Learn How to Log Press From the Stoltman Brothers
Two-time reigning World’s Strongest Man (WSM) champion Tom Stoltman and his older brother Luke – the British Loglift record holder – are taking the remainder of the 2022 strongman season off. They declined their invitations to the 2022 Rogue Strongman Invitational, where Tom finished second to Martins Licis in 2021.
Despite the decision to take an extended offseason to heal and prepare for 2023, the Stoltman brothers are still working out in the gym. On October 7, 2022, the The Stoltman brothers taught their younger brother Harry how to log press, who also teach their 210,000 YouTube subscribers on a proxy basis. Watch the entire video below:
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After the Cold Open, Luke started the video with a pretty big announcement: He aims to break the all-time world record in wood pressing in 2023currently held by Chieck “Iron Biby” Sanou, who locked out 500 pounds at the 2021 Giants Live World Tour Finals.
After that revelation, the Stoltman brothers warmed up with resistance bands and got to work. Luke suggested that novice strongman should train with a metal trunk rather than a wooden trunk, as the former is often lighter and therefore better for structural engineering. Her wooden trunk weighs 140 kilograms while her metal trunk weighs 90 kilograms.
The first few sets were overhead presses. The work sets included cleansing on each rep—when wearing a lifting belt, elbow sleeves, and knee sleeves, each rep involves lapping the log (a rest position), stretching your hips to roll the log into the front rack position, and then that jerking weight overhead. As is often the technique with increasing power on each lift, Luke touts progressive overload as how Harry will improve his max lift.
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While brute force is essential for a great wood press, precise technique is just as important. If Luke misses a press attempt, his technique allows him to remain upright in a correct front rack position for a possible attempt rather than dropping the weight forward.
Harry used this technique immediately after missing two attempts at 110 kilograms (242.5 pounds). While he expressed dissatisfaction that his strength wasn’t there yet, his technique developed to the point that he held the weight for several attempts before throwing it off. Luke disagreed on the strength, instead pointing out the position of Harry’s elbows – instead of being high and narrow in front of Harry during the front rack, they were noticeably flared.
Flared elbows put most of the weight on the triceps rather than the shoulders, making the lift that much more difficult. Luke then demonstrated it by making 150 kilograms (330.7 pounds) look like a breeze. Following his brother’s cues, Harry was able to lock in the 110 kilograms (242.5 pounds) he’d missed just minutes earlier.
For log press training, a progressive overload with a focus on technique, particularly elbow positioning, will likely get the most bang for your buck. We’ll see if Luke can continue his progress and get the record from Sanou sometime during the 2023 season.
Featured image: @luke.stoltman on Instagram