Ask the strongman: add slabs of muscle to your back and arms

Q: My gym is so soft-core that I can't find a 50-pound dumbbell. How can I stir things up?

A: If you want to turn a few heads at your gym, try plate rows. They simulate the stone-lifting event--and make you look tough. Place a 10-pound plate on the floor and set one or two 45-pound plates on top of it, matching the holes. Straddle the plates and bend at your hips and knees until your back is parallel with the floor and you can grasp below the 45-pounders. Tighten your abs and pull the plates to your chest. Do 3-4 sets of five reps and add a plate each set. (If needed, use your legs to get the weight moving.)

Q: I'm thinking of trying a Strongman competition. Any advice?

A: Find another sport--unless you like rehab. I've torn my biceps, the patella tendon in both knees, and my calf twice. That's besides having the skin ripped off my hands. Worse, I need 15 minutes to get out of bed every day, and I have to walk down stairs one at a time.

Strongman Mark Philippi, C.S.C.S., is the director of strength and conditioning at UNLV and a two-time World's Strongest Man finalist.

COPYRIGHT 2004 Weider Publications
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