Well I survived…

I made it through my first Strongman Contest…barely.

The events started shortly after 6pm on Tuesday , and luckily it was a warm summer’s  evening.

I loosened up at home first with some foam rolling, bodyweight exercises like squats and pushups, and some light stretches.

My wife and 15 month old daughter Matea as well as my sister and her family and my mother in-law and came along for support.

Feeling a little nervous when I arrived, I was glad to see a few guys from around town who I knew as regular gym goers who was to give this a shot.

First event was the Tire Flip. Man, this is the ULTIMATE WORKOUT! I can see why this lift has gotten so popular in the fitness industry. I am not quite sure how heavy this tire was but I am thinking around 300-400 hundred pounds?

I can see why this is such an intense exercise because it’s simulates a deadlift to lift the tire working almost every muscle in your body especially your lower body and your grip then to push the tire over it simulates a standing chest press. Plus it was probably the most INTENSE cardio workout I ever done! Man I don’t remember my heart rate ever being so high. I thought I was going to puke when I finished!

We had to flip the tire as many times as possible in 2 minutes. I got off to a great start and ended up tying for 1st place in this lift at 26 flips.

The 2nd lift was the Block Raise or in this case a car battery tied on to a stick which you had to raise off the ground for as long as you can. Not sure how heavy this was but after holding it up for almost a minute it starts to feel like a ton. I came 2nd place in this event with a time of 45 seconds.

The 3rd event was the Farmer’s Walk which involved holding two 110lb dumbbells and running a certain distance as fast as you can. Again I got off to a pretty good start until about half way I stepped into a big dip in the grass and almost dropped the weights. But I managed to hold on to the end to give me a 3rd or 4 place in this event.

Next up was the Log Press. Everyone was all pretty gassed by now but this lift dragged on a little too long as this was the only event which they didn’t time! Big mistake. Guys could take as long as they want to press the log and continue on.

The log was a sawed off telephone poll with screwed on handles that to everyone’s surprise made this lift  A LOT more awkward than it looks. Unfortunately in the end only 2 guys were able to lift the log at all!

I wasn’t one of them as it wasn’t reallly the weight as it was the handles which normally should be inset into the handles so you can rotate the log and clean it to your shoulders. After 3 attempts I decided it wasn’t worth it to  invite a serious injury.

By the last event we all felt like we were hit by a truck we were so tired and beat up. But for this event we had to PULL a truck!

I was one of the last guys up for this lift and by this time it was getting dark and I was starting to cramp a little and cool down. Not a good thing when you have to push your body to the limit in an event such as this.

My 175lb body was at the laws of physics against this truck as I had to give everything I had to get this truck moving and managed to pull it about half way before I had enough and had to call it quits. The key to this lift was to stay as low to the ground as possible as you drive forward with your legs…but it’s easier said than done when you are pulling a TRUCK!

After all was said and done I tied for 4 or 5th place. Not totally sure as the results will be out in this weeks local paper. But it was the experience I was after not the prize for some camping gear.

I have to say this was probably the hardest workout I have ever done. No matter how good of shape I thought I was in, these strongman events are way more physically demanding that I thought.

Not just strength wise but way more demanding on your cardiovascular system.

A couple years ago I completed our local duathalon which involved a 15km bike ride and a 7km run which I ended up finishing 4th even though endurance events are not my thing.

So I thought it was time to shake things up again and I am glad I gave this strongman contest a try.

Even if you are consistent with your busy dad workouts sometimes you have to get out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself. If you think “I could never do that”. You probably SHOULD.

The biggest benefits to these strongman lifts is they carry over to REAL WORLD everyday activities so you can be the strong dad you need to be to push your wife’s car out of the snow, lift your kids over your head without breaking a sweat or carrying in heavy bags of groceries to feed your growing family.

I am thinking of even getting a big tractor tire for the back yard as I was really impressed by how intense this lift was. Beats staying inside on a boring treadmill!

I wonder would the town miss one of their telephone poles?…

Do YOU have any fitness event you would like to try or you are currently training for? Strongman, Marathon, Powerlifting, Bodybuilding?

If so, tell me all about it by leaving a comment below.

This article was written by Sean Barker.