|
|
|
Ask John Brzenk
Dallas from California JOHN I pulled with you in Petaluma I'm the guy that supposedly jumped at the start ,and we re-started to have you win...My question to you is I am extremely strong If I could get a chance to apply it.. Should I already have my strength applied before the start since my opponents are so quick? John I admire your will and heart and I want only one thing in Life and that is to get a chance to pull with you again and have you remember me and my strength...I never competed and I managed to place 2nd In the heavy weights...I now need technique and training...Do you now of some help in my area ...Perhaps YOU could personally give some pulls and techniques? BODY BUILDING HAD ARNOLD AND ARM WRESTLING HAS JOHN...I WILL BE A NAME TO REMEMBER AND I APPRECIATE YOUR TIME Alper from Turkey (the following answer is without a question as I lost a hard drive but it regards John's competition in the super match the day after he won the Gold Bear tournament in Moscow last April) The tape is as I remember the matches, thanks Alper. I believe after watching it I did everything I could do against Alan and the matches were good considering the pump I had. The frustrating match and the one I have a hard time watching is my match against Erekle. I failed to move hard to the pad after the go, which resulted in a much longer match than I care to pull, especially when there is a 300 plus armwrestler waiting to pull you next. I hope to perform a little better the next time we meet. As far as your wrist problem, there are two ways to top roll. First by keeping your knuckles high. This move works great in the strap and also for guys that have shorter arms or who are not blessed with large powerful hands. The second is allowing your wrist to drop and rotating through your opponent's fingers with the muscle of the thumb. This move requires superior hand strength with great side pressure, and a lot of triceps, lat, shoulder and back muscles. The first type, the posting type, requires more biceps, curling strength verses the pulling type motion. I suspect your wrist my not be the problem You maybe trying to pull naturally with your back, triceps, and lat while keeping your wrist up, this is very difficult. Try working on those hammer curls. This move requires different muscles than the ones normally developed for a dragging type pull.Doug from Idaho John, first I would like to thank you for answering my other questions. It means a lot to have access to someone of your caliber for information. I wanted to clarify the question about wrist position that I had Asked previously. From your response I assume that you interpreted my term of 'Dropped Wrist' to refer to the topping technique that you covered in an earlier question (SiRiuS from Malta). By 'Dropped Wrist' I meant that the competitors hand is in a position such that the fingers are being bent back towards the forearm. In this position the fingers can extend back past the shoulder and the palm is facing the ceiling when the competitor's forearm is perpendicular to the tabletop. One of the competitors that uses this position is Jacob Abbott; another is the winner of your class left handed in the first Main Event. This seems to be a hard position to beat, and you are the only competitor that I have seen win against it. Thank you for your time. You very welcome Doug. I’m sorry about the misunderstanding. Dropped wrist or sometimes referred as a flopped wrist is normally a disadvantage. And unless you absolutely have to I would avoid this position. Although I have been beat in the past with my opponents wrist bent back. There are different positions one can be in with a dead wrist but for the most part when this happens the person is trying to press with his or Her triceps with a shoulder roll move. The person that has the wrist advantage has the leverage advantage, the key is not letting the dead wristed opponent get an offensive angle on your arm, meaning you want your arm straight up in down or slightly pulled to your side of the table, once here the easy win comes with a shoulder press of your own. You should be able to accomplish this because of the leverage advantage. I see so many armwrestlers hanging out in a top roll position after they have achieved the wrist advantage develop your press this is a time when you should use it. If you can predict this move off the start by your opponent I would try attacking his press with a press of your own while using his dead wrist position to your advantage hand and wrist position can make a victory against this style so much easier off of the start. Bow your wrist but do not rotate your hand let his flopped wrist come across on the lower part of your wrist instead of your hand this should make things very awkward for the flopped wrist puller.Question from Russia Hello, John. You am one of the best armwrestlers in the world. I live in Russia. What can you say about Russian armwrestling, and especially about my friend Alan Karaev? I participated in the first Gold Bear tournament in 1990 and armwrestling in Russia has come along way, as I new it would. Armwrestling takes years to develop even for athletes with great upper body strength and speed. As for your friend Alan Karaev he has more potential in becoming unstoppable then anyone I have seen. He is built for armwrestling and I’m sure if he decides to stay with it people will be hearing his name for a long time. He is big ,strong, quick ,and young. And as good as he is right now. I can assure you he is going to get a lot better.Aaron from Canada 1. I know it is hard to be motivated sometimes to keep up the training etc. How do you keep focused?Armwrestling has been a part of my life since my early teens and its automatic for me to give it the little bit of time each week to maintain what I have been able to build . I’ve reached a point in armwrestling were I’m trying to maintain the strength that I have and to stay healthy. As you now Aaron because of The incredible stress put on your arm during practice training does not require a whole lot of time. I will pull once a week and sometimes now once every 2 weeks. For me personally I have found this works best and for this hour, or two a week. I can stay motivated to pull as hard and work as many styles as I can. Even with nothing big on the horizon. I guess its still fun for me, I enjoy getting together with my brother Bill and the guys here in Utah for our once a week pulling secession. 2. I see you pulling in 198 LB class do you find you lose much strength or is there much effect at all to do this for you. I feel the difference when I lose weight I feel stronger at 220 than at 200. I’m not sure I’m in better shape though. I have more energy and am healthier at 200. No its not hard for me to weight 200 its a good healthy every day weight for me. Doug from Alaska First off I wanted to thank you for the picture of you with my wife Tina and son Ryan berry at Petaluma. also it was a great pleasure for me to talk to the legend in person. the presentation made to you during last weeks tournament will be something we will always remember. by the way my son is still trying to understand how a guy who is only 198 lbs is the best of the best. Your welcome and thank you. My only question is will we see a fresh 100% john Brzenk in the supermatch in Russia next year? As I told you in person in my opinion the supermatch should be set up like an overall and they shouldn't be placing the top USA guys against each other before the finals. I haven’t decided yet if I’m going to Russia next year, or if I would pull only the Supermatch. Maybe I will skip Russia next year? And try and meet up with Alan at my first WAF Worlds in Japan. Or hopefully maybe even sooner? Dallas from CaliforniaJOHN I pulled with you in Petaluma I'm the guy that supposedly jumped at the start, and we re-started to have you win...My question to you is I am extremely strong If I could get a chance to apply it.. Should I already have my strength applied before the start since my opponents are so quick? John I admire your will and heart and I want only one thing in Life and that is to get a chance to pull with you again and have you remember me and my strength...I never competed and I managed to place 2nd In the heavy weights...I now need technique and training...Do you now of some help in my area ...Perhaps YOU could personally give some pulls and techniques? BODY BUILDING HAD ARNOLD AND ARM WRESTLING HAS JOHN...I WILL BE A NAME TO REMEMBER AND I APPRECIATE YOUR TIME . Dallas, armwrestling definitely is a combination of strength and speed. I believe that there are many armwrestlers out there that feel as you do. Strength is measured so many different ways and in armwrestling if you can’t trigger everything you have built in an instant, you will most likely be beat by someone who can. I also believe that with armwrestling. Every thing has to work together. You are only as good as your weakest link. This, among other things, is what separates us from weight lifters. Sounds like you have just started armwrestling. Give it time. There are lots of people with the potential to be great but have given up, or lost hope because they didn’t give the body enough time to adapt and build. Armwrestling is a long and sometimes painful process but the strength acquired will stay with you a lifetime. Depending where you live in California. I’m sure there is a group near by that pulls on a regular basis. If not build a table and start your own group. You don’t need a expert to show you what works and what doesn’t with time you will build and realize this on your own. Look forward to pulling with you again in the future. Todd from California John, I am 32 and used to compete in amateur meets until about 10 years ago when I had an experience that has negatively affected my motivation to compete. I had 2 matches in a row in which my competitor's arms' broke at the elbow. Neither time were they in a "broken arm" position nor was I "doing" anything that would have caused this, according to the refs. None-the-less, I feel bad about it. I'd like to get back into armwrestling and with minimal risk to my arms. Have you had any similar experiences and/or can you offer any ideas as to how this might have happened so that I can avoid it happening to myself? Also, would you share the routine you use on your grippers and your thoughts about armwrestling as an Olympic sport? Thank you in advance. I’m sorry Todd I have never armwrestled someone who has broke his or her arm. I however have broken my own arm armwrestling a friend of my fathers, at age 14, and it was the elbow. I would have to agree with the referee's analysis that it's not your fault. Armwrestlers brake their own arms either from bad positioning or just simply being to strong for their own bone strength. The most dangerous time for an armwrestlers is within the first couple of years of competition. Especially if they are well built and have the strength to overload their bones. Armwrestling is very unnatural and puts a very unusual torque on the upper arm and elbow. I believe the repeated stress of armwrestling does eventually strengthen the bones and tendons and the chance of hurting ones arm diminishes. I very seldom if ever hear of an armwrestler braking their arm after a couple years of involvement. Armwrestling is a long process, and if you want to be careful, take it slow at first give those bones time to adapt. Hand Gripper I have one in my car and once a day normally on my way to work I will crunch as many as I can until I can’t hold the steering wheel. And its one of the wimpy kind and I normally try to get 200 to 240 reps as fast as I can. I have been involved in armwrestling as a competitor for almost 20 years now, and have heard talk about trying to make it an Olympic sport for about just as long. I have absolutely no idea what’s involved and if anyone is any closer than they were 20 years ago. I would love to see it, as I think any armwrestler would. My involvement with armwrestling has been strictly as a competitor. Maybe someday this will change. Ross from California I just wanted to pick your brain a little. A couple years ago Virgil Arciero showed me a few exercises that he did with a sledgehammer. Have you ever done any of this type of training? Also, Clay Rosencrans was known to train with inner tubes as opposed to weights. What is your opinion on that? Also, you known to have a good set of lats, do you do any pull-ups? Lastly, you mention what you are currently doing to train in some of The other questions, what have you done in the past? No, I have never trained with a sledgehammer. I have trained with springs and inner tubes. Although I haven’t done any pulling against these devises in a long time I realized as I got older it took away from my recuperation time between hard armwrestling workouts plus an inner tube never pulled on my arm as hard as another armwrestler. No, I don’t currently do pull ups, but I do have a couple of exercises that I do for my back and lats. It's a rowing type motion machine. I have no, or never have had, an unusual exercise that I believed was the key to being a successful armwrestler. What I do now is what I have done my whole life. Which is very intense armwrestling, with an occasional single set work out in-between. Armwrestling has so many variables I don’t think there is any one special technique, sledgehammer etc… that can effectively translate to a noticeable difference on the table. In my opinion there is no better stimulation than full blown, tendon wrenching matches against plenty of good armwrestlers? Workout hard on the table. Remember to work different techniques/directions, even if it's not your best style, and it's uncomfortable. Get plenty of rest and then do it again and again and again and again…there is no such thing as a off season for a armwrestler.Kirk from California I pulled against you at the Patterson Apricot festival back in '96 and then the next year you were not there. I took third that year behind Eric W. and Bill C., you know who they are. While pulling with Bill I went inside and in good position I heard everything go and my arm hasn't been the same since heck I cant even straighten it out completely anymore. Any suggestions? I mean everything I do it grinds bad? Thanks. Can't straighten it anymore? It sounds like you have an average armwrestlers arm. Grinding in the inner part of the elbow? Maybe you should have a doctor look at it. Depending how long its been and much it bothers you I would definitely get a professional opinion. When I hurt my arm the elbow made a loud snap like a gun going off. I also could not straighten my arm, and after several days of walking around with my arm half cocked I had it x- rayed, and yes the elbow bone was cracked. So go have it looked at. It may be nothing more than badly strained tendons, but they also my require professional help/rehab to eventually heal.Joe from AOL John this is probably a touchy question and I will understand If you would rather not answer it.. It concerns the AAA and United States Armsports thing.. I have not been in the sport for all that long and have just recently started taking it seriously. As far as I have seen every time I have a question or need info I write both organizations and only United States Armsports answers it. I have been a member of the AAA for about 3 years and probably will always pay my dues just so as to support armwrestling and my state directors.. just curious. Joe I’m not sure what your question is? I personally know Dave Devoto, and I can understand why your questions would be answered personally by him. As far as the AAA I’m not sure who you are writing to when you have a question. If you are asking me what the conflict is between the two organizations I personally do not know that. I am a competitor and although I have an interest in seeing the sport move forward I have not been involved in any talks between any of the representatives from here or around the world. I do know the sport hasn’t been moving forward like it should, and maybe we as competitors are all to blame for that. I wish I understood all that is involved in organizing and selling this very intense, and exciting sport to the world, but I don’t. I do know there are people out there that do, and they should be allowed to contribute what they can, if and when they wish to support our sport. I personally do not care who our representatives here in the United States are, or the World. As long as they put the armwrestlers first and do what is best for all that wish to participate. As far as your AAA dues are concerned if you believe that money is being well spent on improving the sport keep on paying your taxes, but until I am given a ballot and a choice, I will hang on to my money. It bothers me that there hasn’t been any support for the armwrestlers in the United States. Its very discouraging to see the European countries win so many of the classes knowing the best from the States are not participating. Maybe someday the armwrestlers of the USA will be able to compete in the Nationals and then in the Worlds without it costing a small fortune to compete? Surely we can do better than having an organization that is financially supported by the competitor.Krono from Italy There's a myth about armwrestling: You
understand right from the start of the match, by your opponent's catch, if you can win or
you can't. Is it true even in high professional level as yours?" P.S. You should come down to Texas and pull sometime, there are some excellent heavyweights that are relatively unknown that would love to compete against a great competitor like yourself. This question should be addressed to someone involved with the Olympic Games. The information to the armwrestling public has been slim to none on the subject, and I personally have no idea what or if there are anyobstacles. Will we ever be considered? And if not. Why? You would think there would be some information posted on the subject, but there is none? Who is currently representing the Armwrestling World to ask these question? I do not know that either. If you can get a response form somebody that knows the required steps to be considered. I personally would love to read it. How do we address these questions? By asking. I’m just sorry to say I am not the person with the answers. Chris from SC John, I noticed while checking out the website(s) that you pulled in the SC State championships for 98, so I'm really hoping you can help me out. I'm in the military, stationed in SC, Charleston area. I've been pulling for about15 years now, 34 yrs of age. I'm a little guy, 'bout 175. I've won several state titles through the yrs, NY, Alaska, and Hawaii, multiple times. Won International Cup events, and many military titles. Had good matches against Steve English and a guy named Hal Pittman. Got to pull against Cleve Dean during his comeback in 93(I think), it was the year, or one of, that you beat him in a title match. Anyway, I regress! What I'd like to do is realize full potential, and help the sport before I'm too old. Do you know of anyone in SC, pref. near Charleston, who I could hook up with to get involved here? What are the upcoming 99 major tournaments in the south that I could go to see where it is that I stood in the scheme of things (against the "big boys")? Really appreciate your time, and good luck! Admired your 'work' for a long time! Chris. I’m sorry but I live about 2000 miles from Charleston and I do not know if there are any clubs in the area. I know Georgia has some very strong armwrestlers but that would be a little bit of a drive. As far as pulling tougher competition you need to hit some of the smaller money tournaments. This normally will bring out some of the tougher armwrestlers. The only problem is, they are very hard to come by. Any in the Southeast? Not that I know of. Cwbys from SC Mr. Brzenk, tell me about your matches with Cleve Dean. Also, there was a guy who played for the Orlando Renegades football team who almost beat Cleve in a tournament I was in, do you know who that was? Thanks for this forum! I have known Cleve for about 15 years now. We have only pulled against each other at three different organized tournaments. The first in 1986. It was at an Over the Top qualifier event in Houston Texas. That was the first time I felt the awesome power of Cleve Dean. His hand to say the least felt very uncomfortable to me. We slipped grips on the first go, and after being put in the straps he beat me easily. Later that same year I got a chance to spend some time with Cleve in New York at a toy show that had to do with the dolls made of us for the movie Over The Top. During this time we spent a lot of time on the table and I soon realized what would work and what to avoid. I didn't pull Cleve for 10 years after my experience at the toy show, but I knew in my mind I would have a chance the next time we would meet. That next time would be in the finals of a Yukon Jack tournament in I believe 1994. My strategy was to grab him a little lower an the wrist and hope my hand strength was enough to turn him into a hook, forcing him to beat me inside with his Arm strength verses that incredible hand that he has. This worked, and I won that Tournament...Later that same year I pulled Cleve in a small tournament on the East Coast using the same strategy I beat him there also. They guy your thinking of, I think is Bobby Hopkins it was a Steve Simonds WPAA tournament with the two go system, there was no strap, and once the competitors slipped they were required to pull to the end in a hook. I also was at that same tournament. If I remember right, I think Cleve was fouled out for not staying in a hook and Bobby did win that tournament. Joe from Indiana John I was wondering if you have ever heard of or pulled another Dean that owned a gym in my hometown. His name was John Dean and he was supposed to be a world champion. I’m sorry Joe the only Dean I can remember pulling is Cleve Dean. John Dean? Does not ring a bell for me. Kurt from Alaska John, with respect to weight training, when should a wrestler rest from training before entering into competition? At one time, I had a rest period of seven days before a state competition, and the end result, I lacked strength--so it seemed. I feel as if I had lost some of my strength because I took so many days off of training. If there is any help that you could provide, it will be greatly appreciated.Kurt I also wonder what that perfect formula is for being your very best at tournament time? Everyone has their own theory for what works best for them, and I’m sure everyone is a little different. This is what I do and what seems to work best for me. My last pulling work out is normally 10 days to 2 weeks before a big tournament the worst thing you can do is go into a tournament with inflamed tendons. And even a full two weeks may not be enough so work light on that last pulling workout. As far as weight training I don’t put as much effort into this so I will work out up to 4 days to one week before the tournament with my last work out being light. I know its difficult as the tournament approaches to do nothing. With that much rest you start to feel smooth and you may start to question yourself . Their isn’t anything your going to gain by pulling or working out any closer to a tournament. I personally at times have gone Months without doing anything and then started pulling again that first workout I feel awesome, of course the next couple of days I’m hurting. Being well rested is more important that getting that last workout in before the big match. Casey from Florida I met you at the 98 Pro-Am, You probably don't remember me but I was sitting right in front of you and came there with Bobby Hopkins, from Florida. Having seen you beat all of the best armwrestlers in nearly every weight class, it doesn't take a genius to figure out that you are the greatest arm wrestler of all time. Any weight class, any time, anywhere. With that being said I would like to ask you a few questions and also respond to "CWBYS from SC". First of all you are right; Bobby Hopkins did in fact win that tournament by beating Cleve Dean twice I presume. He also beat Cleve in another tournament a while later. Also, as you know, Bobby is making a comeback after a ten year layoff. I know you have beaten him before, but I would like to know how you would approach a match with him. What do you think his strengths and weaknesses are, and where do you think he is among the top10, 20,50, or so in the world, and where do you think he could be with more training. Thank you for your time. Casey I would approach Bobby very carefully!!! He is a big guy and shouldn’t be taken lightly by anyone. It's been a long time since I’ve pulled Bobby so I’m not sure what I would do. I remember he has an extremely thick hand, which is always very uncomfortable to deal with. From watching some of his current matches with other armwrestlers it looks like he still may be vulnerable to the top roll so I probably would choose this move first. A lot of questions for me would be answered on the set up. Strengths? Bobby was his best pulling outside in a hook. As far as a current ranking I would place him in the top 10 to 20 armwrestlers in the world. How good can he get? Time will tell. Bobby verses Cleve. WPAA was single elimination back then.James Dear John, First of all thank you setting up this forum. I have
started arm wrestling after a break of three to four years. However I have been
fortunate to win a small tournament only after preparing for three weeks. I have few
questions and would be grateful if you would kindly answer them. Hand strength is probably best developed from armwrestling. I do a few extra exercises for my hand and wrist. The hand gripper, on my way to work, and basic wrist curls when I workout with the weights. I personally use a dumb bell exercising one wrist at a time. I will use a bench to rest my forearm on and curl the weight with my wrist at slightly different angles with my thumb underneath the bar along with the fingers. From Mike: John, has your brother ever beaten you in a tournament? How much further does he have to beat you? Do you ever see him working on the toproll during your workouts? Do you know why he never pulls left in tournaments? Thank you again for being a good standard and hero for many. Yes, Bill has a victory over me in a tournament. In Las Vegas and in Reno about two years ago. Although recently he has had some problems with his arm, he is probably capable right now of beating me if the conditions are right. If we are both fresh my hand strength is superior but his arm strength is very close to mine. He works on his toproll as much as anyone can. We pull both toproll and hook during practice. He doesn’t train his left. He claims he wants one good arm when he gets older. From Cwbys9 John, two questions.. First, the Southeast
Armwrestling Championships are being held at the Mudville Grille in Jacksonville, Fl. on
February 13th, any chance you'll be attending? Since I was in Hawaii last year, I don't
know the size or reputation of this event. Do you have any input on it? Second question:
What are your views on hand position on the peg prior to the start of the match? Any
particular position better for a particular strategy? What about hip and leg placement? I
never hear much about this from the more experienced pullers. I understand the basic rules
for positioning, but in your opinion can a distinct advantage be gained for a particular
style, say working someone with a top roll? Thanks again to Dave and yourself for this
forum! No, I currently have no
plans on attending the tournament in Jacksonville. I normally find myself resting my hand
on top of the peg at the start and adjusting depending on the outcome of the start and
depending on which side of the table I happen to be pulling from. I don’t believe
hand position on the peg will produce any big advantage that would warrant thinking about
it before a match. Normally my leg placement at the start will be staggered. With a
comfortable shoulder width distance, (pulling with the right arm), I will have the left
leg slightly behind the right ready to dip to the left. This sometimes doesn’t go as
planned and I will have to adjust depending on the match and balance shifts. The only time
I shift my hip tight into the table with wrapping my leg to the inside of the right table
leg is when I’m attempting a shoulder roll press. I don’t think leg position is
as important as keeping your body in a good position in relation to the position of your
arm sometimes hard hits cause some separation that may make your arm more exposed to a
hard hit from your opponent. From TW Indy I have been armwrestling for about a year now
off and on. The problem I have is that all the tournaments I get in I am out weighed by 20
lbs and there is a definite arm length disadvantage. I weigh 136 lbs and my weight class
is 0-154 lbs. Every one of my competitors barely make weight. I guess my question is what
kind of strategies and techniques can I learn to get these guys down? The best I have
placed is 3rd in a sanctioned tournament. I did win 1st in the0-150 and 2nd in the 151-180
class at a Big bikerfest with about 50 competitors in each class. I went 11-1 for the
day.;) The officials weren't too sharp. Anyway back to my question can you give me advice
on how to match up to these taller and heavier guys? Thank you for you time. Weight
definitely helps, but isn’t the deciding factor in
becoming a good armwrestler. There are genetic factors that make some better armwrestlers
than others, but weight wouldn’t be on the top of this list. Shorter arms actually
have a leverage advantage, but are usually accompanied by smaller hands and fingers. If
you are blessed with a short arm with large wide powerful hands you are made for
armwrestling. With only one short year of on and off armwrestling you will find you have a
few more years before you reach a sticking point in the amount of noticeable gains from
pulling. My recommendation is to keep pulling. Be consistent, pull at least once a week
hard, and in different directions. Keep working on your hand strength to the side and also
protecting your hand and wrist by keeping your knuckles high and posting back (like a
hammer curl). From CM I was asking what type of routine; do you do for your forearms? I envy people with great forearms. I lift weights 5 days and I have for years. I know what routines there are for forearms and I was just wondering if you did anything unusual that might help me. Do you do high reps low reps and how often? I'm 5 feet 5 weight about 180 but no forearms can you send me some in routines. I think a lot of my forearm size is genetics, my father, grandfather, and brother all have large forearms. A lot of the size in my right forearm is from years of armwrestling, because there is about a two inch difference between my right and my left, and I’ve always weight lifted equally between the two arms. I don’t do a whole lot of forearm exercises. Hand grippers every day, and dumb bell wrist curls, normally at the end of my work out, which is twice a week. I do one set with 50 lbs until I can’t do anymore. Along with once a week training on the table armwrestling this is my training for hand and wrist strength.From Daniel PLEASE GIVE A DESCRIPTION OF A PROPER SET-UP AT THE TABLE (i.e. FOOT PLACEMENT, ELBOW PLACEMENT, ARM PRESSURE). ALSO, PLEASE GIVE A DETAILED EXPLANATION OF HOW TO PROPERLY PERFORM A HOOK AND DRAG. THANK YOU FOR TIME, JOHN. The rules, along with most referees, will for the most part dictate how you will set up before the go. Shoulders will be square, hands in the middle of the table, with hand and wrist position equal and straight. After the go is were the movement begins. Foot placement, elbow location, direction of arm pressure and hand position is dependent on the technique you decide to use, and sometime of your opponents dictated direction. There is no set right or wrong way. The pad is large, use all of it depending on the direction and outcome after the go. As far as arm pressure, and hand pressure, including load. Sometimes it is appropriate to feel your opponent out before the go, but be wise not to let your opponent know the direction your intending on pulling. One of the biggest advantages for a well-rounded armwrestler is the uncertainty of the direction you might be pulling. Its much more difficult for someone to defend against an unknown hit. Hook. Defined as two armwrestlers pulling wrist to wrist (hands turned in). When this happens the opponent that is winning the match is normally pulling down on the wrist of his opponent with his triceps back, lats, shoulder and pecs. The defensive armwrestler uses these same muscles along with some biceps. I have seen people use their biceps when pulling in a hook offensively, this maybe used to put added pressure on your opponent's hand, and sometimes will end up turning into a top roll move. Its very difficult to explain what I feel is good hook and drag technique. But maybe this example will help...Extend your right arm in front of you with your palm rotated up wrist curled now pretend your hanging onto a rope. Now pull that rope toward you, elbow will eventually be at your side this movement along with your body movement to the side would be about the same muscles used, as you can see triceps lats and shoulder strength becomes very important. Pulling, is just that, pulling, not curling. A good comparison would be to the movement in a tug of war. Hope this helps... From Mike in the Midwest JOHN, I DON'T HAVE A QUESTION REALLY JUST WOULD LIKE YOUR INSIGHT ON SOMETHING. I HAVE COMPETED IN ARMWRESTLING TOURNAMENTS FOR THE PAST SEVEN YEARS MOSTLY IN THE MIDWEST (NEB, IA, IL, WI) WITH SOME REALLY GREAT COMPETITION. I AM A FIRM BELIEVER IN THE IDEA THAT YOU ONLY IMPROVE YOUR SKILLS AT THIS GREAT SPORT WITH TONS OF TABLE TIME AND THE ABILITY TO LEARN FROM YOUR LOSSES AND ADAPT QUICKLY! I FELT I HAD STALLED A LITTLE IN MY PROGRESSION UNTIL I STARTED WORKING OUT WITH ARMS MUCH STRONGER THAN MINE. AS LONG AS I DID THIS SAFELY I MADE SO MUCH MORE PROGRESS AND BECAME MORE AT EASE IN MY WEIGHT CLASSES. IS THIS SOMETHING THAT HAS HELPED YOU TO PERFORM WITH THE BEST OF THEM NO MATTER WHAT SIZE? I’m with you Mike. I don’t think there is any other way around becoming a great armwrestler without armwrestling. I also go along with the idea that pulling with someone stronger and better will provide faster results than someone that you can easily control, especially at the beginning stages. The only thing I would watch out for would be over training. When I was younger pulling with my father and many other armwrestlers that were better and stronger than myself, I was able to heal and become stronger on a daily basis. (I think a lot had to do with age and my size, or lack of it). As I have gotten older and stronger this recuperation time has gotten a lot longer (up to two weeks). Pulling someone better and stronger will require more rest, and as you become much more advanced it's easy to over train and sometimes hurt yourself. Occasional tournaments are great for that added extra effort and shock to your arm that you just don't seem to get pulling in practice, no matter how much stronger your opponent is. In armwrestling lightweights are sometimes as good and sometimes better than some of the heavyweights. And with experience you build confidence to compete against anyone no matter the size. I think half the battle in armwrestling is the confidence factor. I grew up armwrestling, so most of the time guys I pulled were bigger.Luke from Canada John, my question is about countering a
toproll. I understand that, if you cannot resist your opponent's hand, then you can grip
low around your opponent's wrist and try for a hook that way. However, I am weakest at
hooking, and usually depend on my ability to resist my opponent's hand, rather than his
arm. Several people have told me that the best way to resist a toproll is to position the
end of your first finger against the side of the first knuckle on the opponent's first
finger. This works for many people. They effectively stop my toproll this way, apparently
with one finger. However, I need an alternative to this. When I try stopping toprolls this
way, almost anyone can easily crumple my first finger into an acute zigzag, and toproll
right through. My middle and ring fingers seem vastly stronger, though. Is there something
I should try to do with these fingers instead? I am thinking of stacking my (ineffective)
first fingertip over my middle finger, thereby making room for my middle fingertip higher
on my opponent's hand. Do you see any potential in this experiment? Here is another
question that is somewhat related. Are fingers put to best advantage, generally, by
stretching them out and wrapping around the opponents hand, or by bending them down, and
pushing against the opponents hand closer to the side? Is this just individually relative?
Thanks for all the answers you have given people to date! Your question is a little
confusing but I think your asking how to out top roll someone who is good at a top roll?
There are two different approaches to top rolling. Knuckles high, protecting your own
fingers. Index finger normally floats and tries to capture an advantage by covering your
opponent's index finger. I’m not sure anyone would willingly allow starting with
there index finger being covered this would be an extremely high grip and I’m sure
your opponent would complain. This move with good back pressure will normally aggravate a
top roller that hits to the side, because with fingers high there is nothing to roll into,
and if you can keep your arm posted upright they are going to almost have to hook a little
before they roll. To be successful top rolling like this you need great hammer curling ARM
strength. Fingers and wrist not as important. This may be why this style is awkward for
you. Build also will hurt this style if you're pulling someone smaller or if your forearm
is long you maybe at an angle disadvantage. The second type of top roll would be the
superior hand and wrist strength move. Rolling with the thumb with great side pressure and
good hand strength to keep your opponent from rolling out. If your good at this move but
people are stopping this move by posting you might want to experiment with positioning
yourself for a hook. Once your opponents arm is at a slight angle then roll with the
thumb. Clamping down with finger pressure is something I do not do. The fingers should be
well positioned as far around your opponent's hand to keep him from rolling away. This is
better accomplished I think by a comfortable cup, not with crushing finger pressure. I
wouldn’t spend too much time with your experiment but it can’t hurt to try. Keep
working on the arm strength and don’t be afraid to briefly go into a hook. Hey John. Congratulations on your recent victory at Reno. I'm wondering, what do you think about this Kenny Hughes kid? I don't know if you know who I'm talking about, but he's a 17-year-old "Kid" who's just tearing it up! He's beaten world contenders like Karl Wiggins, Dave Hicks, Bill Ballinger, and most recently, Allen Fisher! Do you think that he's going to be the next "John Brzenk" in the lighter division? Have you ever actually locked up with him and felt how strong he is? I wasn't at the tournament, but did you see if he hooked Fisher? Thanks John. I know Kenny, and in fact I have had a chance to pull him a couple of times now, in overall competitions. He is a rock. At seventeen years old your guess is as good as mine on how good he will become, or how big he will get. Even if he quits armwrestling right now he is going to get bigger and stronger just because of his age. Forget about being great in the lightweight division, he is going to be dangerous in any weight class. Yes, he hooked Allen. From what I have seen and felt from Kenny he seems most comfortable with a dragging hook. From Loula Do you think armwrestling will ever become an Olympic sport? If not would you consider using your influence to help promote such an idea? Do you know an armwrestler named Stretch Sherato? Yes, I think eventually it will become a popular Olympic sport. The question is, will it be within our lifetime? My influence? With my salary, I don’t think I have much. But yes, I would do what ever I could to help promote the sport. Yes, I know Stretch. From Stan
From Cowboy John I've been having a Problem with a guy when we
start to pull he will either bend my wrist back or his From Tim in Idaho John- May I ask what you what you do for a
living? Doe's it have any effect on your armwrestling, like help it? and do you make much
money from arm wrestling? I am currently employed by
Delta Airlines as a Lineservice Mechanic. It isn’t physical so I do get plenty of
rest from my workouts. Don’t get involved in armwrestling for the money. Currently
there is little to no money in the sport. Occasionally there will be a tournament where if
you win or place you can break even after your expenses. There are exceptions to this. I
did win a $100,000 Volvo White Semi truck in 1986. Over The Top movies aren’t a
common occurrence. From JHB I am a newcomer to the sport of armwrestling
and I would like to know how many times a week should I pull and How do I develop my side
pressure. Your answers will help me greatly. Thank you very much. If you are just starting out, and you are young. You may be able to pull,
as I did growing up, almost everyday. As I got older and more advanced I had to cut back
and give my body more rest. You will be incredibly sore from the sport for the first
couple of years this is normal, my arm felt like it was ready to fall off many times. Warm
up before each workout session and keep aspirin close by. From Dan in Texas
In my opinion there is nothing gained by squeezing down hard with finger pressure. I am not sure if fingers are important in maintaining hand and wrist position. I would almost bet with fingers missing most would be able to maintain wrist position, (definitely in the strap using a posting toproll), it would become difficult to keep your opponent from bailing out when he felt in trouble. I find myself using finger pressure when I want to control or inhibit his move outside. This is dangerous because if you can’t control but you commit to try. It usually ends up with your wrist being topped. I attribute my tendon strength from the isometric / eccentric forces that are put on your arm in all direction from the sport itself. It's been a real long time since I’ve pulled Gary Ray. At one time he was definitely one of the best at 180 lbs. is he still pulling? He was always in great shape with excellent endurance. Stronger on the inside than top rolling. I never felt Gary had the hand strength or blazing speed to flash off the start but you definitely didn’t want to get into a long pull. He would probably outlast most, including me. I can’t recall how many times I have pulled Gary although I do remember getting beat by him in a hook at a Over The Top qualifier in Houston. Kurt from Alaska John, congratulation once again on your victory. I just have a few questions: What is going through your mind before you pull your opponent to the pin pad, for another victory? Are you thinking about whom is going to win? Or are you thinking about how you're going to beat your opponent? Or, is there more...Thanks John for your time and expertise. I think about the same thing before and during a tournament. And that is. What is going to be the easiest approach to keep my arm fresh. . That means expending the least amount of energy during the set up and after the go. So during the set up I concentrate on feeling comfortable and sometimes giving my opponent enough to make him feel comfortable. This will hopefully lead to a quick and almost effortless setup. After the go I'm also thinking about being quick and making the match as effortless as possible, but this normally means pulling in a direction that makes him feel helpless. To control your energy and release it only at the exact moment, normally keeps me at my best. Sometimes the safest direction isn't the easiest technique for a victory. I normally will take that chance, verses being safe. Have I given up on matches early in the day that weren't going well? Yes. Sometimes its better to walk away with only a small amount of damage than to get into an early battle that will ruin your whole day. Ross from SoCal John, Thanks for taking the time to address all of the questions
that we are all submitting. I have read all of your responses and noticed you didn't
really mention Al Turner or Fred Decker. Can you please share any information as to From Christian Who do you think are the new up and coming armwrestlers? And I know you pulled Jason
Vale at the Main Event in 97; and the two of you pulled after the meet was over. What do
you think of him? From Daniel WHEN YOU HOOK, ARE YOU HITTING WITH SIDE PRESSURE FIRST OR PULLING YOUR ELBOW BACK ACROSS THE PAD? WHEN BACKLOADING DO WEDGE YOUR ELBOW INTO THE PAD LIKE A CROWBAR OR DO YOU FLOAT AND HAMMER BACK? BY THE WAY, GARY RAY IS RETIRED. HE CURRENTLY SUFFERS FROM "GET-ON-WITH-MY-LIFE-ITIS". HE DOESN'T PULL THAT MUCH ANY MORE ALTHOUGH I WISH HE WOULD. HE IS AS STRONG AS HELL (NOT TO MENTION A SUPER GUY). IF YOU'RE EVER IN TEXAS LOOK ME UP. MAYBE WE CAN TALK HIM INTO PULLING. I HAVEN'T FALLEN ASLEEP SOBBING SINCE I STARTED ARMWRESTLING! I normally pull the elbow back driving into the pad towards my mid-section. As far as loading for a Top roll, both are acceptable, and I do both, depending on the style and my opponent. This depends on type of top roll you are working on. I classify them as the (Dave Patton posting top roll), or the (Andrew Cobra Rhodes hand control to the side top roll). Both are good depending on your strengths and the strengths of your opponent. I am sorry to hear Gary hasn’t kept armwrestling part of his life. From Josh in Idaho P.s. I met your brother Bill in Aberdeen, Id, you guys are great. I have a brother myself and he is also a good puller. Eric is a very tough competitor; he has a great posting top roll. With a larger than normal hand. It will feel extremely uncomfortable during the setup. Because of his style he is also very effective in the straps. Not knowing your strengths I couldn’t say what would be best for you. I find when I pull Eric I have two choices. Take a risk, gripping a little lower, and hopefully controlling the match inside. This is dangerous because you may get top rolled. Or second, fight fire with fire and post with him which normally leads to a slipped grip then the straps. I would recommend not gripping palm to palm with the notion of pulling through his hand to the side, unless your built with the hand size of Cleve Dean. Good luck. From Steve My name is Steve and I was wondering if you knew where I could get
some armwrestling videos that teach technique and I was also wondering would there be a
way for me to beat one of my friends that always beats me with the hook without weight
training because he's a lot stronger than me when it comes to armwrestling right hand.
Thanks for the time. From Dave: Hi Steve, the best tape I know of is available is from Bill Morrison in Canada. bmdis@fort-frances.Lakeheadu.Ca From Ken When I try to arm wrestle this guy who is probably
stronger than I am, he pushes forward in little drives and beats me in the same amount of
time every time. What can I do to prevent this? Also I have heard that there is a method
for winning arm wrestling matches that you twist your wrist a little and it becomes
easier. Is there any truth to this? If there is could you explain? It sounds like he is beating you with his triceps this move is sometimes
referred to as a shoulder roll move. Are you pulling on an official table? Technique may
be difficult to use on a flat coffee style table. Elbows move and most matches on this
arrangement come down to the guy with better endurance than the guy with more speed and
power. There is a way to take some of the leverage away from your opponent that is
normally built for a inside pressing move. It's called the top roll and it is very
effective on people that push with the triceps. Attack his hand by applying pressure on
his fingers by pulling in a reverse curling motion. Research the dimensions and build an
armwrestling table if you don’t pull on one already. All the hand strength and
backpressure is useless if he follows your movement by repositioning his elbow. John, I am fairly new to this sport and I don't think that I've found my spot yet. I mean my style and position. Usually during practice, I will try out all different stances and body positioning at the table that I pick up from watching others, just trying to find what is comfortable and works well for me. Some people try to get there body as close as possible to the center of the table in a very tight and stiff position, some load up with a ton of back pressure and almost have there tricep lying on the pad with there forearm straight up, some have a seemingly relaxed position were you don't notice anything in particular about it. I don't know if you've ever heard of Jerry Cole, but he has, what I think is a very unique position were his shoulders are very high and it looks like his back is hunched over the table. It looks and feels very uncomfortable to me, but he has tremendous strength that way. My question to you is what sort of stance and body position do you prefer and how do you hold the peg in that position? Also, do you know of Jerry Cole or ever pulled him? He is a great practice partner and has beaten some of the best, like Dave Patton, Cobra Rhodes, Chad Silvers, and Mike Selaris. Thank you very much for your time and answers to all the questions. P.S. I would love to watch you pull. Are you planning on attending any tournaments out this way? I think the key is getting comfortable using numerous positioning and techniques. I don't think it's ever helpful to let your opponent know what direction and style your using by your stance. Sometimes you can’t help it, and it may not be important if your opponent knows where your going, but for the most part I would try to keep them guessing. I have been known to try an occasional shoulder roll, which requires getting closer to your arm and getting a little higher. (it is normally when I have nothing left in the other areas). If I’m going to post with the triceps flat on the table it will normally be after the go. The style I am most comfortable with is a square straight away stance either controlling a side hitting hand control top roll, or a hand control hook and drag. Neither of this style requires pulling on the peg my hand will rest on top of the peg and body movement is at a 45 degree off to the corner of the table. Keep pulling remember there isn’t only one right style. Certain styles work better against certain pullers. Everyone has their weak area its up to you to expose them, and to get the match over with quick. So you can sit down and rest. The name Jerry Cole does not ring a bell for me. I don’t know if we have ever pulled. From Floyd John, Do you have any special method for chalking your hand. Do pay special attention to certain area of your hand, or do you just cake it on. Normally I apply chalk only on the fingers and a little on the pad of the palm near the little finger. I feel there are some special cases were it may be desirable to have a little mobility (or slippage near the thumb area). Definitely no chalk on the back of your hand or in the thumb area. No sense helping your opponent get a better grip to control the match! Rick from Canada Dear John, From GDAWG From Public Richie from Canada Hey John, I have a couple of questions for you. My first one is in the movie OVER THE TOP, how did it feel to be part of a movie?, my 2nd question for you is this, Did you get to meet Mr. Stallone? and finally I have been in contact with some people and I am going to form a new club, what would you charge me for a seminar? I can get American money for you as well. Well that experience is about 13 years old, but as you could guess it was a very exciting time for armwrestling, and me. The movie created attention to the sport, and the timing was perfect for me. Just beginning to pull extremely well. The movie atmosphere was exciting but competing was what I was most excited about. Yes, I did meet Stallone, about one year before the tournament, and then again a few times during, and after the tournament. It was a thrill to see him involved in the sport, its to bad he didn’t continue, but I guess he had this acting thing going for him. When you get closer to setting something up, give me a call and I’m sure we can work something out. From Ryan John, Hi, I am 14 from a medium sized town. I am first place in
my school. I was wondering how good you were when you were a kid? I don't really know how
good I am on the large scale, so I am nervous to go to a competition and lose in about 3
seconds. Its not like I have never been beaten, but when you were 14 do you think you
could beat everybody in the high school. I can beat them all but 3 so I don't know if I
should compete. Thanks. My real
beginnings in armwrestling would include the years I pulled with class mates in Junior
High School. I was about age 13, and we would pull across hard flat tables during the 10
to 15 min of roll call. There were also about three classmates that would normally beat
me. I was very athletic in my younger years but hadn’t developed as early as some.
The pulling we did was great for developing some early tendon strength but we all lacked
any real knowledge of the sport. Pulling on a professional table in itself took time
getting use to. I wouldn’t worry about winning or loosing at this stage. Enjoy
competing and learn from your losses. The strength and technique will come quickly,
especially at your age. You have a huge advantage for future years if you start pulling
now. Through out the years I personally have lost hundreds of matches learning the sport.
Looking back it was the most exciting time of my life. WAS THE 1986 OVER THE TOP TOURNAMENT A DOUBLE ELIMINATION? HOW MANY From MIJA999 HEY JOHN, I KNOW THE TWO BROTHERS FROM ARIZ COULD YOU TELL ME IF THEY ARE REALLY GOOD BECAUSE NO ONE HAS SEEN EITHER OF THEM AT ANY TOURNAMENTS IN A VERY LONG AND DO KNOW WHAT THEY MIGHT BE DOING OR IF THEIR EVEN PULLING. I AM NOT AN ARMWRESTLER BUT I DO LIKE THE SPORT. BY THE WAY IN MY OPINION YOU ARE THE VERY BEST. Todd and Vance DEMASSEO? I keep in touch with Todd, and he has not been armwrestling much lately. Is he still really good? Not as good as he could be, but better still better than 99.9 percent of the strongmen out there. I don’t know about Vance we don’t keep in touch. Thanks for the confidence booster. From Richie Dear Mr Brzenk, I was wondering what your thoughts were on steroids? Are they in the sport of armwrestling? Do they test? And if not do you think you have as much chance on the table against someone using substances like this? And an even better question to you sir, have you ever competed against a steroid user before? Sure, I have fantasized about the, what if I…but have never seriously considered the use. So, I know very little about them. I won’t judge whether its right, or wrong, or what someone else decides to do with their life. But being very competitive, I can surely understand the desire to win at all cost. Are they in armwrestling? I think it would be very foolish to think armwrestling would be any different than any other sport. But I don’t think its use is common. In my almost 20 years in the sport I’ve been tested once, back many years ago, at a tournament in Canada. I understand the testing is too expensive for our sport. Do I think they will make a good armwrestler better? The evidence would suggest, yes. Would it be more difficult to beat someone who has the added strength because of this drug? Why certainly. Would the claimed user intimidate me, or would I pull him any differently? NO. I have never personally seen anyone that I have competed against take the drug. I have had people claim that they have, but have never actually witnessed its use. From Daniel P. Chris in SC How and why did you drop to 177 ??? Did you pull Kenny Hughes at the Pro -Am, Left, that is? Is it better to drop the last 5-10 lbs right before the contest, last few days, presumably in water weight? Any chance you'll be going to the AAA Nat'ls in Baton Rouge, or the SC State Champs this yr ? I'd love the honor of pulling against you. I've pulled Cleve, Bobby, and would like to lose to you!! Thanks for the forum. I wish I could still make 177 lbs. Haven't been there since about 8th grade. (Currently l weight 200lbs) No I didn't pull Kenny at the Pro Am. Left or Right. If I am close on weight, Yes I will try to drop 5 to 10 pounds of water weight by not drinking and or eating much of anything on the day of weight ins, this especially works good if weight ins are the night before. Currently I do not plan on attending the Nationals in Baton Rouge. I'll probably have to pull you somewhere else! You're welcome. From kkimlerAs an avid weight trainer I find that one of the biggest
obstacles to gaining is proper recovery time. From what I understand, proper and adequate
recovery time and practice is imperative to building bigger and stronger
muscles/tendons/ligaments. In other words, it is probably not a good idea for a power lifter
to go to the gym on a Tuesday night and squat until he can barely walk to the
locker room and then go to work the next day and carry sheet rock up and down flights of
stairs all day. True, that many power lifters/bodybuilders do engage in heavy physical
labor as a vocation, but I would guess that their progress is hampered to some degree by
using their muscles to earn a living day in and day out over long periods of time. Over
the long term, I would guess that a guy who sits in a chair at a desk all day would
experience faster gains in size and strength in his/her leg workouts than someone who is
on their feet all day. Modern training wisdom dictates that those of us who engage in
resistance exercise need proper diet and periods of "inactivity " between
working the same muscle groups. Hello John, I have a question that I would really appreciate your advice about. I have been having trouble pulling against armwrestlers that hook. I usually top and am pretty strong both in my wrist and arm. I try to keep my wrist bent at about 10 to 15 degrees when pulling in a top. I am also pretty strong in a dragging hook, but cannot take a lot of side pressure. My question is this: When pulling against someone that I know has strong hands and likes to hook, should I bend my wrist more in the top to prevent being turned, or would it be worth the risk to try a quick dragging hook? Thank you again for your time. Everyone is a little different in his or her strengths and weaknesses. What works against one person may not work against another. If experience tells you are going to get hooked by a certain individual it may be better to be more prepared for it by hooking also. Meaning you can put your arm in a weaker position by attempting a failed top roll. Its very difficult to set up for a top roll pulling back while also defending against a hard hit to the side by someone who may control the match inside. If the top roll is your strong point use it most of the time against people who are easily top rolled. But there will come a time when your best is someone else’s best. Try to be well rounded and adjust depending on who you're pulling at that particular moment. The answer to your question may be for now which style gives him the harder match or puts you in a position to make adjustments to have a chance on winning. You may find that top rolling is the answer. But with a little added strength. It doesn’t hurt to try new directions. Experiment, he may have a weakness there. From Richie (again) Hey John, are you having a good summer? Anyway on with my question, Mr Brzenk, have you ever been intimidated by any armwrestler? You seem so very calm on the table its spooky almost, and also maybe you could tell me what the difference is between wrist-wrestling and arm-wrestling? Thanks again for your time John. Summer? I don’t think it's arrived yet here in Utah, a little cold still. Intimidation? Maybe a little before the tournament. Or this maybe just nerves. Size, talk, aggressiveness, yelling and screaming. No these things do not intimidate me while I’m on the armwrestling table. Afterwards ???? Maybe. The thing that will set me on my heels slightly is someone who truly steps up to the table with the confidence to win. They are always tougher to beat, no matter what there size, or capabilities. Wristwrestling and Armwrestling? Maybe Dave could answer this question best. In my mind Wristwrestling referred to a certain style table and set up. The most notable difference being the left hands clasped in the middle of the table verses the peg on the left. I think currently the words could mean the same thing? Dave? (Dave) Right on John. In Petaluma we changed to a peg table to conform to other nations using the armwrestling table with peg. There is no difference in Petaluma between Wristwrestling and Armwrestling although there are still many pure wristwrestling tournaments with the original peg-less tables still in existence. (Dave). From BKLEWIS I popped some tendons about 6 weeks ago. When I first start practice it really hurts, but after awhile it stops. Then the next 4 days it kills, is this ok? I wish I could tell you its OK to work through the pain. But I don’t know what you are personally going through, and how much damage your particular tendon pop was. I have had extremely sore, inflamed tendons through out my armwrestling years, and no matter what I have done my body has been able to rebuild and get stronger. I would suggest you warm up extremely well before pulling with any minor soreness. If the pain is extreme I would think it might be wise to quit for awhile and maybe have a professional look at it. Especially if it doesn’t seem to be getting any better. There are months and sometimes years of tendon pain that goes along with becoming a good strong armwrestler. This is normal. From BubbaMy name is Bubba, I pull with Jim Battles and Red Allison in FL. I'm a big guy (265lbs.) and they both slaughter me. They tell me that I rely on natural more. I read most of your answers and you say that armwrestling workouts are where your strength came from. I quit pulling with them and started hitting the weights hard. My question is, should I back off the weights and put all my efforts in really good, hard armwrestling workouts? Also, are you going to the nationals in Baton Rouge? The reason these smaller guys are beating you is because they are conditioned armwrestlers that have been armwrestling many years. You may have tons of potential with a lot of natural strength and size, but to realize your full potential you need to pull. Weights are OK for becoming a good weight lifter but you need to spend some time conditioning on the armwrestling table. Then after about three years or so of consistently pulling week after week see how you match up. Weights are still good but you need to squeeze at least one hard armwrestling workout during the week. No I am not going to Baton Rouge.
I stopped arm wrestling over a year ago and am just
getting back to training due to a very shocking incident where I broke a colleagues arm.
This made me very uneasy and stopped training. My question is, has this ever happened to
you and is it common in competitions in the states. The surgeon told us that this was a
freak accident? What's your opinion? Keep at it, you are the Boss!
I personally have yet to be pulling against someone that has
broken their arm while I was pulling with them. The reason maybe the people I pull against
are veteran armwrestlers, that have been in the sport many years, and if their not.
I’m normally very cautious to keep them from positioning their arm and bodies in a
position where they could hurt themselves. Breaks are not common once you have conditioned
your body for armwrestling. I believe the danger exists when you have a stronger then
average person beginning in the sport with their weight lifting muscles being much
stronger than the bone. I have been around maybe half a dozen breaks in the 20 or so years
I have been in the sport. I have been hesitant at times because of this exposure, but then
I ask myself what in life doesn’t come with some sort of risk? For me the excitement
of competition far outweighs the very small recoverable risk involved. This is from
someone that has been on the receiving end. I healed. So will your friend probably
stronger than he was before the break. You didn’t break his arm. He did it to himself
you just happened to be the one gripped up with him at the time. Hope you can get over it. John I live in Utah between Sandy and W. Jordan and I was wondering if you are ever going to do and armwrestling demonstrations in Utah because my friends and me would love to attend. Also I broke my right wrist at wrestling practice last year and have been trying to regain my grip strength and forearm strength that I use to have I use to pull quite often but the last good match I had my wrist hurt forever any suggestions? I can close the #1 gripper about 15 times and I turned 17 this last July. I don’t currently have any demonstrations scheduled. But would be glad to if there is interest. I have done some small clinics in the past for local kids, boy scouts, etc, which have turned out well, and were a lot of fun. Let me know where and when and I’m sure we can get together. Or if you would like, you and your friends can attend one of our practices. We normally pull on Wednesday night. Let me know my number is listed in the phone book in Sandy. I do hand grippers, but I am not sure it helps with my armwrestling. But it can’t hurt. The hand and wrist strength for armwrestling comes from a lot of hard fought top rolling matches. Keep pulling the wrist strength will come.From Steve I am an avid kick boxer and good all round sportsman, I am 26ears of age and in very
good shape, my upper body and arms especially. The other day however I was beaten by
overweight thirty something, am I a complete failure in the realms of your sport or is
there a chance even for a beginner, in what I thought was an easy sport. Yours most
admiringly and with all respect. Overweight thirty something? Hey that's me! Andrew It doesn’t matter
how fast or how strong your upper body is or what kind of natural strength, or potential
you think you might have. Armwrestling takes years to develop. Don’t be discouraged
especially if you were pulling against someone who has been pulling for a while. You
won’t begin to know what you're capable of without at least a minimum dedication of a
couple of years. And it's not about learning the trick its about conditioning your arm to
do some pretty unnatural things. If you posses the quick twitch muscle fibers and enjoy
the strength and speed combination armwrestling might be something you will enjoy, its an
easy sport that anyone can do but to become more than the occasional bar room armwrestler
it takes time to develop. John have you heard of Harold "Viper" Owens? If you haven't, you better ask someone. He's going to force you and many others into early retirement. For Harold is an armwrestler whom you and the rest of the world shouldn't underestimate. You should be seeing Harold shortly for he was invited to go with you and the USA team to Japan. I wish you and the team the best! No, I’m sorry the name Harold Owens does not ring a bell for me. Who should I ask about him? Your probably right about retirement, it wouldn’t take a whole lot to push me there. I can assure you I would never underestimate anyone with the nickname, Viper. I look forward to meeting him in Japan. And thanks for the warning.From John From Caroline John, have you heard of the competition of arm grappling? No, I’m sorry Caroline I am not familiar with the term arm grappling. From Rick I just want to start by saying thanks for
taking the time to respond to all these questions, and I'm sorry for all the guys who
write in and challenge you, and should pay you the respect you have earned in this sport!!
Anyhow, I am trying to hook from the start, and it seems my hand gets taken away from me.
Is this because my fingers are not strong enough? How do you stop a guy from pulling you
out of a hook? My move is like Jerry Cadorrete's, I think you are familiar with his move.
Thanks John, and good luck in whatever you do!! Thanks Jim. It has
been fun, and I even enjoy the occasional intimidation talk. It makes competing that much
more exciting. Although I find it's normally someone else besides the armwrestler stirring
the pot. You are a shoulder roller? It's very difficult to maintain hand and wrist when
you are pushing. It doesn’t seem to bother Jerry, in fact I think he prefers his
wrist back with the triceps move. The shoulder roll move is the one move I very seldom
practice nor am very good at because of this phenomenon. It's nice to have to finish
someone at the end of a long hard pull, but I have always thought there were better
choices at the start. Yes, it will take a lot of extra hand strength to maintain your
hand. The hand and wrist is much more difficult to maintain then pulling outside in front
of your arm. I will always pull back when some one is pushing. It's automatic. The people
that are successful at this move are normally strong enough to push on their opponent's
wrist to force a quick pin before they can try and roll. With speed and surprise this move
works. But if it's all you do, most will successfully defend by dragging or rolling back.
Keep working on some straight away styles. I think you will eventually find you can pull
better and stronger dragging than you can pushing.
From Rick Ellis Hey John, Happy Holidays from my family to yours as Christmas is fast approaching. I have a question for you that you might find interesting. What do you think of the armwrestlers of the world joining up with the WWF and WCW? I mean you have Big Scott Norton who was a champion {I think}, Terry Bradshaw was a good puller from what I heard and then you have guys like Gary Goodridge fighting in NHB fights, do you think that might in actual fact bring down the reputation of your sport you love? I am interested to hearing your response. Yes lately I’ve wanted to join these organizations and kick some butt, but I can’t get any other armwrestlers to follow. Just kidding! Armwrestlers joining wrestling and fighting organizations? As participants? I’ll pass on that one. I’m assuming you mean armwrestling as a whole being promoted by the promoters of these organizations? They would have to decide to do that. It's not up to the armwrestlers to say, "hey I want to be a part of your show". I would be in favor of anyone, especially a highly recognized and established organization promoting the sport of armwrestling. No, I don’t think it would hurt the sport. Why would it? Any thing that would increase awareness and participation would be favorable. From Jeff Marin From Mike G. John, how important is diet and supplementation (creatine & protein powder). Do you do any cardio work? Until about three years ago I spent most of my life armwrestling and eating pizza and cookies. I did all right with a terrible diet and little to no supplements other than the occasional vitamin. As I have gotten older and slower, and with the competition getting better and better, I have experimented with a few supplements that you can find at your local GNC. I have loaded on protein and many other Amino acids. Do they work? It's very difficult for me to tell. There are so many other factors to factor in during the long term. I can honestly say as far as the short term goes the only thing that I can honestly tell a difference taking would be the creatine. Then again with all the weight I gain using it I should see how I feel at 198 without creatine and then at 220 without it. I may just be feeling stronger because of the added weight this product will put on you. No, I do not do any card work outs for armwrestling. But it can’t hurt, and I wish I wasn’t too lazy to get out and do some running. I know it would make me feel a whole lot better. From Carola From Erin My name is Erin and I am from Utah. I was
wondering have you been to any tournaments in Utah lately? Particularly ones in northern
Utah. My coach talks about you all the time. And I thought at the last tournament I heard
him mention your name or it could have been someone else. Thanks for your time, Erin
No, Erin it's been a long time
since I have pulled in a small local tournament here in Utah. In fact since I have lived
here which is about 16 years now I have participated in less than a handful of
tournaments. But when I first started back in the Chicago area I would pull almost every
week at some small tournament. There is no substitute for table experience. I never use to hurt my arms, but now almost every time I break-arms, I can't lift weights for about 2 weeks. The pain is between my biceps and fore arm, but also by my inner elbow and tri-cep muscles. I was just wondering why this never used to happen. I still remember the first time this happened, and the next day my arms were stuck in a slightly curled position, and my tendons always seem to crack and pop often since. It took a long time to heal the first time I hurt my arms, but now it takes less. And also, do you think reverse curls and hammer curls are good for building strength for armwrestling? What other weight training will build arm strength? Thanks! Sheldon I wish I could answer your question about what seems to be a tendon injury, or just soreness, but I don’t know much technically about them. I would suggest having a doctor look at it if it bothers you. Maybe he would recommend some rehab. I know from experience aggravated, inflamed tendons at times will just not go away without professional help. Maybe this soreness is getting worse because you are getting stronger and pulling harder? I do believe the stronger and more advanced you get, the more rest your body is going to require. Your efforts in working out may be just aggravating your injury? If it hurts to work out then have it looked at. As far as your question on hammer curls and reverse curls sure they can’t hurt, but there is much more then having a strong upper arm, in becoming a good armwrestler. Maybe you should think about pulling a little softer for a while. Until those tendons start coming around. From James Hey John, have you ever pulled a guy from Connecticut named Reggie Ward? Well him and Jerry Cadorette have a silent rivalry going. If you have, who won? Yes, I know Reggie we pulled last year in The Reno Sands tournament. And I am sure we have pulled back a few years ago a couple times at least just messing around. Good armwrestler and I am glad to hear there is some friendly competitiveness back east. It makes it a lot more fun. From Mike in Canada I was wondering if you have ever done any gripper training. Namely with the Iron Mind Grippers or similar type grippers. If so what is a typical routine consist of and what gripper can you close. Thanks for your time. I use the cheap store bought grippers on the way to work for about 150 to 200 reps depending how aggressive I am feeling. I will work hand out on a daily basis with this devise when I am getting in shape for tournament. No I don’t own any of those nearly impossible to close (for me). Iron grippers. Although I was trying to tackle a friend of mines number three for awhile, but never could get it closed all the way. From Ditchie in Maine Hi John, I've been armwrestling for 20 years and love the sport. I've entered quite a few meets and have gotten first place numerous times. I have my own stand up armwrestling table here at home to keep up on my pulling. I'm so glad that i have a way to be in touch with you because I consider you to be one of the best and I'm always looking to better myself and what better way to do that then to chat with the top dog himself. I'd like to know if you do a full extension arm curl or do you do table curls? Thanks John and you'll be hearing from me again. Hey Ditchie thanks for the compliment….Biceps? Don’t work them very hard, but when I do I will normally try to do first set of 10 to 12 in a full range motion. Then occasionally I will add a second set bouncing it half way. This is always done on a machine. Not free-weights. Two sets would be max I would ever do with palm facing up. I will do curls reverse and hammer style on the same machine, still only one set. Tim From Iowa
From Leoni
From Marvin Are armed wrestling dudes usually jacked??---How much can an average one bench? What muscle bestly affects your prominence on the arm wrestling-table?? --the forearm??tricep??--which is it? My friend is 100 pounds less than me, can bench half of what I bench, and just a little pip-squeak son-of-a-bitch but he woops me in arm-wrestling and I am just memorized every time he defeats me please write back. Usually jacked? Do you mean are they excited before the match, high on adrenaline? Yes, I would definitely say Yes. Or do you mean are they easily excitable with quick twitch reflexes with the ability to lock up and fire hard in a high-strung moments notice. Yes, I would say yes most are that also. As far as how much the average armwrestler could bench…the range would be huge any where from hardly anything to testing world records. I don’t think there is a direct link to how much one can bench to how strong they are on the table….Where bench pressing and many other lifts are testing the muscles ability to move a mass through a set range positively. Armwrestling requires the ability to statically lock out a tremendous amount of weight in an unnatural direction. What muscles are important? Forearms, hand, triceps, biceps, lats, deltoids…. yes yes yes and yes. They all are important, and they all have to work together. If one of these areas is hurt or weak the others won’t matter. From Jon My question is: I've heard that technique; as well as arm strength can be the biggest factor at winning an armwrestling match. In your opinion, on a percentage basis, which do you consider more important? Strength is required to execute technique. Once you have both then the question becomes which technique is appropriate for the current match. All the knowledge and experience is worthless without the strength to execute. There are no secret tricks in the sport the trick is finding out your opponents weakness and attacking that area. But to answer your question I would rather have great strength in all directions then I could use the technique that felt the easiest. I was arm wresting someone twice my weight (I'm 135 pounds, he was 270 pounds). He tried over and over to put me down but couldn't, and I couldn't get over on him either. When I finished, my forearm was cramping really bad and I noticed my ring finger was folded down (from the knuckle) and I couldn't move it. I grabbed it and moved it and rubbed the severe cramp out of my forearm. Now it cramps up very easily after just a little arm wrestling. Is there a work around for this or is my arm wrestling fun days essentially over? Do you think I should see a doctor? It only hurts when I wrestle. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks. I have had that happen before…and no I don’t think your armwrestling days are over it sounds like you have strained a muscle or tendon in the forearm that controls that finger. Yes maybe you should have the doctor look at it. He may be able to recommend some rehab on it too quicken the healing process. You might want to try stretching it more often to workout the cramping. What
tournament are you going to attend next? Also are you going to be In Tahoe in
May?
Do
you have any tips for using the strap? Thanks.
I pull the way I do in the straps because of one individual….his name
is Dave Patton. Even though at times he would avoid getting into the straps in
my opinion he was the master at using them. His style of pulling was so
effective in the straps that it has become the only way I will attempt to pull
in them. This same style is also the style that makes Jason Vale so effective in
them. I am sure there are other techniques that could be used with practice but
with the limited time that I personally spend practicing with them I use this
same posting style top roll. And to
be honest this style of pulling has never been one of my stronger areas. I very
seldom try pulling this way out of the straps ….but in the straps it has never
failed me. This style is best set up with the strap loop as low on the wrist as
possible and with the palm as far through the strap as you can get it, knuckles
high and pull back with biceps, hammer curl style. Not with the back and lats,
dragging style. This will keep pressure or the leverage point on the lowest
point on the wrist and keep the strap loop from rising high on the hand. Then
once the pressure is low and the hand and wrist is protected by staying high
superior side pressure is required for the win. Jason from Canada John. I was pulling against someone in a tournament and
he lifted all his fingers and put them over his thumb during the countdown. Is
this legal? Also, is it legal to do such things during the pull as demonstrated
in Over The Top? Finally, I plan to compete in the Texas State Championship this
year. I haven't competed in several years and when I did they were small, local
tournaments. I am a little nervous (well, really a lot) because I arm-wrestled
someone before and people were telling me to watch out, that he'd try to break
my arm. Though he was about 50 pounds bigger, I managed to slam him before he
had a chance. Anyway, have you ever heard of an arm wrestling technique that
people try to do just to cause damage? Thanks!
Final
page in the John Brzenk series. Thanks for your years of taking questions
John. The sport owes you so much! |
|
|
ARMWRESTLING.COM- Dave Devoto (707) 537-7373 
incorporated in any information retrieval system without written permission of the Publisher.
|
