Are strength coaches starting to recognize the value of strongman training for athletes?
HG: Yes, just as it was in weight training. If you go back 30 years, weight training was not what it is now, as many athletes thought it would make them slow. Now people recognize the value of weight training, and it’s the same process with strongman. When we start out working with a professional hockey player, I’m not trying to make him a strongman; I’m making him a better hockey player with strongman training. KG: Are injuries common among your colleagues? HG: If someone gets injured from strongman, it’s probably because of poor technique. In the tire flip, you shouldn’t curl the tire; you should push the tire. It’s like the deadlift – you should think about pushing, not pulling. And to maintain good technique you also have to have good conditioning. KG: Can you see strongman training being valuable for high school athletes? HG: Yes, because strongman training is functional training. Strongman events are essentially more intense versions of what people used to do in their everyday li
