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Strongman training foundational movements

This is an excerpt from Strongman Training for Strength and Performance by Christopher Slater,Heidi Campo.

Learning the Foundational Movements

If you have ever learned a new language, then you know that you have to start with understanding the alphabet of that language. If you know what sound each letter makes, then you can begin to learn the words; words become sentences, and sentences become language. Alternatively, if you are a tourist who simply wants to learn a few vocabulary words and phrases to get by for a few days, then you only need to memorize those without having a foundational understanding of the language. Both options are fine and serve a purpose depending on your goals.

Learning strongman works in a similar way. You can learn about each movement independently, like the tourist who memorizes a few vocabulary words, or you can learn the foundational movements to become “fluent in the language” of strongman. This section aims for the latter. Our goal is to help you develop a solid grasp of the foundations of movement in strongman.

The foundational movements of strongman are the following:

1. Carry
2. Propel
3. Press or Push
4. Brace or Load
5. Pull

When you learn a language, you have to know the grammar rules as well as the exceptions. In strongman, there are also cases where the rules can be bent or broken. For example, some strongman movements work exclusively alone, while others function as hybrid combinations of two or more of the foundational movements. Additionally, some movements might not fit into any category, or they might incorporate only minor elements of these foundations and evolve into a unique movement of their own.

Carry

Carrying anything involves picking it up from either the ground or a platform and bringing it to a new location or taking it on a short trip and returning it. You can do this by holding the object, or implement, in your arms, resting it on your back, or gripping it in one or both hands.

Propel

You might not hear this word commonly used among strongmen to describe specific movements. However, the verb propel means “to drive, push, or cause to move in a particular direction, typically forward.” This is an appropriate definition for many strongman exercises.

Press or Push

Pressing is one of the more iconic movements in strongman. We hope all our readers can experience the adrenaline rush of finishing a heavy log press personal record, while standing and feeling satisfied for a moment in a power pose. Pressing, also known as pushing, can be defined as any closed chain movement that starts near the body and uses the arms to push the object away from the body, either off the chest like a bench press or overhead like a log press.

Brace or Load

This is another iconic movement type in strongman that makes this training style optimal for all fitness goals. While you should brace your core for the majority of strength training exercises, bracing in strongman movements becomes an exercise all on its own. Bracing involves holding yourself stiff and rigid to maintain an advantageous position, or maintain isometric (i.e., static) control of an object.

Pull

You might hear deadlifts called pulls in both strongman and powerlifting, or even in the college weight room. This correct use of the term can be applied to any pulling or deadlift/hinge type movement. Pulling can be a standard double overhand deadlift off the ground. It can be a deficit deadlift with the feet elevated above the bar. It can be an elevated deadlift with the bar at the height of your knees or thighs from wagon wheels or a car deadlift platform. Your pulls can have a front grip, neutral grip, or switch grip, use straps or no straps, or straddle the bar as in the odd case of a Jefferson deadlift.

There are unlimited creative combinations of pulls that result from varying height, grip placement, strap usage, and so on. Some minor differences are too nuanced to cover in this book. Still, we will discuss why an elevated deadlift becomes a different exercise from a standard deadlift and how to be successful in those exercises. If you ever get confused, just remember that all deadlifts are pulls, but not all pulls are deadlifts. For example, the arm over arm exercise, often mistakenly called a truck pull or car pull, uses the foundations of pulling, but it is not a deadlift.

More Excerpts From Strongman Training for Strength and Performance

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