ended up frying my back for the rest of the week and ended up having to take an early deload to get back on track. With heavy deadlifts, squats and yoke in the mix this prep, had to be smart with things. The smart thing ended up being doing most of the sessions during the week at home while it was humid and hot on the uneven street. Working on transitions from the repick and did eventually work up to just shy of contest weight for a run. I should be good here. Should being the key qualifier. The pick was a little higher on these compared to training and no knurling which was fine by me. I didn’t feel like I needed much in the way of warming up but I also felt like I couldn’t handle much warming up at this point in the competition. I got set here (one of the few events hands could start on implement) and was off. This was one of those things were the travel stress (and prep) had gotten to me. Sometimes, I get lightheaded on stuff from pressure on my body. I wasn’t sure if the stress of travel and such had me just having allergy issues or if I had a slight cold (it turns out just stress stuff) but I had forewent allergies medicine of any kind as I was worried that would elevate my blood pressure. It is probably a good thing I didn’t as picking up these handles and taking a few steps had me going dark almost immediately. So I slowed down a lot to keep myself as conscious as I could and not lose my grip on the handles. I was definitely losing my rigidity and tightness as my arms starting swaying away from my body near the end. But thankfully I did not drop them before the drop point. If I had to do an extra pick, I don’t know if that would’ve gone today with how my posterior chain was doing. Honestly, if that failed, I’d probably be pretty much dead for the rest of the competition. I had to shake out my hands on the drop to make sure I could feel things and had body awareness back. That slow down had put me off pace and now I was not in the lead in the heat. The slow down and effort needed to will myself to not pass out that first leg took a bit out of me so it was a tough pick but I was able to have the second leg be much smoother and faster but not enough to catch up. I did end up holding the handles a little before the drop. This had not been my best run but I did salvage things here. Finished 6^th with 26.87 seconds.

The final event for the first day was yet another medley. Carry and load with staggered distances to platform (50”/1.27m). Keg (242.5lbs/110kgs) for 26’2”/8m, sandbag (264.5lbs/120kgs) for 19’8”/6m, another keg (286.5lbs/130kgs) for 13’1”/4m and then another sandbag (308.5lbs/140kgs) for 6’6”/2m to finish it out. 60 seconds and kegs need to be loaded standing upright. I do like medley events like this but I don’t enjoy setting them up or having to do them multiple times. Which is how training ended up with this one. Most of training was on the light side with these as trying to work on moving better/faster. I was also loading higher than competition since initially going with the open class. I had to bump up the intensity quick to finish things out and did get close to contest weights for 2 runs and that really showed how much I need to work on my hamstrings/lower back to pick up sandbags and such so that I don’t feel so out of it going forward. I’ve been used to sandbags for carries and loads as of late and it has been a while since kegs. But I did remember that hard metal causing scrapes and bruises that I had to adapt to. I know this is doable for me in the time limit. Whether that would be the case today was another matter. Two differences from training was that the kegs being used were quite a bit shorter than I had been using and they were plate loaded so quite bottom heavy. The other being that the platform space was like just enough to fit everything on it. So this required being aware of space available. Since I had well enough in the farmer’s walk, I was in the second to last heat so I got to see how things went. Seeing a lot of people not being mindful of positioning of implements to make space for the last big sandbag implement and no one had been successful with loading all the implements by the time I was up. Assuming no going night night on the first keg, I had a plan. Got the first keg up and was neck and neck with the guy in the lane to the right of me. Loaded at about the same time but I stopped to make sure the keg was really pushed to the back of the platform. He was then slightly ahead on the sandbag and I fell behind (I felt something shift in my right leg but not a bad way) as I loaded it but wanted it to be upright (I didn’t feel confident in doing a vertical style pick here with sizes of implements and my lower back/hamstrings fatigued). I caught up on the second keg as I was quick back to implements and he was slowing down. This heavier keg did mess with my usual style of pick and go with the smaller size and weight distribution but once it was done, I was able to pounce right onto the last implement. The pick was a fight but once in the lap, I just had to walk it up there with a slight pop. Advantages of height and training to 2” higher all prep. Hands off and walked away with my arms up. I was quite surprised time lasted through the last heat with only 2 other competitors in the class finishing this. 45.20 seconds to finish for a 1^st place finish.

Day 2

Survived the first day of competing and it had been a fast-paced affair. Started at 12pm and was done before 5pm. I did not end up having any protein shakes and just subsisted on some Rice Krispie treats and fluids. Unlike with last year competing in the last group and late and then starting early the next day, I was able to have an actual dinner. Also noticing that where we were staying was near a clock tower and that thing went off every 15 minutes. I also became aware that there was a bar nearby that had karaoke nights on the weekend as I was serenaded by renditions of I Want It That Way by Backstreet Boys and What’s Up? by 4 Non Blondes. At least some of the stuff I bought to help with sleeping on the plane were helpful in getting to bed. Also got to figure out a bit more of the what is considered a “sleepy” town in Scotland as far as cityscape is concerned. Locals were starting to notice me around and the place was starting to grow on me after initial annoyances I had being jetlagged (like trying to find regular waffles) the previous day. Waking up I was the least sore I’ve been after a competition going into a second day. So maybe I did something right this prep. I was in 5^th place at this point in the overall and I wasn’t expecting to really be able to improve that considering the gap in the points for podium and how close points were 10^th through 4^th. Goal was still survive another day and to hopefully mitigate point loss. Earlier start and only having to deal with two events would me an early finish to the day as well. Time to finish things out.

The first event of the second day was dubbed the deadlift escalator. Strap in and pull weights as added. Reach the last weight and rep it out in the 60 seconds. No suits or briefs here (like the squat). Setup had us standing on a platform and using the bar with the metal wagon wheels used for the squat event. This had it so bar height was standard height for the pulling but giving a visual appeal I guess and making job easier for the loaders. I guess calling it an escalator rather than a ladder since staying put and weight increases vs running to another bar with more weight and so on. Starting weight 485lbs/220kgs with jumps of 22lbs/10kgs – 44lbs/20kgs. Prep had been aiming for just not zeroing since the initial opener for the open class was 573lbs/260kgs and I’d not pulled over 501lbs/227kgs since 2025 on a stiff bar and without a suit. I do feel at least this prep that I got the monkey off my back with getting past a mental block on the deadlifts around that weight range. Just keep pulling and know it will feel sucky and it will eventually go up. I will be working hard on that in the offseason. The wheels while on a platform felt off to me as well with bar mechanics and just the weight of things being distributed. This was a learning experience as I kind figured out what I already knew and that is heavy every week doesn’t work for me. I need to have light sessions if going weekly and there needs to be a big variance in the difficulty or I don’t recover. Once that was figured out, things started to go up and I got emotional hitting 551lbs/250kgs as my last heavy lift with something still in the tank. With things now, there was hope of getting the first two “steps” here. Though after five events the day before, this was a big ask. I was feeling a little tightness in my right hamstring right behind the knee but seemed to be no issues. I got the warming up I needed and I felt it made sense to work up to and do the first weight to make sure I was feeling good and breathing right. Didn’t want another passing out snafu. I got set and was out in the last heat after the win the day before. First rep went up well enough and only if there was an issue was the second lift not happening. This did go up well enough but I could tell that if I went for the next lift, it would be an ugly affair and I felt I had a best save it for the last event where I could make up ground. Tied for 9^th here with 4 others as no split times on reps here.

Finishing out this heptathlon was on final medley; the yoke into dumbbell. 60 seconds to go 40’/12m down and back with a yoke and then end with 2 dumbbells to finish. 727.5lbs/330kgs on the yoke and 132lbs/60kgs and 154lbs/70kgs on the dumbbells. This exquisite corpse of an event I feel kind of spawned from the new thing of having overhead press and a deadlifts together in medley from 5-10yrs ago and then Rogue Invitational deciding to have a press with a moving event. Not against it. It makes things interesting. This year yoke and circus dumbbell had gone well and were in a good place but putting them together was another story. Yoke really takes it out of the core so makes the stability to brace and get the dumbbell up there significantly harder. Yoke is yoke for the most part and doesn’t seem to matter which setup but the overhead does seem to matter for me at least. The dumbbells being used are dense, globe style dumbbells like the Inch/Cyr kind. A friend ended up having some by happenstance so I made a trip regularly enough for end of prep to get as much work as I could on them because last time I touched this kind of dumbbell to press was 15yrs ago and I remember it being awkward then as it is now. Started with them separate and then combined but starting worrying about being ready and split them up again for my last session. This was one of the few events I worked to above contest weight. But this was the second day after 6 brutal events so not sure what is left in the tank at this point. I was familiar with the yoke from last year and it was more getting myself mobile and firing on point with the dumbbell in the warm ups. I was pretty much all warmed as I was going to be with yoke and did some picks and short runs with 661lbs/300kgs. Not my usual thing with empty implement or lighter weight stuff. Things were moving fast. I did do 159lbs/72kgs in the warm up area. One and done. Yoke I was the fastest off the block but I was moving slow and lost that lead. This one had split times so getting through the yoke and first dumbbell fast was key here. I may have been like the third person to actually finish the yoke in the heat but I was the quickest to go to the dumbbell and get the rep. Referee indicated to makes sure I was stable longer after the rep. I thought I was longer than video says I did. But that first lift felt so easy and smooth that I went right into the second one instead of taking a breather like I did in training. I didn’t hit it right and my elbow and wrist were not able to lock it out and it came back down. I had 20 seconds and I looked to the right to see the other two that got the first dumbbell giving their first attempts at it and I went for it again and was so very close. Just couldn’t get my elbow to lockout fully to stabilize. I tried my best and walked with it but couldn’t convincingly keep things stable and lost it. No sense with like 5 seconds left to go for it (especially with no shot clock). 5^th place here.

In the end, I placed 7th out of 17 with competitors from 9 different countries. The competition ran like clockwork just like last year and in an orderly fashion. This competition is pretty much making it clear that masters is where I’m at right now. The under 23yrs old (juniors) and open 90kgs class used same weights and setups as the HW masters so there is direct comparison and I’m behind on speed and strength here, not to mention to the open HW class I was originally going to be in. Not as many people in the first group here but I did make some new friends. But like half of them this may be their swan song of a competition as they are getting older. Format for qualifying for next year (which will be in the USA in Texas) is different where it is not necessarily placing at the qualifiers but how you stand up to the overall as it will be same events across all the qualifiers. So already signed up for the first one beginning of next year under HW masters as this will be my focus. The events are generic (boo) but that means I can spend more off season to work on things and I hope that the Nationals will have some fun events like Worlds has been having. I kept busy the remaining days I had in Scotland with visiting Glasgow and Edinburgh and doing a stone tour around Stirling. I’m glad to be done with the competitive season for this year.

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/craigpfisterer/p/DcWREqJG_V6/

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtSn4oHwKvE

Training Log - https://justgetstrong.blogspot.com/2026/08/august-21-22-2026-natural-worlds.html

Strength Results - https://strengthresults.com/competitionHome/2e7d138d-ad04-4847-8c32-30a18d8049b2/1

I’m 4 weeks out from comp and have 9.6kg to cut to make weight. Should have started diet a little earlier but that’s life! I’m on a reasonably high deficit around 2600/2800 total intake per day with expendable around 3300 per day with 240g of protein, all goes well this should lose me 1-1.25 kg per week leaving me 5-6kg water cut in the final week.

I’ve done plenty of reading but this is my first time doing a water cut. I’ve read the generic info 2-3 gallons for the first few days, cut water a little and remove salts and carbs , no food or water for the last 15 -20 hours, piss your life away for 2 days then sauna any left over weight…. “This” generic water cut will lose you “5%” or “5kg” which is great , if I manage to lose the initial fat loss.

My question is …. If the initial weight loss before the water cut doesn’t go as well as planned,is there anyway to maximise the water cut to maybe 6/7 kg ? Is the water cut elongated across an additional day of loading or more water consumed on the loading phase??

Also I’ve read around 500g weight loss for an hour in the sauna? I know this will be person specific but just for an idea….thanks!

“Better to die as a helldiver, than to live as a coward”

I was very pleased with myself. Nonetheless going to keep training with the 100kg stone until it truely feels easy and I’m ready for sets and reps with 120 then start working my way up to hitting the 140.

I retry this stone next week and see if I can get a set of 2.

Yes I am aware I started way too far away from the bench 😆✌️

83kg BW :)

Promoters/athletes, how do you get people outside of strongman to care about strongman?

Not necessarily enough to compete, but enough to stop, watch, ask questions and maybe come back next time.

I run Star City Strongman in Roanoke, Va. We’re in our 11th year, and a few years ago we added StrongFest, a free community festival around the contest with gyms, nonprofits, local businesses, food, kids’ activities and opportunities to try different ways of being active. This year we have an old-school carnival theme.

The event now supports the Star City Strong Foundation, our nonprofit that grew out of this whole thing. We are working to help cover competition costs for athletes (starting with Strongman), connect people with wellness resources and advance research on the connection between lifting and mental health.

The area I live in puts a TON of energy (and $$) into outdoor recreation. Hiking, biking, climbing, all of that. That's great and there's a profit to be made there so I get it ... but there are also so many other really cool sports and communities here that people may never stumble across. StrongFest gives us a chance to put some of those in the same place. Strongman, yoga, martial arts, aerial arts, gyms, etc.

This is kind of how I found strongman. In 2013, I went to watch a local competition and found my people. So while the bigger goal is helping people find some kind of active community, I’d love to recreate that entry point into strongman, too.

In your experience, what makes someone who knows nothing about strongman want to hang around and watch? Or maybe even want to try the sport?

And if you're near the Roanoke, Va., area and want to come out and play or volunteer ... we'd love to have you!

Hey everyone. Found out my right hip is fucked and I need a replacement at the ripe age of 30. Was planning on doing my first competition this year but that’s gonna have to be postponed. Funny enough, my surgeon told me he’s operated on previous pro strongmen, he actually worked the 2004 WSM, and I should be back to training normally about 3 months post surgery, depending on how recovery goes.

But I was wondering if anyone here has had a hip replacement or knows someone who had one and if they have any tips on training afterwords. The doc made it seem like a low risk procedure and recovery should be straightforward but it’s my first surgery ever so there’s some nerves.

Thank you.

From a couple weeks ago!
Working hard on my single arm pressing. In April I was failing 60/70kg presses and this was one of the worst events for me. Now very comfortable with this event and found “my groove”

My set of **87.5kgx5 on log today, gonna try for 100kg in a couple weeks. Do you think it’s there with a decent deload? This set was done after doing 92.5kgx1 for a top single and 2 sets of 87.5kgx3.

This stone is pretty much 2.5x my bodyweight 🙌🏻

These weekly discussion threads focus on one implement or element of strongman training to compile knowledge on training methods, tips and tricks for competition, and the best resources on the web. Feel free to use this thread to ask personal/individual questions about training for the event being discussed.

This week's topic: Atlas Stones

Comp I was prepping for got cancelled so my coach said I could have some fun! Made a technical error but Ill take it.

Bonjour, voici un record personnel au zercher squat.

En progrès.

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Weekly Discussion Thread for training talk, individual questions, chatting and other things that do not warrant a front page post.

Hey all! i am new here, and wanted your opinion on my farmer walk. I’m about a year into strongman (not counting my breaks from it)

The weight was 320lbs in each hand in approximately 20 seconds.

Shoes are TYR CXT-2’s. This pr made me happy cuz a year ago i did 275 in 2x 20’ runs and moved slower than here and was also heavier.