Brian Shaw had a pretty busy week. The four-time World’s Strongest Man (WSM) champion took to his YouTube channel on Sept. 28, 2020 to share updates to his gigantic home gym — where he will host his own competition, the Shaw Classic, on Dec. 12, 2020. Shaw also gave fans a look into how he’s prepping for WSM, and, at the end of the video, he urged organizers of the WSM contest to release the event list as soon as possible. As you’ll see in the video below, Shaw’s current training incorporates log lifts, Hercules holds’, keg tosses, and a medley of farmer’s carries and yoke walks.
Check out all the action that took place in the video from Shaw’s YouTube channel:
[Related: Brian Shaw Announces His Own Strongman Competition’s Epic Lineup]
Gym Updates
The video opens with Shaw sharing the progress of his massive gym. In previous videos, Shaw has shown the gym in short segments and unveiled new pieces of equipment he’s acquired. By far, this was the most in-depth looked we’ve gotten at his massive warehouse-sized gym — the ceilings are clearly quite high considering where they are in relation to Shaw, who is 6’8″.
In the background, it is clear that all the equipment needs to be organized (which Shaw points out), as construction is still ongoing. Shaw and his crew are currently in the middle of the insulation process — which is pretty important considering the Shaw Classic will be held in the dead of winter in Colorado.
Training for World’s Strongest Man
This year’s World’s Strongest Man was postponed from May to Nov. 11-15, 2020. Shaw doesn’t know the events yet. But it’s safe to assume the competition will involve some sort of press, medley, toss, and hold — as those are the basis of any strongman competition. Here’s a breakdown of how the 400-plus pound strongman is currently preparing for the most prestigious competition in the sport.
Log Lifts
Shaw kicked his training session off with a log press ladder, performing sets of log presses with ascending weight each set. He mentioned that he trained lighter on the log this particular workout because he is focusing more so on mechanics — specifically, that the movement is fluid from the bottom to the overhead press.
Medley
Next up was a medley of farmer’s carries into yoke walks. Shaw executed both movements smoothly and quickly. He admits that this combination wasn’t chosen for any particular reason outside of the fact that they are complementary movements. The farmer’s carries challenge his grip and the yolk allows his hands to rest. Still, both movements are a serious test of his conditioning and stamina.
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Keg Toss
Although the kegs were very cleanly clearing the bar, Shaw disclosed afterward that the movement didn’t quite feel as explosive as normal. His spirits weren’t dampened, however, and chalked up the feeling to: “Just a part of the training,” he explained. “Some days won’t necessarily feel as strong as others for certain events and that’s not inherently bad, it’s just part of the process.”
Hercules Hold
This was the most notable part of the training session. Shaw appeared to be holding about 180 pounds in addition to the unknown weight of columns.
This is pain tolerance training.
After several rounds of the Hercules hold, it appears as though Shaw favors his left side, as the grip in his right hand gave out first. If you watch the video back, you can notice that after retracting his shoulder blades at the start of the lift, his right shoulder rises much higher than the left once fatigued. Although Shaw didn’t share his times on any of the holds, he was proud of the work he accomplished on the day.
[Related: Mark Felix Sets New World Record for the Hercules Hold (Again)]
WSM’s Events?
World’s Strongest Man is a little over one month away from the time Shaw posted this video. Are most of the competitors experienced, skilled, and strong enough to overcome a lack of preparedness? Sure, but Shaw is understandably frustrated.
“I’m very much hoping we get some more definitive information about the events…because right now, we’ve literally got a general list of events — no idea of weight, no idea of distances, no idea of any of it,” Shaw said. “At this point in the game, to train like we need to train, all the guys need to know what we’re getting into. I really hope that WSM can step up to the plate here, get that information out to the guys, and make sure that everyone can train adequately for this contest.”
Shaw is leading by example when it comes to releasing the events for a strongman contest. As the host and organizer of the Shaw Classic, which will debut later in December, he has already released the event list. It notably includes the return of the Max Hummer Tire Deadlift — a visually epic event that has competitors deadlift a custom barbell that’s outfitted with literal Hummer tires. Shaw already has ten different kinds of barbells in his home gym, but he stated himself that he is having the second ever Hummer tire deadlift bar custom made for the Shaw Classic.
Feature image from Brian Shaw’s YouTube Channel
