Sumo deadlifts, a perfectly reasonable variation of the lift or something only lunatics and deviants partake in?
just started doing them myself mate and doing really well. pulled 200kg on my first sumo session. that was raw and just 17.5kg down on my conventional PB. i actually went to see a strength and conditioning coach through in inverness the other week to see if he thought it was the way forward for me. they very clearly well. picked up quite a lot of knowledge that day
Who's your favourite powerlifter and why?
part of me wants to say andy bolton, just because he is british but really its andrey malanichev. he's just awesome in every department. that recent world record raw squat he hit was mental. he's clearly got another 30-40kg in him, easily. wonder what he lifts in training? he also seems like a genuinely nice guy. saw a recent video of him meeting ed coen and he was just delighted to meet him and give him a hug. so respectful too, telling coen 'you're the champ' and coen replies 'no YOU'RE the champ now. you're there now.' sums up the sport really.
Which of the three lifts do you like best and why?
probably squat but i have a problem with it, namely fear. there's just not enough room for my training partner to spot me in my cage, there is at his but it obviously limits the chances i have to squat with a proper spot. i think this is why i always squat more in comps, there's always plenty of good spotters about. that and the comp buzz seems to help me. reason i like it is because i see it as the ultimate test of mind and body strength. it's the perfect analogy for life: getting back up when you are down
You see to dislike your profession, do you still enjoy cooking at home?
na mate, i hardly cook at home now at all. all i do is chuck stuff in the oven from the freezer! most chefs are the same. its like the painter and decorator with the shit tip house of his own. you just cant be fucked with it.
What's the worst holiday destination you have been to?
Majorca! went there this time last year and it was a total disaster. most things weren't open at that point, it was freezing, really raw wind, our holiday company went bust so we had to pay for the hotel twice then when we left to come home we got charged 150 euro because my wife had mistakenly put her professional name on the boarding passes she printed out, which didnt tally with the married name on her passport, so that was it, 150 euro to change the name on a boarding pass. at that point i said to my wife 'we are never coming back here' and i never would.
How would you like to die?
doing something pioneering, like a manned mission to mars! that would be a pretty majestic way to go it, even if it was from radiation poisoning from the sun, lol!
