Nick Best: A Detailed Review of His Strongman Career

Nick Best’s Strength Training for Power and Endurance

Strength training is the cornerstone of Best’s routine, designed to build the immense power and endurance required for strongman competitions. A sample strength training day could look like this:

Morning Session: Compound Lifts

• Dynamic Warm-up: 10 minutes of light cardio followed by dynamic stretches focusing on agility and flexibility.
• Squats: 5 sets of 5 reps at 75% of 1RM (one repetition max), focusing on deep, controlled movements to build leg and core strength.
• Bench Press: Using a controlled pace, perform 4 sets of 6 reps at 70% of 1RM to increase upper body power.
• Deadlifts: 5 sets of 5 reps at 80% of 1RM, executed precisely to emphasize posterior chain development.

Afternoon Session: Event-specific Training

• Farmer’s Walk: 4 sets of 50 meters at 80% of competition weight, aiming for speed and stability.
• Atlas Stones: 3 sets of lifting 5 stones ranging in weight, practicing lifting and loading techniques to increase explosive power.

Mobility and Flexibility: Foundation for Peak Performance

Best incorporates mobility drills and yoga sessions to ensure his joints and muscles remain flexible and injury-free, enabling him to perform the range of movements demanded in strongman events.

Mobility Drills

• Dynamic Stretches: 20 minutes focusing on the hips, shoulders, and ankles to promote a greater range of motion.
• Yoga for Strongmen: A 30-minute session designed for strength athletes, emphasizing poses that enhance balance, core strength, and flexibility.

Recovery Strategies: Ensuring Sustained Progress

Understanding the importance of recovery in training, Best incorporates aquatic therapy and passive stretching to aid muscle repair and alleviate the risks of overtraining.

Aquatic Therapy

• Swimming: 30 minutes of light swimming to improve cardiovascular health without imposing stress on the joints.
• Hydrotherapy: Sessions in a whirlpool or cold plunge pool to help reduce muscle soreness and accelerate recovery.

Stretching and Foam Rolling

• Passive Stretching: A 20-minute session at the end of the day focusing on deep stretches to relieve muscle tightness.
• Foam Rolling: 15 minutes targeting major muscle groups to improve blood flow and break down knots.

Nutrition and Diet Plan for Strongman Success

Nick Best’s exceptional achievements in strongman competitions are not solely the result of rigorous training routines; they’re equally attributed to a meticulously orchestrated nutrition strategy. This strategy ensures his body is optimally fueled and repaired, allowing for maximum performance and recovery. Here’s an in-depth look into the dietary foundations that support Best’s training regimen.

Macronutrient Balance: The Building Blocks of Performance

• Lean Proteins: The Muscle Repair Agent

Lean proteins stand at the core of Best’s diet. Sources like chicken breast, turkey, fish, and occasionally lean cuts of beef provide the essential amino acids needed for muscle repair and growth. After intense training sessions, protein takes precedence to kickstart the recovery process, with a goal of consuming at least 30-40 grams of high-quality protein within the crucial 30-minute post-workout window.

• Healthy Fats: The Sustained Energy Source

Fats, particularly those from avocados, nuts, seeds, and fatty fish like salmon, provide a dense energy source that is vital for Best’s enduring training sessions. These healthy fats are essential for maintaining hormonal balance, supporting cell structure, and facilitating nutrient absorption, ensuring that Best’s body remains in peak condition for performance and recovery.

• Complex Carbohydrates: The Fuel for the Fire

To sustain his energy through grueling workouts and recover adequately, Best’s diet incorporates a substantial amount of complex carbohydrates. Consuming foods like quinoa, sweet potatoes, oats, and whole grains helps to stabilize blood sugar levels by releasing energy gradually. During workouts, carbs are especially important since they provide enough fuel for the sessions and help refill glycogen levels afterward.

Strategic Meal Planning: Timing and Portions

Given the intensity of his training, Best adheres to a structured eating schedule that revolves around six to eight small to medium-sized meals throughout the day. This approach enables a constant supply of nutrients, ensuring that his energy levels remain stable and facilitating ongoing muscle repair and growth.

Recovery and Replenishment: The Role of Post-Workout Nutrition

After particularly demanding sessions, Best focuses on immediate post-workout nutrition to rapidly replenish depleted energy reserves and jumpstart the recovery process. This typically involves a protein shake combined with a simple carbohydrate source, like a banana, to quickly restore glycogen and stimulate protein synthesis.

Hydration and Electrolyte Balance

Proper hydration is a cornerstone of Best’s nutrition plan. Intense training, especially under strongman conditions, leads to significant fluid and electrolyte loss through sweat. Best emphasizes the importance of drinking water consistently throughout the day and supplements with electrolyte-rich beverages when necessary to maintain performance and support recovery processes.

The Importance of Dietary Supplements

While whole foods form the basis of his nutrition plan, Best also incorporates specific supplements to fill any nutritional gaps and support his training needs. Key supplements include whey protein, branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), creatine for energy support, and fish oil for its anti-inflammatory effects and cardiovascular benefits.

Steroid Cycle of Strongman: An Overview Based on the Opinion of Professional Bodybuilders

Nick Best, like many strongmen, is often under speculation for steroid use. Some professional bodybuilders presume he might be using them. Let’s consider an example cycle:

Steroid Use Session:

• The speculated cycle is typically 10-12 weeks, incorporating the usage of Testosterone Enanthate and Deca-Durabolin.
• Testosterone Enanthate is administrated at a dose of 500mg per week. It’s believed to stimulate protein synthesis and red blood cell production, leading to prominent gains in muscle strength and size, a critical factor for strongman athletes.
• Alongside Testosterone Enanthate, Deca-Durabolin is used at 400mg per week. Renowned for its impressive ability to boost muscle recovery and alleviate joint aches, it’s considered an essential component during intensive training periods. This combination enhances physical capacities while protecting joint health, contributing to a robust and sustainable performance level.

Rest Period:

• Post the steroid use session, a pivotal rest phase is introduced, lasting approximately 2 – 3 weeks. This period promotes recovery and system recalibration, proving vital after intensive steroid usage.
• Abstaining from steroids during this stage helps mitigate excess stress on the body and allows for a smoother transition back to natural performance levels.

Post Cycle Therapy (PCT):

• Once the rest phase concludes, a strategically planned PCT of around 4 weeks follows. This phase involves the administration of Nolvadex and Clomid.
• These substances are crucial for reviving the body’s inherent hormone production, disrupted due to external steroid intake.
• The PCT phase aims to restore the endocrine balance, paving the way for maintenance of muscle mass and strength gains during the steroid cycle.
• Moreover, it significantly reduces potential repercussions on reproductive health, underlining a comprehensive approach to steroid usage, focusing on not just performance improvement but also long-term health.

The outlined cycle remains speculative, based on conjectures drawn from professional bodybuilders’ opinions. It provides a lens into the possible strategic planning and careful use of performance-enhancing substances in the competitive strongman landscape.

Inspirational Contributions Beyond Competitions

Besides his illustrious strongman career, Best’s contribution to the sport extends to educating and guiding aspiring strongman athletes. His meticulous guidance and leadership have helped many athletes appreciate and navigate the rigorous demands of the sport.

In general, Nick Best is not only a successful strongman competitor, but he is also an embodiment of pure dedication, discipline, and resilience. His journey and success are beacon lights to budding strongman athletes worldwide. Indeed, Best’s legacy extends well beyond his tangible achievements and is in the heart of Strongman’s history.