STRONGMAN MARATHON

To prepare for a feat as ambitious and physically taxing as the Strongman Marathon, Michael is relying on what he's always done - being consistent in putting in the work to build strength, endurance and mental toughness. He hasn't developed a specific training plan and isn't trying to cram in extra workouts in the last minute. Michael is trusting in the fitness he's developed over years of putting in work day after day to be the preparation needed for the Strongman Marathon and its 26 challenges.

“I’m in the gym five or six days a week and sometimes I’m hitting it twice a day. No matter what, I’m never missing a workout. It always comes down to consistency, and that’s where I’m gonna shine.”

Michael is confident in his strategy. He’s keeping everything consistent, from his training regimen to his diet and sleep schedule. He’s in a routine, going in and out of the gym most days, performing the same CrossFit workouts as everyone else. He’s front-loading the work, though, so that he’s able to taper before the big day.

“Starting from a few days out, I won’t touch a weight,” he notes. “I’ll do a ton of walking. For the two days before go time, rest and relaxation are going to be key.”

In addition to the physical prep, Michael has been preparing mentally for the challenges that lay ahead. Michael has been visualizing every challenge and every mile since he first decided to attempt this feat of strength. “I’ve already done the whole event at least 20 times in my head,” he said. “And I’ve realized the mental side is by far the toughest.”

“There’s one mile in particular that is going to absolutely wreck me. It’s going to be that one mile of burpees,” he said. “I have it early on so I can get it done and out of the way. That’s easily going to take forty minutes to an hour alone, and it's going to thrash my legs, tear apart my arms and set the tone for the entire marathon.”

The day was here. It was pitch black, windy, and below freezing as Michael approached the Bonneville Salt Flats for the challenge he’d been anxiously awaiting: the Strongman Marathon. The seemingly endless desert he had driven through the day before was unrecognizable at this hour.

The sight of the expansive landscape where Michael was about to spend his day made the feat feel real for the first time. Before arriving, he didn’t feel the gravity of the moment. But now, for the first time, it hit him. Michael was acutely aware of what he was about to attempt: 26 miles of physical challenges – and where he was attempting it: in the middle of nowhere. His cool, confident and collected facade had faded – and Michael was terrified for what was to come.

“I’ve been talking about this feat like it’s going to be a walk in the park. Whenever I do something like this, I have to tell myself that. I play it down like it's nothing, even though I know it's huge. And that really became clear when I saw the Salt Flats.”

As 6 a.m. rolled around, Michael knew he needed to get started. He was facing what he expected to be a 14 hour event, and he was racing against the sun. With no other competitors or officials to make the rules, Michael decided it was go time.

“I started it just like it was a regular workout at my home gym. It was so different from most competitions because it was all on me. Me and myself. I was the one calling the shots.”

After a quick first mile run in the weighted vest, Michael was already facing the task he’d feared the most since planning this outrageous challenge: one mile of burpee broad jumps.

“It started out problematically,” Michael said.

Still dark out, he couldn't see a thing, and the 800 meter marker he placed that morning was nowhere to be found. The camera crew jumped in their cars and drove around searching for it; finally, they found the marker and got Michael back on track after he had veered off into the darkness.

“From there, we were good to go,” Michael said. “Surprisingly, the burpees ended up being one of the easiest miles by far.”

Just a few miles later, Michael realized he had inaccurately predicted which miles might break him. When running through the various events in his head to train for this marathon, he imagined “kicking up in mounds of soft salt” and breezing through the handstand walk. However, instead, the frozen ground was rock solid, and his shoulders were immediately weakening beneath him. After coming down from his first handstand and turning back to see he’d only traveled 15 feet, Michael grew alarmed for the first time – and he began to feel like “there is really no way I’m going to finish this fourth mile, let alone the entire marathon.”

As Michael picked up the mile marker and turned to the camera, the faces of his girlfriend and father standing at the finish line gave him the final push needed to finish the Strongman Marathon.

Despite the support of his family and friends, though, Michael knew that it all came from within. To get through this, he had to dig deep into his psyche and capture the mental strength needed to complete the Strongman Marathon. While seeing familiar faces helped, they weren’t going to get him to the finish line.

“If I say I'm going to get something done, it shouldn't be taken lightly. Even if we put limits on ourselves, it's so easy to flip a switch and break that barrier. It really comes down to your mental fortitude. You can translate this to any part of your life. There will be struggles but once you master the mental part you can do anything.”

When reflecting on the marathon as a whole, as well as each of its individual events, Michael had no regrets in terms of planning or preparation.  

“The miles had to be in this order, or I wouldn't have been able to get it done,” Michael explained. “The handstand walk would have been a quitting point if it was any later on in the marathon. Everyone came out such a long way to support me so I just had to keep going.”

Michael was proud of the strength, determination and sheer fearlessness he displayed as he accomplished this unthinkable feat. Despite his seemingly confident and unfazed demeanor, this was a terrifying challenge – and that made his personal victory feel all the more sweet.

Although this entire feat was based on Michael’s self actualization and motivation, his friends, teammates and competitors at home were undoubtedly in his head throughout the marathon – and returning victorious was an unforgettable feeling. “Coming back and explaining what I did - that’s when it really hit home,” he reflected.

“It was more badass than I even realized. I set a new standard for what the body can do. I took it upon myself to do something people have never even thought of. This is my creative outlet, I'm not a painter, I’m not an artist. This is how I express myself. I hope I inspired people, even if they just want to try one mile. If it inspires anyone to do anything at all, that's a win for me.”

Michael wasn’t the only winner that day. After crossing the finish line around 3:30pm, he spent the rest of the afternoon “just waiting for the soreness to hit.” After a long, hot shower and a much deserved nap, it never did. “Instead, we did what anyone would do at the Nevada / Utah border. We hit the casinos,” he laughed.

Before heading home at the end of the night, Michael’s father found himself at the roulette table. Choosing 9, 18 and 33 for his son’s 9 hour, 18 minute and 33 second Strongman Marathon finishing time earlier that day, he took home the jackpot.