Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Power Rack TrainingRegardless of what you might be training for, one piece of equipment which your weight room needs is a sturdy power rack. You'll need one to do the 20-rep squat program, or to do heavy lockouts and supports like Steve Justa. You can build your deadlift like Bob Peoples or you can work on your overhead pressing, like Bosco here.
These are only a few of the many reasons to have one... In case you are interested in learning more information on some of the best ways to utilize the power rack, there are several chapters which cover this topic in detail in Dinosaur Training.
Labels: 20-Rep Squat Program, Bob Peoples, Bosco, Dinosaur Training, Power Rack, Squat Workout, Steve Justa
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Thursday, June 25, 2009
Archie VanderpoolIf you want to practice heavy partial deadlifts or hand-and-thigh lifts, you'll want a setup like Archie Vanderpool here. The strongman (and proud member of the York Barbell Club) from Woodbine, Iowa, specialized on a number of unusual -- and very heavy -- lifts. For example, his record in the lift shown was 1840 pounds. He also liked to do things like shouldering a 1100 pound railroad rail and then going for a walk.
He also reported carrying a barbell loaded to 400 pounds for a distance of 80 feet. If this looks and sounds familiar, it's because Archie was good friends with Steve Justa's father.
Labels: Archie Vanderpool, Heavy Partial Movements, Odd Object Lifting, Steve Justa, Unusual Strength, Unusual Training Equipment
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Wednesday, March 25, 2009
IsometricsIsometrics were all the rage back in the 50's and 60's. Here weightlifting and bodybuilding champion Steve Stanko gets in a quick bicep workout using the Isometric Power Rack -- looks like it's working pretty well.
Isometrics are not one of my favorite training techniques but plenty of modern day strongmen (such as Steve Justa and Dennis Rogers) use them with great success.
(Note: We do NOT have Isometric Power Racks for sale or know where you can find one.)
Labels: Arm Exercise, Dennis Rogers, Isometric Power Rack, Isometric Training, Isometrics, Power Rack, Steve Justa, Steve Stanko, York Barbell Club t-shirt, York Barbell Company, York Power Rack
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Thursday, June 26, 2008
Barrel LiftingBarbells and dumbbells can be nice, but sometimes it pays to lift something big, awkward and heavy to build unusual strength. For many strongmen of the past, a barrel often fit the bill perfectly, and even more-so when partially filled with water.
Read Dinosaur Training or ROCK IRON STEEL by Steve Justa for more information on Barrel Lifting.
Labels: Awkward Object Lifting, Barrel, Barrel Lifting, Barrel Lifting Exercises, Barrel Lifting Workout, Brooks Kubik, Odd Object Lifting, Steve Justa, Strongman Exercises
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Friday, April 25, 2008
Barrel Lifting for Forearm DevelopmentI can't always say for sure how the oldtime strongmen built their strength but I can say that in the year 2008, many of the training methods they wrote about works just fine. One of those methods is Barrel Lifting which is a good way to build the gnarly, knotted foreams that the oldtimes often had. The unbalanced, unweildy load provides a shock to the system that can build incredible strength. Check out ROCK IRON STEEL by Steve Justa and Dinosaur Training by Brooks Kubik for more information on barrel lifting.
Labels: Barrel Lifting, Barrel Lifting Exercises, Barrel Lifting Workout, Brooks Kubik, Dinosaur Training, Forearm Development, Lifting Barrels, Oldtime Strongman Exercises, Steve Justa
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Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Steve JustaSteve Justa has some pretty unique ideas about training... Lifting,Barrels, sandbags, rocks, chunks of concrete... all in a day's work for Steve Justa.
One of his theories is that walking with heavy weights will build incredible ligament strength, especially in the ankles.
Walking with a heavy barbell on the shoulders is cumbersome, not to mention dangerous should it fall. Instead, Steve built this piece of equipment which allows him to load up as heavy as needed and be in perfect position to walk every time.
He worked up to walking with well over a ton on his back.
Labels: Ligament Strength, Steve Justa, Strongman Feat, Supporting Feat, Weighted Walk
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Monday, November 05, 2007
Steve Justa: The High Plains Heavy Metal MasterOut in the Nebraska cornfields you'll find a man who lifts anything he can get his hands on -- barrels,rocks, scrap iron, even trucks. He will push, pull, carry and drag the heaviest weights he can, and regularly moves half a ton, if only a few inches, its still impressive.
Steve Justa is his name and his training philosophy is anything but conventional...
"Don't Have a Weight Set? - Get a Tractor!"
Labels: Barrel Lifting, Odd Object Lifting, Rock Lifting, Steve Justa, 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
Sunday, November 04, 2007
 Steve Justa (Top), Archie Vanderpool (Below) | If you have had a chance to read Steve Justa's book ROCK IRON STEEL you've had a chance to see many unusual training techniques and pieces of equipment that Steve Justa uses in his workouts... You probably wonder where he got some of these training ideas -- well it just so happens that Justa's father was a friend of a guy named Archie Vanderpool who was featured in several of the lifting mags during the 1950s with some very interesting equipment and ideas on super-heavy partial movement training. |
Labels: Archie Vanderpool, Heavy Partial Movements, Rock Iron Steel, Steve Justa
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Friday, August 24, 2007
Barrel Lifting for Unusual Strength It has been well written that many so-called "feats of strength" had their roots in manual labor. Back in the beer halls of Bavaria and old, Old, OLD Vienna I'm sure a couple of robust beirmeisters once sat around shooting the breeze when one bet another that he could lift the biggest barrel -- and it's all been down hill from there.
Many of the old timers were well-known for their barrel or keg lifting feats, including Louis Cyr (who was said to have been able to lift a 400 lb. barrel to his shoulders) and George Jowett who included a Barrel Lifting Course in his Molding a Mighty Grip training guide.
I would imagine the "Cincinnati Strongman" Henry Holtgrewe lifted a few barrels and kegs in his time. He owned a tavern down in the neighborhood of Northside in Cincinnati just after the turn of the century.
| Several modern day strongmen have included barrel lifting in their training. Probably the two most well known are Steve Justa and Brooks Kubik who wrote extensively about barrel lifting in Dinosaur Training. Keep in mind that lifting a 200 pound FULL barrel is actually easier than lifting a 150 pound HALF-filled barrel. |  Brooks Kubik |
Labels: Barrel Lifting, Brooks Kubik, Dinosaur Training, Henry Holtgrewe, Steve Justa, Strongman Equipment, 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
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