Most can agree that doing some exercise is better than doing nothing. Sure, there are the memes about tortoises living hundreds of years and fast little mayflies lasting only a day. Humans are not reptiles or insects. When we buy used vehicles the odometer count and state of the engine are better indicators of value […]
I watched Reuben Hughes retain his Armgods 95kg title belt last weekend. He let it be known a month ago that win or lose, he was retiring from Armwrestling after the match. He’s been an inspirational person to watch – stoic, focused with no fanfare or bragging before a match or after a victory. He […]
In the woods, foliage is dying down and the recent heatwave has stress tested some of the older trees who likely won’t survive the southwesterlies of the winter. A dozen or so fairytale style apples have matured on the memorial tree for the first time, whilst its lesser titled neighbour is again full of the […]
Many road trips start with eager conversations and lead to singing. This is true for solo journey’s too – the unquiet mind fills the silences without self-consciousness. Both solo and in company, hours pass easily with deeper thoughts surfacing to formulate into words. We travelled over a thousand kilometres on our tour of the Southwest […]
”Look at them, riding around in his damn bus. He’s taking my ice cream money.” I overheard an ice cream vendor complaining about an old man who gave rides around a park on a small vintage bus. The ice cream man ran 5 or 6 vans and lamented the unpredictable weather. Overcast days and rain […]
Removing an entangled thorn tree that has overrun a small mountain ash was the task today. The heat of the sun did not concern me too much – I had protection from an acer tree’s shade for the most part and the surroundings were pleasant and interesting. Every pass of the thicket of Rhododendrons produced […]
I often mention Louie Simmons of Westside Barbell to people who want to get strong or are injured. Louie was against hypotheticals. He analysed training and competition data, experimented with people who became world record holders and used simple maths to calculate the volume needed for progression. The result was a system that anyone can […]
I spent a few days in Edinburgh, having determined it better to commute into Glasgow for the Commonwealth Games rather than stay more local. Visiting athletes, coaches, officials, volunteers and contractors had already booked the best spots and the local hospitality economy maximised their potential. Even the boiler houses of the no star dive hotels […]
I decided in my teens not to pursue a career instead opting to be a sort of odd job man which I am to this day. On leaving school I could have done further education but didn’t like the idea of it. Instead I signed up for an apprenticeship but I tended my resignation before […]
On June 9th 2014 a lot of media carried the meeting in which Swedish Prime minister Fredrik Reinfeldt rowed German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the Prime Ministers of Britain and Netherlands – David Cameron and Mark Rutte – across Lake Harpsundssjon. “I have meetings all the time with people in rowboats, what’s strange about that?” […]
“You have to be sick to listen to me” was a strapline I used on my hospital radio talk show. The Sunday night 8 til 10 slot had weekly inspirational guests. They were strongmen, long distance swimmers, musicians, adventurers. Sometimes celebrities were lured from the local bookshop signings that had less interest than they had […]
I ran an outdoor swimming club for thirteen years before such things got popular. It was Sunday, Monday and Wednesday in the lake, two other days at an indoor pool and it was a hub of ambitions. We had a few English Channel Swimmers, lake challengers, some of us were extreme cold enthusiasts. The committee […]
My dad had an arc welder in his workshop when I was a kid and it was a thing of wonder. It made a buzzing sound like the black and white Flash Gordon spaceships on Saturday morning television and of course the warning not to look anywhere near it when he was using it was […]
Driving through Anglesey many times on the way to the Ireland ferry I’d often thought to visit the island properly. I did last week. The rocky north coast proved to be the place for adventure. Max and I had ambitions to build David Horne style stone thrones which we did in locations we named Monarchs […]
Chopper and I met in the seaside town of Westward Ho! (the only UK town with an exclamation mark in its name.) I’d been here in ‘80 and ‘81 so recounted fond memories as we walked the cliffs to a deserted rocky beach. A few years ago Strongman David Horne built an elaborate Conan the […]
Att träna hårt utan musik är som att äta äppelkaka utan vaniljsås – något fattas. Att lyssna på musik från en dålig högtalare är som att äta den där äpplekakan där vaniljsåsen är utbytt mot klorin. Ett bra hemmagym behöver därför en bra högtalare. Så, vilken högtalare passar bäst för hemmagymmet? Här tipsar vi om […]
Här kommer information om SSM-kvalet i Ockelbo: Grenar: Kan komma att ändras, ev stryks bagtoss WSM-böj för reps – Raw, apollon, ner till bockar, 285kg, 60 sek, körs i par Farmershold – Bälte och magnesium, körs i par, 190kg per näve, längst tid vinner Stock – Reps, hela vägen, körs i par, 145 kg, 75 […]
Snart drar årets strongmansäsong igång igen. Sveriges Starkaste Man 2026 består av fyra kval från norr till söder, och finalen hålls i vanlig ordning i Malmö. Här är datumen du ska ringa in i almenackan: Kval 1 – 30/5 – Skånes Starkaste Man Sjöbo Kval 2 – 27/6 – Ockelbo-kvalet Ockelbo Marknad, Ockelbo Kval 3 […]
Dagen efter att Anders Axklo hade publicerat sin sista fredagskrönika här på MAXstyrka fick jag ett mejl från en man som heter Dan Earthquake. Han presenterade sig och berättade kort om sin idrottsbakgrund som innefattade både strongman, styrkelyft, armbrytning och sin roll som ”President of the Professional Armwrestling Association of UK & IRELAND”. Han skrev […]
In 2019 Anders Axklo commentated for the live audience of the PAL TOP 8 (the worlds biggest arm wrestling show). I watched the broadcast. Around the same time the International Federation of Arm wrestling formed and I noticed it was him giving the opening broadcast as President. We met for the first time at the […]
