“Have you ever had thoughts on going up in bodyweight to try to take other records? And for Dave: What kind of records could he (Cailer Woolam) take if he were physically heavier?”
It’s not the first time Cailer Woolam has heard someone ask him something along those lines. In fact, he hears things like “bulk up and break Eddie Hall’s record” a lot.
And the thing is, he is really trying to gain weight. It’s just a difficult process for him.
“My body wants to be at like, 175 pounds, like when I graduated high school. The fact that I weigh as much as I do right now is like... I never thought, I didn’t know I’d ever weigh as much as I do right now ever.”
That said, he’s going to keep working on packing on some pounds. He’s not worried about weight class, and he knows what he’s doing in terms of training. He knows he’s getting stronger as he slowly gains weight, so he’ll keep on doing what he’s been doing.
Right now, Cailer weighs around 215 to 220 pounds, and Dave Tate thinks Cailer could definitely hit 242, but it’s going to take time. Part of that is due to Cailer’s age (24 years old), so his metabolism is still going strong.
With a metabolism like Cailer’s, 8,000 calories per day is a lot (it’s a lot for pretty much anyone), but it might still not be enough to put on a whole lot of weight. As he gets older, it’ll be easier to gain weight — and everyone ages a little differently, too.
If Cailer wants to beat more records, he might have to take grip into account. Eddie Hall has long fingers and wide hands, which definitely helps him in terms of deadlifting.
But weight gain also impacts grip.
“The heavier you get, the fatter your fingers get.”
Dave thinks that 242 is the sweet spot for Cailer, as his fingers might not change to the point where he has to really work on adjusting his grip. That will be less of an issue. But should Cailer hit the 275s, well, that’s going to be more of a problem.
Remember, though, it’s going to take Cailer a lot of time to hit that optimal 242 — Dave estimates that could be anywhere from four to five years, and even then, that might change.
“To push higher than that, I think you’re going to start, it becomes a balance game. Is the 50 pounds more on the squat going to be worth the 50 pounds or 70 pounds off the pull? Or could it be 150 on the squat and 50 off the pull? You just don’t know until you get there.”
