STRONG MAN NUTRITION++

NUTRITION LEADING UP TO STRONG MAN COMPETITION

After completing my first strong man competition, I can now say I have a better understanding of the nutrition requirements for strong man.

Above is a picture of my friend Marc @turbo_savage420 - He inspired me to do this comp.

The sport of strong men, is as it sounds, has the requirement for strength. But unlike the often compared sport of powerlifting, it requires more cardiovascular capacity. For that reason, powerlifting, or Olympic lifting are purer displays of strength and power, where as strong man, is like a hybrid sport between CrossFit and Olympic lifting / powerlifting. The key component is that your must drive a powerful movement for a period of time.

Pic of myself (right) and my highschool friend Mark. P, post axel bar deadlift

Now as a biohacker, I am always applying the science and strategy of sleep / nutrition / breathing to various different sports or physically demanding tasks. I have never done anything that requirement this much strength. I’ve done bulking/muscle building many times over the past decade, but they never included developing strength and mass at the same time.

NUTRITION FOR STRENGTH AND MASS

This event took place on May 20th 2023. I began training for strength / strong man in September 2022, so lets say about 8 months. Prior to that I was do strictly CrossFit, and was focused on fat loss in combination with the HIIT style crossfit training. I had dropped to about 180 lbs. @ 12%, my overall fitness was fantastic (Cardio / flexibility / strength). My strength was probably the weakest of the 3, but I could back squat 225 and deadlift around 300 and bench around 200 lbs.

I decided that I would focus on building strength and muscle at the same so. The strongment comp we had registered for had 2 weight categories, under 200 lbs or over 200 lbs. That gave me a target of 200, so I gained 20 lbs. on the dot over 8 months.

My two older boys (Bennett - Left and Callaghan Right) getting ready to cheer me on

I added the 20 lbs. well, I’d say about 13-15 lbs. of muscle and 5-7 lbs. of fat. These are good ratios for natural athletes (no steroid use). Adding muscle always comes with fat.

To do this, I found out my avg caloric daily requirements using the cunninghams equation at the following link; https://peterbond.org/calculate-rmr-cunningham-equation

I always prefer the cunninghams equation, as it is one of the only ones that takes muscle mass into consideration. This is very important for athletic populations.

I then added 300 kcal to my daily average, and target about 6g / kg of carbs and 1.5-2.0g /kg of protein and filled in with lots of healthy fats.

This is a sample day for me;

Breakfast

2 cup oatmilk (>50g carbs)

1 banana (~25g carbs)

3 tbps. cocoa powder (Loads of iron/magnesium/zinc and ionophores such as quercetin to help utilize those energy nutrients)

1 tbsp. hemp or chia seeds for omega fats, adding micros and fiber.

1 scoop of plant based lean fit protein

1 cliff bar on the side (oatmeal and soy protein, perfect addition to boost complex carbs ~45g and 10 protein).

The shake was easy for me during this bulking phase. I was able to drink it on the go. It was quick and convenient, as well as easy to digest, which is important for me, because I never have time sit in the mornings. The shake provided me with over 100g complex carbs, loads of micronutrients, at least 35g protein and essential omega fats and about 800 kcal.

LUNCH

whole wheat wrap (30g carb, 5g protein

1 can of light tuna in water (40g protein) or 4-5 eggs

baby spinach

1 tbsp. olive oil

pickled carrots

2 tbsp. light mayo

2 cliff bar (90g carbs, 20g protein) or peanut butter and honey toast

So we have about 1200 kcal here for lunch, totaling 2000 kcal for the day

DINNER

1.5 cups pasta (350 kcal, 90g carbs)

Store bough marinara, nothing fancy

180g chicken breast (60g protein, 330 kcal)

1-2 cups of 2 different colored vegetables

800 kcal, >100g carbs and 75g protein

DESSERT

PB + HONEY + CRACKERS OR 2 CLIFF BARS (500 kcal, 90g carbs, 20g protein)

So my calculated avg caloric burn was about 3000, my lean bulk target was 3300, and I tried to keep carbs around 500g and protein around 150g.

This was not difficult to do. Personally, I prefer a simple 3 meal per day as I am busy.

I terms of supplements, I was using;

3g creatine HCL Muscletech

3g Beta Alanin Allmax

9mg boron

500mg krill omega 3

2000 mg hawaiian spirulina

After about 8 months of training, I achieved my weight goal, but fell short of strength goals. I got my dead lift up to 420 lbs, bench press up to 250 lbs, and squat up to 385 lbs.

During the competition, I was able to axel deadlight 11x350 lbs which is a significant PR.

I hope you guys keep getting stronger!

Bada bing