Bryan Barrett AMA

[u/Strongmanbarrett]

Good afternoon everyone! I'm Bryan Barrett, professional strongman thru The Gobal Strongman Corporation. Winner of the 2015 North America Strongman Championship and also just placed 2nd at The Arnold World Strongman Championships in the 105kg division. When you get a chance check out my website www.strongmanbarrett.com. You can find links to articles, my competitive history and some of the clients I train. You can also follow my on instagram @strongmanbarrett. I'm looking forward to chatting with everyone on a wide range of topics!

[u/Strongmanbarrett]

I appreciate everyone joining the AMA! If you have further questions email me at strongmanbarrett@gmail.com Have a blessed night!

[u/CamsMotherEatsAss]

What is it gonna take to get Amatuer StrongMan on TV?

[u/Strongmanbarrett → u/CamsMotherEatsAss]

Getting professional strongman on TV first... more than once every 4 months. Great username too

[u/[deleted]]

Hi Bryan! Thanks for joining us, we really appreciate your time. I'm gonna post over questions from users who weren't able to make it to this live.

u/camerongilly asks

What has improved your overhead at different stages in your training history?

[u/Strongmanbarrett → u/[deleted]]

Thanks for commenting camerongilly- Overhead should be trained two dimensional. To many people only focus on the press. Legs and hips do more than half of the actual movement. Train the lowerbody to be explosive with exercises such as speed squats, speed deads, olympic variations like high pulls, hang high pulls, and power cleans.

[u/[deleted]]

u/trynds_third_nip

Favorite knee sleeves for strongman? Favorite beard oil? How do you like your steak?

I'm only mostly sure he isn't shopping for you for Christmas

[u/Strongmanbarrett → u/[deleted]]

Hands down, SBD. I wore rehband for years, tried the SBD sleeves last year and nothing compares. Beard Oil, easy answer- Capos beard oil http://caposbeardoil.com/ . Steak- Medium well.

[u/CamsMotherEatsAss]

What's the next step for Bryan Barrett? What's your next show? Any thoughts on competing internationally? Maybe a show with the Strongmen of Basque?

[u/Strongmanbarrett → u/CamsMotherEatsAss]

Not sure, looking at a local competition in June possibly or the WSM qualifier Deadlift/Log Press World Championships. Would love to compete internationally, hopefully before the years out. Strongmen of Basque, never lifted square stones but would love to try.

[u/[deleted]]

Ah, awesome. I made it in time. Thanks for doing this!

• What are your thoughts on conditioning for strongman? How much 'cardio' should you do? Should it mostly be event specific, or with the aim to simply improve all round fitness?

• What does your diet roughly look like? And how strictly do you monitor calorie/protein/carbs/etc? What supplements to you recommend taking?

• How do you program accessory lifts, if at all? For example do you aim to hit a certain weight/volume in advance, or do you focus on the progression on the main lifts, and take the accessory movements as they feel on the day?

• Most importantly, how much ya bench?

[u/Strongmanbarrett → u/[deleted]]

1. I keep my conditioning event specific. Twice a week and the end of the training day. It can be to improve overall fitness, just depends on your goals.

2. Diet is pretty simple, I keep a rough idea of my protein intake to make sure I'm meeting my demands. Supplements I use are a protein powder to help meet the demands without having to eat whole food. Fish Oil and Pre workout when the work day has been long and I need a kick. Check out www.vizinx.com produce quality products and supporters of strongmen/women. Sponsor myself, Matt Mills and Kaitlin Burgess.

3. Programming accessory lifts are strictly volume. I think of accessory as just that "Accessory" I always try to pull (row) 1.5X volume of my press.

4. Did a push pull at metroflex back in December and benched 450. Have a video of it on my instagram @strongmanbarrett

[u/[deleted]]

u/trebemot asks

• Favorite deadlift variation for strongman?

• Any advice for long arm lifters to improve their pressing strength?

• What do you consider the 3 movements every strong(wo)man should be good at?

• What's your approach to diet and weight classes for strongman?

[u/Strongmanbarrett → u/[deleted]]

1. Love the deficit deadlift, works wonders for the actual lift and for some reason I'm good at it. Just so happened to be at the arnold too.

2. Long arm lifters, train the hell out of your hips. Speed squat, speed deadlift, olympic variations. 3/4 of the press is in the hips and legs, train fast to get explosive. TRIPLE EXTENSION

3. Overhead Press, Farmerswalk, and Stones- Seem to be the most common in a contest.

4. Always want to be 5-10lbs above your weight class. My diet is simple, the only thing I really look at is my protein intake. I've been around 240 for the last 3-4 years and have an idea of how much/what i need to eat. No tracking macros for me.

[u/[deleted]]

What do you feel is the biggest change from amateur to pro? Personally, culture-wise, training-wise, whatever.

[u/Strongmanbarrett → u/[deleted]]

You can take the top 5 guys from NAS Nationals and they can roll with the 105kg pros. The sport has grown and the 231 division is deep. In 2014, Colorado Strongest Man I beat Tyler Stickle, who went on to win NAS Nats that year where I placed 20th. Contest events are huge and everyone has there weakness. Obviously competing professionally there are no slouches, no mistakes and the events need to line up for you.

[u/WWJLPD]

Hey Bryan! when it comes to atlas stones, what lifts or exercises do you think contributed most to your success, outside of doing the event itself?

[u/trebemot]

Another question(s)

I recently set up a garage gym. What would you say are some must haves for it? Right now I have a yoke/squat rack, home made axle, and I have farmer walk handles coming soon(I have plates and a normal bar too). I was thinking either a log or some stones and a platform to load them to would be my next purchase. Getting a bench is down the road too

[u/CamsMotherEatsAss]

If you could build your own Justice League of American Strongman Pros/Amatuers to take on any other country, who makes the squad? SHW, HW, MW, LW, HWW LWW.

[u/Strongmanbarrett → u/CamsMotherEatsAss]

Love the question: Pro- Obviously Brian Shaw, Alan Colley (sp), Sean Demarinis or Zack McCarley (sp) and a healthy Kalle Beck :) or Patrick Castelli (sp), HWW- Kaitlin Burgess, LWW- I know faces but not names yet... sports growing so fast.

[u/[deleted]]

u/nucalibre asks this question of all of our AMA guests, so we have some interesting comparisons from a variety of different competitors.

1. What type of squatting do you feel has the most carry over to strongman?

2) If you were organizing a 5 event show, what 5 events would you pick?

[u/Strongmanbarrett → u/[deleted]]

1. I would normally answer this question front squat. The last 15 weeks my squatting has consisted of strictly back squat and pause back squats. Looking at my performances, shows no difference than when I strictly front squatted. At the Arnold, I loaded the 325 Stone of Steel for 5 reps in 60 seconds. Answer I dont think it really matters what type of squat, as long as you doing some type of squat.

2. Max Axle Press, Max Deadlift, Heavy Farmerswalk 60ft, Sandbag Medley, and 5 Stone Series. Must have a press event, pull event, carry event, medley and always have stones.

[u/[deleted]]

Hey Bryan! Thanks for doing this AMA, and for everything you do for Strongman.

A few questions:

• Whose hair is better, yours or u/letkallelift's?

• What can strongman do as a sport to grow in popularity and reach broader audiences?

• Any tips on juggling work / family / training given the importance of all three?

• If you could design your own ideal 5 event contest, what would the events be?

[u/Strongmanbarrett → u/[deleted]]

StatusCrow, thanks for chatting!

1. Kalle's hair trumps mine. Mine seems to be getting thinner every year so I'm trying to hold onto what I have. Plus Manbun is in right now!

2. Looking in just the past couple years the sport has grown drastically. Obvious answer is Crossfit has helped out tremendously, seeing alot of crossover, which is great. Social Media has helped out a ton. You can now watch alot of contest online, which is great. Kalle streamed his last weekend and I'm working on streaming the ones I promote. I think what we have over other sports, the theme for Starting Strongman, Strongman is for everyone. You can't go compete in the NFL, NBA or PGA tour but anyone can get their ass off the couch and into a local gym and get into strength sports, particulary strongman. I think as the years pass, the sport will continue to grow. 3). Family first, Pissed off wife= ugly life. With that said, hopefully your partner supports your dreams. What's an hour or two on the weekend and an hour 2-3 nights a week or in the morning before work. There's time, just have to manage it.

3. Luckly I get to design contest, this year I'm putting on 6 in Texas and Oklahoma. If you're around, come out! Love the axle press, max deadlift, stones, a lung busting medley and farmerswalk.

[u/Meat-brah]

Hey Bryan,

1. I'm a relatively young competitor (22). Do you have any advice for someone like me in regards to longevity?

2. I'm 6'0 and 210. I usually do very well in the deadlift but always get crushed by shorter guys in overhead events. Should i think about moving up a weight class?

[u/[deleted]]

What lift have you struggled the most with and what were a few things that helped you improve on it?