Wednesday, January 20, 2010
John Grun MarxAt an exhibition in Paris, in 1905, John Grun Marx bent and broke three horseshoes in a time frame of 2 minutes and 15 seconds.
Labels: Bending Feat, Bent Horseshoes, Broken Horseshoes, John Grun Marx, John Grunn Marx, Oldtime Strongman, Paris France
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Monday, October 12, 2009
Gustave FristenskyPhysique-wise, Gustav Fristensky was said by many to be as impressive as Sandow but since he was not as well known, did not get his due. Regardless, Fristensky was certainly an exemplary strength athlete as both his lifts and wrestling achievements show.
Labels: Bohemian Strongman, Gustav Fristensky, Oldtime Strongman, Wrestling
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Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Adolph Nordquest: "The American Sandow"This rare picture shows why Adolph Nordquest was known at "The American Sandow" ~ the likeness was uncanny. The similarities did not end there, however, what Nordquest also had in common with Sandow was great strength - Norquest could deadlift 638 pounds with an overhand grip (among other feats). This was back in 1915 mind you.
Labels: Adolph Nordquest, American Sandow, Deadlift, Grip Feat, Oldtime Strongman
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Thursday, September 24, 2009
Paul Von BoeckmannPaul Von Boeckmann, of New Braunfels, Texas, was a very interesting figure in oldtime strength training lore. As a young man he excelled in wrestling and feats of strength, achieving a bent-press of 201 pounds at 21 years old and a Hand and Thigh Lift of 1652 pounds by the next year.
He could also chin himself three times using one finger only, and notch a deck of playing cards. Von Boeckmann was active in the early 1900s but his arm development would be exceptional even a hundred years later. He was big on Breathing Gymnastics for chest development, which is certainly something to explore further.
Labels: Bent Press, Breathing Gymnastics, Card Ripping, Deep Breathing, Hand And Thigh Lift, Oldtime Strongman, One Finger Chin, Paul Von Boeckmann
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Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Galen GoughBilled as "The World's Miracle Strongman," Galen Gough from Howard''s Grove Kentucky certainly lived up to his title. Gough was terribly injured while serving in World War I, but built himself back to health and strength through physical training. His results were so dramatic that a career as a performing strongman soon followed.
Gough performed feats of strength in carnivals, fairs and vaudeville houses all over the country. In addition to "traditional" strongman feats such as The Human Link, Nail Driving, and bar bending, Gough came up with many of his own including dangling from a rope tied to an airplane by his teeth, with a 50 pound weight in each hand, biting keys in half, juggling a 300-pound anvil!
One of his many adventures was to perform feats of strength as publicity stunts for the Louisville, Kentucky- based Oertel Brewing Company which is the origin of the Barrel barbell pictured above.
Labels: Anvil, Anvil Lifting, Bar Bending, Barrel, Barrel Barbell, Barrel Lifting, Feats of Strength, Galen Gough, Human Link, Jaw Strength, Kentucky Strongman, Nail Driving, Oldtime Strongman, Teeth Lifting
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Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Wilhelm TurckThe great Austrian strongman Wilhelm Turck was the winner of the first Amateur World Weightlifting Championship, held in 1898. Interestingly, Turck was 41 years of age when he won the title, having taken up weightlifting until he was in his mid-30s. In winning that contest he put up some numbers which would be just as impressive today (perhaps even more so.) Among his winning lifts were a dumbbell overhead press with 134 pounds in each hand, and a two-arm barbell jerk of 333 pounds. Turck was also a member of the Osman Trio.
Labels: Austrian Strongman, Continental and Jerk, Oldtime Strongman, Osman Trio, Two Dumbbell Press, Weightlifting Champion, Wilhelm Turck
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Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Stanless SteelStanley "Stanless Steel" Pleskun from South Brunswick, N.J has been quietly performing amazing feats of strength for years. He can lift over 600 pounds with one finger, break chains, drive nails, lever sledge hammers and, incredibly, bend a penny with his bare hands. Stanless attributes his great strength to the ability to harness the power of his own mind.
Labels: Chain Breaking, Coin Bending, finger lifting, Mental Strength, Mind Power, Nail Driving, Oldtime Strongman, Sledge Hammer Leverage, Stanless Steel, Steel Bending, Steel Bending Strongman
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Friday, August 14, 2009
The Young Mighty ApollonJ.C. Tolson, "The Young Mighty Apollon", was a master of many different strength feats, including bending horseshoes as shown here. Tolson was not a large man but had tremendous full-body power. In 1927, at a bodyweight of only 185 pounds, he easily deadlifted 550 pounds, one of the first men to do so.
Labels: Bent Horseshoes, Deadlift, Horseshoe Bending, J.C. Tolson, Oldtime Strongman, Steel Bending, Young Apollon
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Thursday, August 13, 2009
George ZottmanThe Oldtime Strongman George Zottman devised his own method for building forearm strength and size which obviously works very well, as you can see above. Check out a copy of Super Strength by Alan Calvert for complete instructions on how to perform the Zottman Curl. Zottman was also very good at the dumbbell overhead press, achieving lifts of 160 lbs with his right hand and two reps with a pair of 100-lb dumbbells.
Labels: Big Forearms, Dumbbell Press, Forearm Development, Forearm Strength, George Zottman, Grip Exercise, Oldtime Strongman, Zottman Curl
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Wednesday, August 12, 2009
The Russian Lion - George HackenschmidtGeorge Hackenschmidt was equal parts champion weightlifter and wrestler. One wonders what he might have accomplished had he chosen to focus on one or the other... or perhaps the secret of his success was due to the fact that he did combine the two ! In any case, Hackenschmidt's performance on some of the standard lifts of the day (early 1900's) are as follows:
One-Hand Snatch: 197-1/2 lbs One-Hand Jerk: 231 lbs Two-Hands Press: 281 lbs Continental Jerk: 345-1/2 lbs
Labels: Continental and Jerk, Estonian Strongman, George Hackenschmidt, Oldtime Strongman, Oldtime Strongman Lifts, one arm snatch, One Hand Jerk, One hand Snatch, Press, The Russian Lion, Wrestler
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Tuesday, July 14, 2009
John Y. SmithJohn Y. Smith, shown above bent pressing a 185 lb. dumbbell, was another great strongman who was small in stature but large in strength. He was 5'7" and weighed around 165 lbs. in his prime yet could perform feats such as a right hand one-arm deadlift of 450 pounds (435 lbs. with the left), a hand and thigh lift of 1640 pounds and a press with a pair of dumbbells totaling 225 pounds. Smith was also a lifelong lifter, even winning the New England's Strongest Man Contest at 60 years of age.
Labels: Bent Press, Dumbbell Press, Hand And Thigh Lift, John Y. Smith, New England's Strongest Man Contest, Oldtime Strongman, One Arm Deadlift
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Friday, July 10, 2009
Harry Luft, The Brooklyn SamsonShown here is Harry Luft, age 17, performing his own specialty of tearing not one but TWO 2000 page telephone directories in half. Harry, who weighs but 142 pounds, stand 5 feet 4 and does other strongman feats such as bending iron bars in his teeth, is one of the "Samson Twins" of Brooklyn New York. The other twin is his 15 year old brother Sol who also bends iron bars in his teeth and who emulates his older brother's book tearing stunt by destroying Red Books, which are about 1/3rd as thick as the directories.
Labels: Bar Bending, Brooklyn Samson, Brooklyn Strongman, Feats of Strength, Harry Luft, Oldtime Strongman, Phonebook Tearing, Samson Twins
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Wednesday, July 08, 2009
The One and Only Hammer ManThe Legendary Slim The Hammer Man doing his thing. Why do I say "The One and Only?" - Just take a look at the picture.
Labels: Hammer Training, Oldtime Strongman, Sledge Hammer Leverage, Sledge Hammer Strength, Sledgehammer, Slim The Hammerman, Train with Sledge Hammers
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Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Felice NapoliOne of the earliest of the Oldtime Strongmen, Felice Napoli of Italy was performing incredible feats of strength in Wallshlager's Circus in the 1850's. Napoli dressed as the mythical Hercules as he performed and certainly lived up to it: Napoli's act consisted of his having a cannon shot off while held on his shoulders, bending iron bars, lifting heavy weights while hanging upside down from a trapeze, The Tomb of Hercules, and performing feats while hanging on a vertically suspended rope, a type of feat known as "The Spanish Web'. Plus, he had an excellent goatee.
Labels: Bar Bending, Cannon, Circus Strongman, Felice Napoli, Hercules, Italian Strongman, Oldtime Strongman, The Spanish Web, The Tomb of Hercules
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Monday, June 08, 2009
Viktor SolovyevViktor Solovyev, the great Ukrania strongman and wrestler, is shown here looking quite impressive in this rare picture take around 1906. As far as his lifting feats, he was able to 'slow clurl' 165 pounds, perform a Crucifix Lift with 60 pounds in each hand and could jerk 293 pounds. As a wrestler, he defeated Franz 'Cyclops' Bienkowski, the French Giant Louis 'Apollon' Uni, George Lurich, Pyotr Krylov and many others on the way to winning several world championships.
Labels: Apollon, British Wrestler, Curl, Cyclops, Franz Bienkowski, George Lurich, Oldtime Strongman, Pyotyr Krylov, Slow Curl, Ukranian Strongman, Viktor Solovyev
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| Originally hailing from Ashtabula, Ohio, Adolph Nordquest began his performing strongman career in Buffalo, New York in 1901. A year later he moved to New York City to study and train under Professor Attila. Due to Nordquest's similarities to one of Attila's former students he was dubbed the "American Sandow." Teaming with another great strongman, Otis Lambert, Nordquest performed very successfully in music halls and vaudeville for the next decade and a half. When his performing career came to an end, Nordquest focused very intently on his strength training, so much so that he briefly held the world deadlift record with a lift of 638 pounds. He was also very good at finger lifting. His brother Joe Nordquest was also a famous strongman with many records to his credit. |  Adolph Nordquest |
Labels: Adolph Nordquest, American Sandow, Deadlift, Deadlift Training, Eugen Sandow, finger lifting, Joe Nordquest, Oldtime Strongman, Performing Strongman, Professor Attila, Vaudeville
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Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Charles PhelanHow about that kettlebell? Charles Phelan billed himself not as the World's strongest man but the World's most entertaining strongman as he told jokes between his strength feats while he performed at Coney Island. He weighed only 140 pounds but held five world records: a one-finger lift of 506 pounds, 700 pounds with two fingers, a hand and thigh lift of 1125 pounds, a hip lift of 1600 pounds and a backlift of 2500 pounds. Phelan was taught how to be a strongman by Warren Lincoln Travis and was a good friend of Vic Boff.
Labels: Back Lift, Charles Phelan, Coney Island, Hand And Thigh Lift, Hip Lift, Kettlebell, Oldtime Strongman, One Finger Lift, Vic Boff
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Monday, May 04, 2009
Young ApollonThe famous French strongman Louis "Apollon" Uni at 19 years of age. As the story goes he ran off and joined the circus at 14 and started performing as a strongman a year later. Even at this young age, Apollon's potential for great strength is evident by his thick bone structure. Strength ran in the family, it as said that he was descended from Pompelius Unicus, an undefeated Roman Gladiator.
Labels: Apollon, Circus Strongman, French Strongman, Globe Dumbbell, Louis Uni, Oldtime Strongman
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Thursday, April 16, 2009
Kurt SaxonAmong the members of the Saxon Trio it was Arthur who got most of the spotlight but the other members were quite strong in their own right. Kurt Saxon for example, could bent-press over 300 pounds at a bodyweight of only 170. His exceptional muscularity is evident even in this old photo.
Labels: Arthur Saxon, Bent Press, Kurt Saxon, Oldtime Strongman, Saxon Trio
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Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Eugene CaouetteEugene Caouette is another name in the great Quebec Strongman Tradition. The giant French Canadian stood well over six feet and tipped the scales at 460 pounds! His best lifts were a Crucifix with a pair of 76-pound dumbbells, a Kennedy Lift with 1354 pounds, one-arm snatch 173-3/4 pounds (with either hand) and a one-arm clean and jerk of 213 pounds.
Labels: Canadian Strongman, Crucifix, Dumbbell Crucifix, Eugene Caouette, Jefferson Lift, Oldtime Strongman, One Arm Clean and Jerk, one arm snatch, Quebec Strongman
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Wednesday, April 01, 2009
Paul KronusAs a young man, Paul Kronus of Germany was inspired to become a strongman after watching a performance by Karl Abs. During the 1920's Kronus traveled throughout Europe and the U.S. performing feats of strength, among them this harness lift of a car said to weigh 3600 pounds.
Labels: Car, German Strongman, Harness Lift, Karl Abs, Oldtime Strongman, Oldtime Strongman Feat, Paul Kronus, Supporting Feat
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Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Lorenz GeerLorenz Geer, the popular oldtime strongman from Munich, Germany, was known as "King of The Snatch" in the later part of the 19th century. He achieved a right-hand snatch of 165 pounds and 9 reps with 142 pounds. Geer was particularly fond of working with thick-handled equipment.
Labels: German Strongman, Lorenz Geer, Oldtime Strongman, one arm snatch, Thick Handle
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Thursday, March 19, 2009
Gustav FristenskyCzechoslovakian-born Gustav Fristensky was known professionally as "The Bavarian Hercules" -- and he was aptly named. He once ran the 100 meter dash in 14 seconds while also carrying an extra 90 kg. He was also very good at repetition lifting, having been able to jerk 176 pounds 26 times and 220 pounds 18 times.
Like many strongmen of the day he was also a very good wrestler and won the World Championship in 1903. Fristensky's wrestling coach was George Hackenschmidt's good friend George Lurich.
Labels: Czechoslovakian Strongman, George Hackenschmidt, George Lurich, Gustav Fristensky, Oldtime Strongman, The Bavarian Hercules, Wrestler
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Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Young Lionel StrongfortLionel Strongfort's most famous feat was The Human Bridge where he supported 3-1/2 tons in the Tomb of Hercules. It was this feat by which he traveled the country amazing audiences and becoming a household word. On the advice of his mentor Professor Attila, Strongfort established one of the first, if not the first mail order phsyical culture businesses in 1898. Known as "Strongfortism" his mail order business lasted until around World War II. As you can see, Strongfort was also a fan of kettlebells.
Labels: Human Bridge, Kettlebell, Lionel Strongfort, Mail Order Course, Mail Order Muscle Courses, Oldtime Strongman, Strongfortism, The Tomb of Hercules
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Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Noel Le GauloisThe French strongman Noel Le Gaulois was the man to beat at certain lifts in the late 19th century. At the Brussels exhibition of 1897, he performed a two-arm snatch with 220 pounds, a 253-pound two-arm jerk and a 143-pound one-arm snatch... All lifts which would still be respectable a century later.
He could also lift a full wine barrel. Like many strongmen of the period, he was also a very good wrestler. Later on, Le Gaulois owned a café/gymnasium which was the gathering place for the famous strongmen of the day.
Labels: Barrel Lifting, French Strongman, Globe Barbell, Jerk, Noel Le Gaulois, Oldtime Strongman, one arm snatch, Snatch
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Friday, March 13, 2009
| David "Bull" Bonvicin was a popular performing strongman from Montana. He specialized in many of the traditional strongman feats which focused on grip and forearm strength such as ripping phone books, levering sledge hammers and bending spikes (as he is shown doing here.) Note the above average forearm development which obviously came from frequently practicing these oldtime feats. If you want to know more about his training, Bonvicin is profiled in Physical Training Simplified by Mark H. Berry. |  David "Bull" Bonvicin |
Labels: Bull Bovicin, David Bull Bonvicin, Forearm Development, Forearm Strength, Grip Development, Grip Strength, Oldtime Strongman, Phonebook Ripping, Spike Bending, Steel Bending
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Thursday, March 05, 2009
Charles PoireThe great French strongman Charles Poire was most famous for his heavy presses, jerks and curling ability. His upper arm development was also second to none. In the late 19th century Poire was said to have the best arms in France.
Labels: Arm Development, Charles Poire, French Strongman, Oldtime Strongman
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Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Ali KotierStrength is a state of mind - there have been far too many many strongmen who do not fit the typical mold to think otherwise. One such example is pictured above: Ali Kotier weighed only 138 pounds yet could overhead press a hundred-pound barbell forty times in succession.
The kettlebell belonged to Alan Calvert, and also can be see here, lifted by Clevio Massimo.
Labels: Ali Kotier, Kettlebell, Oldtime Strongman
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Tuesday, February 10, 2009
CyclopsFranz Bienkowski, known professionally as 'Cyclops' , was the first lifter to introduce the bent press to Britain. His best performance in this lift was 250 pounds. His favorite feats though were breaking chains wrapped around his arms (shown here) as well as bending or breaking coins.
Labels: Chain Breaking, Coin Breaking, Cyclops, Franz Bienkowski, Oldtime Strongman, Polish Strongman
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Thursday, October 30, 2008
Josef Grafl It doesn't get much more "Oldtime" than this - Josef Grafl, the great strongman from Vienna, Austria, competes in a historical contest. Quite a contrast to today's modern weightlifting meets. Note the chalk ring that the lifter stood in to perform the lifts and the outdoor location. Grafl was the World heavyweight weightlifting champion from 1908 to 1911 and again in 1913.
Labels: Austrian Strongman, Champion, Heavyweight Lifting Championships, Josef Grafl, Oldtime Strongman, Vienna, weightlifting
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Friday, October 10, 2008
Pyotr Krylov The great Russian Strongman Pyotr Krylov was well known for his shoulder development and the large tattoo of the Double-Headed eagle gracing his chest. In the early 20th century Krylov performed a Crucifix Lift with a 90-pound dumbbell in each hand - a record that has never been equaled or beaten. One of his favorite feats as a strongman was to break chains across his chest or with his arms.
Labels: Chain Breaking, Crucifix, Dumbbell Lift, Krylov, Oldtime Strongman, Pyotyr Krylov, Russian Strongman
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Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Circus Strongman Pierre Gasnier Rips a Deck of CardsStanding only 5'3" and weighing 135 pounds, the "French Hercules" Pierre Gasnier possessed a great deal of strength and power as is evident in this rare picture. He was one of the first, and most influential, of the oldtime Circus strongmen, performing for the Barnum and Bailey circus throughout the 1890s.
Shown here ripping a deck of cards with ease, Gasnier was said to be able to perform a one-arm snatch with bodyweight whilst his ankles were tied together. Gasnier is featured prominently in Alan Calvert's book Super Strength.
Labels: Barnum and Bailey Circus, Card Ripping, Circus Strongman, Deck of Cards, Oldtime Strongman, Oldtime Strongman Feat, Pierre Gasnier
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Monday, May 26, 2008
 Abe Boshes | Abe Boshes of Brooklyn New, York won Bernarr Macfadden's gold medal at Madison Square Garden in 1903 and was featured prominently in MacFadden's "Physical Culture" Magazine. Boshes would go on to become one of Earle E. Liederman's top students. Boshes became an expert in Chest Expanders, wrote several training courses on the subject and eventually employed a young Angelo Siciliano (later becoming Charles Atlas) to demonstrate his wares. |
Labels: Abe Boshes, Angelo Siciliano, Charles Atlas, Chest Expanders, Earle E. Liederman, Jewish Strongman, Oldtime Strongman
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Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Karl AbsKnown as the father of German Strength Sports, Karl Abs was the first man in Germany to jerk 130 kg. He could also bent press 242 pounds and was a very good professional wrestler, often billed as "The German Oak."
Labels: Bent Press, German Oak, German Strongman, Jerk, Karl Abs, Oldtime Strongman, Wrestler
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Sunday, May 11, 2008
| You might have heard of Ed Zercher from the famous lift which bears his name but the St. Louis native was a master of many different lifts. Here's Ed Zercher deadlifting 536-pounds at a bodyweight of only 155. |  Ed Zercher |
Labels: Deadlift, Ed Zercher, Oldtime Strongman, Zercher Lift
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Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Joseph VitoleAt a bodyweight of only 150 pounds, Joe Vitole broke the World's Record with a teeth lift of 550 pounds. Needless to say, teeth lifting builds incredible neck strength. While you may not necessarily want to include teeth lifting in you routine, you should unquestionably be training your neck.
Labels: Feat, Joseph Vitole, Neck Strength, Oldtime Strongman, Oldtime Strongman Feat, Teeth Lifting
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Friday, April 25, 2008
| Charles Batta, or, as he was more commonly known "Batta" was an oldtime strongman famous for his incredible grip strength. Standing at 5'10" and a bodyweight of only 200 popunds, Batta was the only man who duplicated one of the Apollon's greatest feats: the lifting of four 44-pound blockweights overhead -- each tied to a finger of one hand. It was also written that Batta cleaned (but did not jerk) Apollon's famous railroad wheels - an incredible feat in its own right, but even more so due to his light bodyweight. |  Batta |
Labels: Apollon, Apollon's Wheels, Batta, Blockweights, Grip Feat, Grip Strength, Oldtime Strongman, Oldtime Strongman Feat
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Michael Mayer - Oldtime StrongmanThe strongmen of old worked on their overhead press much like modern trainees work on their benchpress. The difference is that the overhead press is a much better exercise. Michael Mayer, at a height of but 5'6", was one of the first men to press 300 pounds overhead.
Labels: Michael Mayer, Oldtime Strongman, Overhead Press
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Friday, April 18, 2008
Mighty Mac Batchelor - Undefeated Armwrestling Champ "Mighty" Mac Batchelor doing his thing -- Mac was undefeated for over a quarter century at armwrestling.
Mac was quite the athlete - at a bodyweight of 330 pounds, he could run the hundred yard dash in 11 seconds and hurl the javelin 190feet.
He also could squat 400 for reps, perform the Zottman Curl with 90 pound dumbbells and Stiff Leg Deadlifts with 500 pounds.
I sure wouldn't want to be across the table from ol' Mac...
Labels: Arm Wrestling, Javelin, Mac Batchelor, Oldtime Strongman, Stiff-Leg Deadlift, Zottman Curl
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Wednesday, April 09, 2008
Jack Walsh Jack Walsh from Trenton, New Jersey, is the strongest man you've never heard of.
Over his career he performed all kinds of crazy strength feats, including lifting elephants, towing trains and letting trucks run over his body. At a bodyweight of 190 pounds, he even broke Louis Cyr's backlift record.
Anyhow, here's Jack Walsh jerking a 230-pound dumbbell overhead -- That's damn strong! Do you know anybody that can jerk more than bodyweight overhead with one arm?
Labels: Dumbbell, Dumbbell Exercise, Dumbbell Jerk, Feat, Jack Walsh, Jerk, Oldtime Strongman, One Arm Lift
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Tuesday, April 08, 2008
| The Mighty Norseman Karl Norberg could perform many incredible strength feats -- one of which involved a simple Olympic barbell. Norberg could do a front holdout with the bar (which is pretty impressive by itself.) |  Karl Norberg Olympic Bar |
Labels: Barbell, Forearm Strength, Grip Feat, Grip Strength, Hand Strength, Karl Norberg, Leverage Feat, Oldtime Strongman, Oldtime Strongman Feat, Olympic Barbell, Wrist Power, Wrist Strength
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H.E. MANNH.E. MANN was an old 1930's Tennessee farmer who followed in the footsteps of Milo of Crotona by lifting a calf each day until it became a full-grown bull.
It worked! ... and thus, progressive resistance training was born. This principle is particularly useful for heavy squatting although I prefer lifting iron to livestock.
Labels: Bull, Bull Lifting, H.E. MANN, Milo of Crotona, Odd Object Lifting, Oldtime Strongman, Oldtime Strongman Feat, Progressive Resistance Training
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Monday, April 07, 2008
| The great Canadian Strongman Arthur Dandurand at 48 years old, still looking very impressive. As far as feats of grip strength, Dandurand could deadlift 550 pounds with one hand and reverse curl 177 pounds. |  Arthur Dandurand at 48 Years Old |
Labels: Arthur Dandurand, Canadian Strongman, Deadlift, Forearm Development, Forearm Strength, Grip Strength, Oldtime Strongman, One Arm Deadlift, Reverse Curl
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Sunday, April 06, 2008
 The Stiff-Leg Deadlift | The Stiff-Leg Deadlift is a very, very effective power-building exercise that is seldom seen theses days. It is performed just like it sounds, and is shown here in mid-movement by the great Oldtime Strongman Michael Mayer, who was one of the first men to jerk 300 pounds overhead. |
Labels: Back Exercise, Barbell Exercise, Deadlift, Michael Mayer, Oldtime Strongman, Stiff-Leg Deadlift
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Charles SampsonCharles Sampson was a turn-of-the-century strongman who, unlike any of his contemporaries, claimed his great strength was not from physical training but a result of having been struck by lightning as a small child!
As noted in Physical Training Simplified by Mark Berry, Sampson did perform a Harness Lift with 4008 pounds and frequently collaborated with the famous coin breaker Franz "Cyclops" Bienkowski.
Sampson and Cyclops were both handily defeated by Eugen Sandow in a famous challenge match in 1889.
Labels: Challenge Match, Charles Sampson, Cyclops, Eugen Sandow, Franz Bienkowski, Harness Lift, Oldtime Strongman
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Monday, February 18, 2008
 Hand Balancing Made Easy by E.M. Orlick | Professor E.M. Orlick was an outstanding strongman, physical culturist and gymnast who came from a long line of circus performers. Over the years Orlick wrote hundreds of training articles on a variety of topics and was also the editor or "Mr. America" magazine for a number of years as well as the assistant editor of a Boxing/Wrestling magazine. While he was certainly proficient at a number of strength feats but hand balancing was his forte, and he wrote several training courses on the subject. Orlick's training courses include: "Walking and Jumping on Your Hands," "How To Do The One Hand Handstand" and "Hand Balancing Made Easy." |
Labels: E.M Orlick, Gymnastics, hand balancer, Hand Balancing, Oldtime Strongman, Physical Culture, Professor E.M. Orlick
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Al TreloarAl Treloar was a stage assistant to Eugen Sandow who went on to develop his own strongman performance.
Treloar went on to win the title of "The Most Perfectly Developed Man in the World" on January 16th, 1904 at the very first large-scale bodybuilding competition in America which took place at the original Madison Square Garden in New York City.
It was said that Treloar could tear four decks of playing cards at once.
After graduating from Harvard University, Treloar became the director of physical education at the famous Los Angeles Athletic Club in California, a position he held for the next forty-two years.
Labels: Al Treloar, Card Tearing, Early Bodybuilder, Eugen Sandow, Harvard University, Los Angeles Athletic Club, Oldtime Strongman
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Friday, February 15, 2008
 Harold Ansorge | Harold Ansorge, the great strongman from Grand Rapids, Michigan, was a bent-press specialist. He never broke Arthur Saxon's record of 336 pounds but came very close with a lift of 335 pounds. Here is Ansorge bent-pressing a great 200 pound dumbbell. His gym, the Harold Ansorge Health Studios, was listed at the following addresses: 2124 Plainfield Ave., N.E and 141 28th Street, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Anybody know what's there now? |
Labels: Bent Press, Classic Strongman Gyms, Harold Ansorge, Oldtime Strongman, Oldtime Strongman Feat
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Thursday, February 14, 2008
 Joe Ponder | Of all the recorded oldtime strongmen feats, Joe Ponder may very well have accomplished the most unusual (and maybe the most impressive, all things considered.) Ponder was particularly skilled at feats of teeth and jaw lifting -- here he lifts a 343 pound pumpkin in that manner. Yow! |
Labels: Bending Feat, Jaw Lifting, Joe Ponder, Oldtime Strongman, Teeth Lifting, Unusual Strength
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Thursday, February 07, 2008
Pierre GasnierPierre Gasnier was the quintessential Oldtime Strongman: BIlled as the "French Hercules," He performed feats of strength for the Barnum and Bailey circus in the late 1890's: tearing decks of cards, bending horseshoes, breaking chains, and lifting his special "challenge weight" globe dumbbell shown here.
The dumbbell had a handle of 2" in diameter and weighs 236 French Livres (which equals 260 pounds) Gasnier weighed only 138 pounds at a height of 5'3" yet was able to lift the weight with ease, a feat that such other noted strongmen such as Sebastian Miller, Hans Beck, and Franz "Cyclops" Bienkowski could not duplicate.
Labels: Bent Press, Challenge Weight, Circus Strongman, Cyclops, Franz Bienkowski, French Strongman, Globe Dumbbell, Hans Beck, Oldtime Strongman, Pierre Gasnier, Sebastian Miller
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
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