At the end of June, I won the 220-pound weight class and overall middleweight division at the United States Strongman Nationals in New York, earning an invite to compete in the 105-kilogram World’s Strongest Man in Liperi, Finland. It was enthralling to be at the competition for the first time.

This article provides a list of some of the various and sundry factors that help contribute to winning a strongman or strongwoman pro card.

A lot of guys who train for Strongman don’t put much thought into assistance work, if at all. Assistance exercises can improve specific attributes and get you through your sticking points in many cases.