I competed at the annual North American Strongman Nationals Contest in Tunica, Mississippi this past weekend.
At nationals, LW 200# competitors use the same weights as LW 231# competitors. The weights for nationals are notoriously heavy and I structured my training to hit 3-4 events per weekend and rotate the intensity of the events. I was only able to hit each event a few times before nationals. Some events I got in as much as 5 times, some 3 times, others 2 times. Either way, my training cycle prior to nationals was full of PRs as I had never hit the events that heavy before.
Some of my training PRs included the following:
- 330 Stone to 54′ platform x3
- 255 Axlex3
- 175dbx3, 180dbx1
- 800 Yoke x 50′
- 740 Yoke and 550 frame x 50′, 50′ under 30s
- Car Deadlift (heavy) x5
- 370 Husafel x100′
Despite performing well in training and hitting a lot of PRs, I did not fare as well as I would have liked.
For the axle, yoke, husafel, and car deadlift, I performed similar to training.
For the db, medley, and stones, I performed worse than in training. Some of this was from nerves as I was much more anxious/ nervous than normal. Competition equipment and conditions also negatively influenced this. I did not train stones after heavy yoke. I trained stones to a platform rather than over a bar. I only trained events 2 days in a row (back to back) one weekend, and the duck walk I did was much easier.
I do not have the full score sheet yet, but here are the results:
Day 1
255# Ironmind Axle Clean and Press in 60s
- 255×3 – Missed the 3rd rep, but got the fourth for 3 total
760# Bigg Dogg Yoke and 590# frame for 50′ each
- 2 drops on yoke about 5-8 feet from the finish, no drops on the frame
- Finished in 31.35 seconds
350# Husafel Stone for Max Distance
- ~120 feet here
330# Stone over 54” Bar
- 0 reps here
- I could not get the stone over the bar, each one hung and would slip right off the bar
- My right erector was pulled/strained on the last rep here
Day 2
Bigg Dogg Giant DB Clean and Press 175#
- 0 reps
- I just missed all 4/5 attempts before lockout
- I hit this 10 minutes prior in warm ups at the same weight
Car Deadlift (on 1 board, with 100lb plate in trunk)
- 12 reps
- Went very slowly and cautious as my low back was starting to feel even more strained on the right side
300′ Suicide Medly: 225# Sandbag, 230# Keg, 360# Duck Walk, 500# Sled Drag for time (90s limit)
- I made it through 250′ and just finished the duck walk in 90s
Placing: 7th in LW200s.
The 0 on the stones and db really cost me as I did not receive any points for those two events…
Overall, I was happy that I was able to make it to nationals, handle the weights, and finish the second day.
I was disappointed with the atlas stone as I had improved my stone for height in training. Training stones to a platform was much different than a bar as I was able to roll the stone up the platform but could not do it over the bar.
For the DB, I trained this a lot and hit contest weight for 3 in training and even hit contest weight right before the event in warm ups. This was frustrating.
For the medley, the duck walk was bigger, heavier, and much more awkward than what we had set up for training. I was not able to walk with it and had to basically hop/deadlift it one foot at a time 45 of the 50 feet.
My lack of height, did not help with the DW or stones for height either.
Moving forward, I need to work on a few things. I need to simulate contest equipment /conditions better, compete more frequently, and up a weight class against LW231#ers. For local contests, the 200# class uses lighter weights than the 231# class. (same weights for all LWs at Nationals though)
The last 1.5 years, competing at 200#s, I did not compete with weights anywhere near as heavy as nationals weights. I also did not improve at heavy events at all. It was not until the 9/10 weeks of nationals training that I started to hit the heavier weights and PRs.
( some pictures compliments of http://ironmillstrong.com/)
Stones:
255 Axle:
760 Yoke / 590 Frame:
350 Husafel:
Car Deadlift +100lbs:
Suicide Medly, 300′, Sandbag-225, Keg-230, Duck Walk-360, Sled-500:
