Monthly Archives: June 2019

My Reflections on WSM

By Darren Barnhart

DarrenFiretruckWorlds Strongest Man 2019 is over. And the armchair commentators are already coming out on social media. So I normally don’t do this but here is my rant.

I will never say that I was the best at anything. Or that I was even competitive at the sport. But guess what…I lived it and loved it for years. Yeah I made it to Nationals a couple of times but it was way past my prime. So what was my “prime” you may ask? My “prime” was the point in which my body wasn’t broken down. Spoiler alert!! This sport can break you. It can hurt you. It can make you have bad days. But only the individual can decide when that is. Not people on social media.

So let’s go back to the early days. The days when no one had even heard of the sport. Yet there were guys getting together on their buddies farm, harnessing up with rope, and pulling farm equipment. Or grabbing the worn out combine tire and seeing how many times they could flip it faster then anyone else. This is truly where the phrase “hey ya’ll get a load of this” comes from. Those my friends were the glory days. When you train all day on Saturday and then can’t walk during church on Sunday. When you get a friendly contest put together at someone’s house then BBQ and drink beer afterward. That is the root of the sport my friends. This is what makes strongman the best.

So before you start judging my friends because of how they did this year. Judge them based on what they HAVE done. How many times they cheered their opponent on. How many times they loaned their opponent gear. How many times they smiled and thanked God for their talent and skill. This is what makes strongman the greatest sport on earth.

Take some time and Thank the early guys. The old guys. The guys that built equipment in their barn. The guys that wish to this very day that they could get out on the platform and “move heavy shit”. We are still out here and we smile every time WSM comes on TV. We don’t nit pick or belittle the guys doing it. Because we have been there.

So here goes the beginning of my list:

Scott Tully
Al Myers
Nick Best
Travis Ortmeyer
Brian Shaw
Chuck Cookson
Mark Mitchell
Lon Beffort
Willie Wessels

And the list goes on and on. A lot of these guys you may never have heard of. But they prefer it that way. That’s what makes strongman great. Thank you for what you did for the sport and what some of you are still doing. I will forever be grateful.

Exercise and Mental Health

by Thom Van Vleck

This is your brain on barbells!

This is your brain on barbells!

As many of you know I work as a Counselor at A.T. Still University.  We have several programs all related to the healthcare field and all graduate level.  My job it to make sure our students are taken care of from a mental health standpoint.

A long time ago I realized there was a connection between mental health and exercise.  My first test subject was myself!  When I was a teen I had a heavy dose of angst, depression, and anxiety.  I found that lifting weights and exercise did me a world of good.

So when I came to ATSU I started a weightlifting club.  They go by the Osteoblasters Weightlifting Club because our school is the founding school of Osteopathic Medicine.  I did it because of my interest in weightlifting but also I realized the importance of exercise and mental health.

So why does exercise impact mental health positively?  For one thing exercise stimulates the production of endorphins and enkephalins.  These are the body’s natural “feel good” hormones.  But it goes beyond that.  Exercise requires focus.  That focus takes us away from the negative self talk that often dominates our thoughts.  The things we worry about and obsess about are pushed out as we focus in the moment on the exercise we are doing.  Exercise also gives us a place where we belong.  A positive social group and interactions.  Like the USAWA!

Let’s take this a step further.  We have for a long time separated mental health from physical health.  We even call physicians who deal with mental health a whole different name!  Psychiatrists!  But I’ve preached for a long time that mental health is physical health.  The brain is an organ attached to the rest of the body.  It suffers illness just like any other organ but the symptoms are behaviors not pains.  The brain has no pain receptors so often the only way you can tell something is wrong is through behaviors.

There is now research that shows that mental health conditions are associated with reduced neurogenesis in the hippocampus.  Guess what increases neurogenesis in the brain?  You guessed it.  Exercise. Anti depressants also increase neurogenesis and that is why they are believed to work.  I think a good workout would be the preferred method.  Then if that doesn’t work try the anti-depressants.

So it’s not just muscles you’re building.  It’s mental health!  And don’t forget, Mental Health is Physical Health that involves the brain as an organ.  It’s not “All in your head….it’s all in your brain!”

National Meeting of the USAWA

By Al Myers

The National Championships are about here, and with that comes the Annual National Meeting of the USAWA.   It will be held on June 21st, Friday night, at 7PM.  It will be at the house of our President Denny Habecker.  His address is: 637 N. 11th Ave, Lebanon, PA.  Please try to make the meeting if possible as all the yearly decisions are made at this meeting. Plus this is the year for USAWA elections – so if you want to run for office this is your opportunity.  I have worked up the meeting agenda, which is still subject to change.

 

Business Agenda for the 2019 USAWA National Meeting

  1. Meeting called to order by USAWA President Denny Habecker
  2. Roll Call by USAWA President Denny Habecker
  3. Reading of previous meeting minutes by USAWA Secretary Al Myers
  4. Report of financial status by USAWA Treasurer Al Myers
  5. Report from Website Director Al Myers
  6. Report from Awards Director Al Myers
  7. Report from Records Director Al Myers
  8. Report from Drug Enforcement Director Chad Ullom
  9. Report from Officials Director Joe Garcia
  10. Report from Postal Meet Director Denny Habecker
  11. Report from IAWA Technical Committee Chairman Dennis Mitchell on upcoming IAWA events and other technical issues that are being discussed by the IAWA Technical Committee
  12. Discussion and Vote on Rule Changes for Strict Curl, Holdout Raised, and Holdout Lowered
  • Loosen rules to NOT involve the use of paper, making the USAWA rule the same as the IAWAUK rule
  1. Discussion and Vote on bylaw addition allowing provisional USAWA memberships
  • Provisional memberships are for non USA citizens – not eligible for records but all other aspects of membership is allowed
  1. Change age allowance to be the same as the IAWA rule
  • At the age of 66 years 2% per year is added to the age correction
  1. Discussion of New Business brought forth by the membership
  2. Election of Officers and Executive Board
  • Current Officers: Denny Habecker – President, Chad Ullom – Vice President, Al Myers – Secretary/Treasurer, Dennis Mitchell – EB member, Rocky Morrison – EB member
  1. Accept Bids for the 2020 National Championships
  • One prior proposal by Frank Ciavattone, to be held in Walpole, MA the last weekend of June
  1. Meeting Adjourned

** *If a Director or an Officer is unable to attend this meeting to give their report PLEASE send it to me so I can give it on your behalf!***

1 2