Doing special strength challenges is half the fun of being strong.
Odd Haugen appears to think so too. One of the legends of the strongman world Odd set out for a record on his 65th birthday, to lift the unliftable dumbbell 65 times. He turned a feat of grip strength that few can do into a feat of endurance!
The Inch Dumbbell was made famous by strongman Thomas Inch and was known as the unliftable dumbbell. Of course many people can lift it, but it’s not easy. Weighing in at 172 lbs, 9 oz. with a 2.38 inches in diameter handle it is beastly. Replicas of the Inch dumbbells vary slightly in these dimensions. As you see in this video this one is a little lighter at 168 lbs.
Imagine gripping a can of soda or beer…that weights that much…and you have a pretty good idea of what it’s like. (The can is slightly wider but not by much.)
Special thanks to Milo magazine where I saw this feat first mentioned.
Comments
Wow! What a standard to aim for at retirement age.
Regarding repetition lifts, do you recommend one arm deadlifts or two arm… which helps you keep better form?
I’d say both are worth doing.