What Do I Need To Start Training Strongman At Home in 2024?
I’m by all definitions a powerlifter. I chase down a bigger Squat, Bench, and Deadlift. I compete in the Garage Gym Competition religiously. But damn if strongman training isn’t just a boatload of fun. I did my first weighted carry several years back, and I was immediately hooked.
You mean I don’t just have to stand here? I can pick it up, run around, flaunt my prowess to passing cars and my neighbors cat?
Count me in! But strongman events can be a little daunting with all the specialty equipment. Especially if you own a home gym and are the one covering the bill for all that equipment. So today, we are going to start off with a beginners list of items you can snag (with discount codes) to get you up and running so you too can start training strongman at home.
Table of Contents
Transparency Note
Cerberus Strength USA is a sponsor of the Garage Gym Competition. While we recommend their equipment here in this article because they are our Official Strongman Partner, we would recommend their equipment regardless because it is what I would use in my gym, and would recommend to friends and family. There are other options out there, but Cerberus Strength is the best in the business for Strongman equipment.
Discount Code
Save 10% on the best Strongman Gear on the planet from Cerberus Strength USA w/ Code: GGC
What The Heck Was That?
Ever watch a Strongman event? They often use a ton of cool stuff that will never fit in your garage. A dozen different stones, a semi-truck, big giant logs, and all kinds of bizarre stuff. It looks cool, it is cool, but it is totally unrealistic for a home gym. On top of that, every strongman event seems to do things a little different. One has you carrying farmers handles and the next is a frame, and then its a Yoke. One wants you to lift an axle, the next a log, and then you are supposed to clean and press a basket of pumpkins.
The good news is, MOST strongman events have some foundational movements we can pick apart and use to get better at the more unique stuff. This allows us to sprinkle in some strongman training into a powerlifting routine, or even begin training for a strongman competition in our home gym, without going bankrupt and chasing down every implement. You probably already have the means to do SOME of these right now without buying anything new. And you can acquire the others with a small investment of money and space.
So, to get us started with training strongman at home we are going to look at strongman in a few basic movements.
The Basic Movements Of Training Strongman at Home
Deadlift
Where To Start
Most powerlifters are friendly with the deadlift. The good news is, the Deadlift is a common exercise in training and in competing for Strongman. Often times it is done for max reps and with an axle, opposed to a single rep and on a traditional power bar, but the idea is the same. And typically if your 1 rep max gets bigger, your rep max gets bigger too.
If you are in your off-season for powerlifting, you can do some higher rep sets on deadlifts and not make a big deal about it. It’ll fit perfectly into a hypertrophy phase, lend to some conditioning, and likely have some carryover to your bigger lifts later. But ultimately, this is one you are hopefully already training, and can keep rocking. Congrats! You are already on your way to Strongman stardom.
How To Progress
If you want to take your strongman deadlift game up a notch, you are going to want to snag an Axle. I’d go with the Cerberus Strength Strongman Axle. It likely provides the most unique experience, is WIDELY used in strongman, and can be used for our next exercise as well. This bar will challenge your grip and mix up your deadlift days, and get you ready for the weird and wacky world of pulling high reps at a strongman event.
If you get bored you can curl it, bench with it, and much more. Treat it like any other barbell you have. But be forewarned, that extra thick grip is going to make your forearms and hands ultra sore at first. This is a good sign you are doing something new and novel to improve your game.
Presses
Where To Start
In strongman events we typically see the athletes lifting odd stuff overhead. At the very least they are doing a clean and jerk with an axle, or putting a log up and down. The good news is, that really doesn’t matter. Yes, there is slightly different technique to lifting and pressing a log than a traditional barbell. But if you can clean and press 225lbs with a barbell, and you improve that to 250lbs, the main muscles involved in pressing got stronger. So your strongman centric lifts will get stronger, even if you don’t train them with the specific implements.
You are going to want to train the clean and press. Start with your loaded barbell on the floor, clean the barbell to our front rack position, and then press it overhead with some leg drive.
This is going to translate nicely to no matter what variation you end up doing in a competition. And if you never actually compete, you still are building some strong shoulders, triceps, upper back, and core, as well as some explosive power generated through the legs and into the upper body. No one ever got weaker building those capacities.
How To Progress
If you snagged that Axle above for deadlifts, you already have the most logical next step here. You can do clean and presses with this, and it is a MUCH different feel than a traditional barbell. The sleeves don’t spin, you have no knurling, it is thicker, and all around provides a pretty unique experience.
If you want to add something else, I’d snag a sandbag or throwing bag. The sandbag is going to allow you to do more cleans and presses overhead, but since the sand wants to move on you, it is a totally different experience. A 100lb sandbag is far more difficult than a 100lb barbell. And the cool thing is, you can load them light at first and add more sand as you get stronger.
The throwing bag is a unique blend of kettle bell and sand bag. So you have the opportunity to use it for just about anything you’d use a kettlebell for, but also for throwing events. Why is this in the pressing category? Because Strongman competitions often have single arm press events, like a circus dumbbell. Instead of buying a dedicated dumbbell for this, you can use the throwing bag. You’ll be able to work one arm at a time to clean and press over head.
Stones, Swings & Carries
Where To Start
This is probably one of the more unique to Strongman categories. Deadlifts and Presses aren’t exactly something “new” to most gym goers. But picking up odd objects and flipping them, tossing them, carrying them, swinging them between your legs and throwing them? Now that is different. Weighted Carries are what got me into wanting to explore more strongman stuff. The ability to lift something heavy and walk around with it, was just a super unique experience in the gym. You were working your strength, speed, conditioning, mobility, stability, everything all at once. And we’ve done a handful of weighted carry events during our past miniGGC events.
To start, we want to simply grab something weird, pick it up, and walk around with it. Got dumbbells? That will work. Only got a 45lb plate? That’ll do. You can use one barbell, or an EZ Curl Bar, or even your kid. Maybe you have a wheelbarrow in the back yard, or a dolly. An old back-pack full of rocks. Anything that you can load up, carry, push around, drag, and move with, counts!
Pick something up and walk around with it for awhile. Carry it overhead, in a zercher position, on your back, in your hands. Mix up long distance with short distance, moving fast with lighter weights and TRYING to move fast with heavy weights. Explore what you are good at, and what you aren’t, and do it all. Some should challenge your grip, others challenge your back, and some just make you breathe really freaking hard.
How To Progress
If you bought that sandbag, this is a winner winner chicken dinner. Load that bad boy up and bear hug it, toss it on your back, shoulder it, and otherwise move around with it in various positions. You can duck walk with it, or walk normal, mix in some squats or deadlifts with it, then carry it some more. You can practice picking them up off the ground and tossing over a barbell. You can grab em, swing em, and toss em around.
Make a nasty complex out of it, and watch your strength, speed, and conditioning improve ten-fold!
The Throwing Bag works very nicely here as well. As it’ll allow you to mimic the tossing events they do, work more explosive swings, carry with one hand up or down, and otherwise mix things up a little more than just simply having a heavy sandbag.
If you want to take it to another level, you can grab a dedicated set of handles or a trap bar. Something like the Dinnie Stones is a truly unique carrying experience. The handles are different sizes and shapes, meaning you are off-balance no matter what you do. The handles aren’t knurled, and they can be loaded up pretty damn heavy, allowing you to do some stupid stuff in the most fun way possible.
DIY Options For Training Strongman At Home
We wrote an article on the Slosh Pipe. This is a winner for pressing, carrying, and a lot of different whacky stuff that fits right in with strongman. You can likely snag a used tire, either from a farmer or from your local tire shop, and use it to practice tire flipping. A wheelbarrow loaded up with bricks or weights makes for a super grip challenge. Got an old backpack? Fill it with sand or rocks or old school books and toss it around. A lot of odd shaped, or long handled items can be awesome for picking up over head and pressing, or even carrying one handed to challenge your balance, core, and grip.
Shopping List
We are assuming you have a basic home gym with a bar, plates, rack, etc. If not, make sure to check out our Discount Codes page to save money on building your gym. These three items will start your journey in training strongman at home
Save 10% on the best Strongman Gear on the planet from Cerberus Strength USA w/ Code: GGC
Wrap Up On Training Strongman At Home
You don’t have to spend a ton, to get the basics going. Free stuff on marketplace, picking up random stuff you already own, or spending a few bucks on high quality equipment from Cerberus Strength will get you on the fact track to Training Strongman At Home. If you want to dig deeper on tips and tricks for beginners, check out this Cerberus article.
