# strongman training for a beginner, or just work on building a base?



## Hmob (Mar 12, 2013)

im starting to veer more and more towards wanting to compete in strongman over powerlifting.

i figured the best way to start training strongman is to get myself to a strongman gym, access to both the equipment (stones etc) and strong people who know what they are doing.

thing is im pretty weak by all accounts, would it be better to hammer away on my own for a bit longer and build up a base of strength or get straight into training specifically for strongman?

for a building things up on my own was thinking of lots of squatting, push pressing, strict pressing, power cleans, deadlifts, more squats.


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## NSGym (Aug 23, 2011)

even when training for strongman, its important to have a good solid base. Good over head, good deadlift, decent CV etc.

we only train events once a fortnight (once per week if comp is coming up), the rest of the time its about getting strong


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

Strongmen training will not make you strong , gym work will so squat deadlift ohp until your strong .


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## Rick89 (Feb 27, 2009)

as said most important imo is gym strength in main lifts

when im doing heavy events my gym lifts stall or even go down while training to comps but when no comps ahead i dont bother with events at all and smash the static power in the gym


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## Hmob (Mar 12, 2013)

Lads, thanks a ton. Really respect getting advice from competing athletes, rep'd the lot of you.

Back to the gym and the dinner table methinks!


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## will san (Jun 22, 2010)

dont really agree with most of the above. how can training events not make you better at events? thats crazy talk!

for overhead in particular, dont waste time pressing on a barbell if you have access to a log and/or axle. there is a ton of technique to learn on both so the sooner you get used to them the better. I never press on a barbell at all.

deadlift and squats are, of course, important to building a good base but there is nothing to stop you training those during the week and getting a feel for strongman events at the weekend. most kit is plate loadable so any level of lifter can have a go.


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

Point of strongman is to be the strongest not the most technical .

If your not strong but you train events then your just a crossfit dude .

Front squads will get strength up better for stones than to actually do stones , once strong do events to learn them .


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## will san (Jun 22, 2010)

strongman is a sport just like any other. if you neglect to train the technical aspects of the events you are giving yourself a handicap before you start. if some dude with better technique than you beats you, he wins, whether you are 'stronger' or not.


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

will san said:


> strongman is a sport just like any other. if you neglect to train the technical aspects of the events you are giving yourself a handicap before you start. if some dude with better technique than you beats you, he wins, whether you are 'stronger' or not.


tell that to eddie hall and strongmen of old .

like i said event training will not make you strong but it will teach tech .


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## will san (Jun 22, 2010)

you are kind of proving my point there? ed hall is strong as an ox but, in international comps, gets beaten by athletes who arent as statically strong as him but are alot better at events.

and 'strongmen of old' are just that. they are nowhere near the standard of todays athletes. why? because todays athletes train for strongman specifically and arent just a collection of strong guys coming from other sports.

anyway, this is beside the original point. my opinion, training events is at least as important as training in the gym. in fact, I wouldnt even separate the two like that. I would split my training up is into static events and moving events. if you are a beginner, get in there and get a feel for what you will face in competition. and thats not to say there isnt value to different approaches. its just the advice, given my experience in the sport, I would give to anyone starting out.


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

i use a log or axle for ohp so i kinda go against what im saying lol

the events are more technical than strength building though a more technical lift is a stronger lift generally .


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## Rick89 (Feb 27, 2009)

will san said:


> strongman is a sport just like any other. if you neglect to train the technical aspects of the events you are giving yourself a handicap before you start. if some dude with better technique than you beats you, he wins, whether you are 'stronger' or not.


that why in my post i mentioned doing periods of focus on each

if i train events all the time my gym works sucks, coming up to a comp i train evenst very heavy but if no comp soon whats the point in training events why not focu 100 percent of it on gym power then nail the event tekker near comps


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## will san (Jun 22, 2010)

I dont think we are far apart on our opinions. My training is more gym focused in the winter and more event focused in the summer. but, I would never cut out events totally. and, as I said before, the only pressing I do is on log or axle.


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

I need to press a log .


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## Deadeight (Jun 26, 2012)

It depends where your strength level currently is. Like, I decided quite a while ago that my end goal was getting in to strong man, but I needed to gain a certain amount of strength before I could even start. For example, at the local strongman gym their lightest gull size log is over 70kg, without any additional weight on it.


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## will san (Jun 22, 2010)

you can get lighter starter logs. atlasstones.co.uk do one weighing 43kg unloaded. you can get strongman kit for any level of strength.


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## MattGriff (Aug 21, 2012)

I agree with Will...infact when I just turned up as a Powerlifter to one of the comps Will ran I placed third, and was well out of touch with the top two. At the next comp I trained for the events and won.

I train log (My personal nemesis) every week, sometimes twice, I squat twice a week (once back, once front), deadlift once and the rest of my training now I can is Yoke/Farmers working on stability and foot speed, stones. My other overhead session is always an Axle and I generally do a monsterbell at least every two weeks.

The logic to me is simple, a front squat can assist stones - but it is not the same as a stone, it doesn't roll, you don't go onto your toes to load etc, doing that faster means you are stronger at lifting stones.

A huge push press is great, my own being 180kg plus, but I can't log that because it puts me in a different press position - and most who push press don't bother doing the heavy ass clean first which drains you on the log.

You want to be strong and I advocate squat and deadlift strength, but you ideally want to be strong and fast at events. Isn't often we get a nice balanced bar to play with.


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