15/10/11 saw me do my Sledgehammer Challenge in Kirkbymoorside
I was aiming to do 1000 strikes in 1 hour with a 25kg hammer.
The result of my efforts was 960 reps
Check out this video of the last minute
I have also set up a post on my sledgehammer training leading upto the event
Many thanks to all who supported me and help me raise over £1000, especially some great posts that Jedd Johnson, Chris Beardsley, Scott Bird, Jason Steeves and Pat Hodgson have put up for me to help and all those who helped on FB
Also, many thanks to Pat from Homemadegymstuff for his help with the counting and motivation on the day, cheers mate!! You never fail me!
Also, it's not too late to enter the strength raffle and get my ebook.
Place a minimum £2 donation on my Justgiving page to get the ebook and enter the raffle
Axle, Blobbing and Grippers
47 minutes ago
Rob, you are a legend mate, well done!
I have been toying with the idea of a one hour charity challenge for a while and your performance has inspired me to go for it. The hammer I will be using weighs 20kg and I aim to do it towards the latter part of 2012.
http://chrisvanjaarsveld.blogspot.com/p/charity-challege.html
Keep up the inspirational work!
Cheers
Chris
Cheers Chris!! Nice one for doing your own challenge mate, if you need any help with training I can pass on some of the knowledge I have gained! Make sure you keep me posted with how training is going etc Will put up a post for you on this soon!
Thanks Rob
Hi Rob,
I finally received my 20kg hammer this weekend, so the real training for the 1hour challenge will now begin.
Any ideas on how frequently I should train with the big hammer and how long I should aim to make the sessions? I am posting my training on my blog and will start working with the big hammer today.
Again, congrats on your 960 reps - what a performance!
Cheers
Chris
Nice one Chris! How thick is the handle? Mine in 2 inches thick so I needed to really build up slowly with my training as it was quite stressful on the hands, until they adapted. When are you planning the event? What is your target?
I set off doing 10 mins in sets of 1 min with 10 reps/min. So would strike the tyre 10 times and rest for whatever was left of the minute. A gymboss timer is great for this. I did a chart of all my training here Sledgehammer Training
I then built up my reps to 20 reps per min for 20 mins which was 4 reps above my rate on the day. I got ill with a chest cold 3 weeks before so my final few weeks training weren't as I wanted them to be. Looking back I would have done lots of longer sessions building upto 1 hr. Probably 10 reps/min for 1 hr 1 week followed by 11 reps/min for 1 hr the next etc. (time was my biggest constraint)
So I would recommend 2 sessions a week building up your fitness over short sessions 10-30 min and 1 longer one from 20-60 mins
Hope this helps mate. let me know if I can help you anymore
Cheers Rob
http://www.chrisvanjaarsveld.com/2011/11/training-for-8limbs-charity-challenge.html
Hi Rob, the above link to my blog will give you all the info on how I plan to train. I've had a look at your log and it was a good reference to plan my own training.
Thanks for the help and I will keep you posted on my progress.
Cheers
Chris
Thanks for the post Chris! When I first did this challenge I aimed for 600 reps and got 791, setting off with your 10-12 will be about right I think. You just need to progress week by week with your training. It's amazing how quickly the time goes. I'll add your site to my blog mate and good luck and looking forward to reading about your progress
Cheers Rob
Hi Rob,
Hope things are well!
Any sledgehammer events planned for 2012? I'm sure the next time you attempt it you WILL get 1000 reps in an hour.
My aim is to go for 780-840 reps on my first attempt with the 20kg hammer. Training is going well thus far and I look forward to seeing you reach the 1000 rep milestone.
Regards
Chris
Thanks Chris,
I plan to have a go at the 1000 not too far from now after a bit more training post Christmas, saw some of your blogs about the reps you're hitting in training. You'll certainly do well in it. Would be nice to see some vids of you training
Cheers
Rob
Hi Rob,
Hope you had a good end to 2011.
Thought I'd give you an update on hammer training. I'm going to attempt the 1000 reps in 1 hour with a 20kg hammer on Saturday. More about it available on my latest blog post. I've also got my eyes on the 1000reps/1hour mark with a 25kg hammer; as soon as I've crossed the 20kg challenge off my list I'll regroup and and start work on that.
I made a graph similar to yours to track my training (also on above mentioned blog update). Will be interesting to see how it eventually compares to the one for the 25kg hammer.
Anyway, have a good one and keep up the inspirational lifting/hitting.
Regards
Chris
Happy new year Chris! 2011 ended with a whole month of DIY at home unfortunately, but I'm back doing some training (easying my way in as work is now full throttle). At some point I'll be picking the hammer back up and aiming for the 1000. Looks like you're well on your way to a 1000 with the 20kg. Will be interesting to see how you get on with the 25kg hammer, are you getting one made or adding weight to the head? I did a few session with the 28kg hammer by modding an olympic 2.5kg disc and putting a collar on the shaft of my hammer and the difference was quite major, partly because I couldn't get my hands to the end of the shaft and partly because it felt so much heavier. Good luck with the 1000 reps mate, looking forward to seeing the video and hearing the result. You'll do it no probs!
Hey Rob,
I have no doubt that a 25kg will thoroughly kick my butt (initially). It's a bit of a hit and miss to ask people here in SA to make a hammer to a certain spec, so I will modify one of my hammers to weigh 25kg. What I have in mind is to simply weld a thick steel plate (the width and length of the hammer head) to the bottom (the side opposite the shaft) of the hammer, effectively leaving the shaft clear of any obstructions. As you know, once you find a rhythm with a certain hammer you kind of get attached to the way it handles.
I've decided to do the charity event along with the 25kg challenge. No use doing it when all I'm swinging is a 20kg hammer. I've checked out some of Stef Dogman's videos that you have on your blog and try as I may, I can't get accustomed to the way you guys bring the hammer back between your legs like that. Having the shaft travel past the outside of my leg/hip puts much less strain on my back.
Have a good one and chat soon
Cheers
Chris
Hi Rob,
Hope you are well. I completed the 1000 reps/1 hour challenge with the 20kg hammer on Saturday and it was bloody hard!
You were asking about my lower back the other day? On Saturday my right spinal erector was as stubborn as an old donkey and it will be a good few days before I'm rid of all the knots...
The 25kg challenge will happen (eventually), but I'll have to train long and hard to even have a shot at it this year. I weigh 80kg (12.6 Stone), so that 25kg hammer is going to be a tough bugger to tame.
Congratulations again on the 960. Few people can appreciate what a tough graft that must've been.
Cheers
Chris
Hi Chris, sorry been behind this week (and is about time I started posting again too!)
Well done on achievinbg the 1000 reps, how long did it take you?
I think you may be inspiring me to pick up the hammer again, it gave me an amazing amount of grip strength. I was thinking about your 25kg hammer and probably the best way to add weight on would be to get some rectangle plates made with a hole in each corner and the hammer drilled and tapped so you could screw them in to take the weight up and down. It would really affect the hammer in any way.
Let me know how things are going buddy! Cheers Rob