How the World’s Strongest Man Build His Body

At 6ft 8in, more than 27st and with an arm span that earned him the nickname ‘The Albatross’, Tom Stoltman might seem built for such feats. But developing the strength and skill to win titles is back-breaking work.

The Stoltman brothers, who train together, try to condense their efforts into a five-day week, leaving the weekends free for downtime. In a typical week, Monday might be devoted to deadlifts and back accessories, Tuesday to overhead pressing movements and Thursday to leg exercises, with competitions, events, physio appointments and chiropractic work filling up the remaining time.

Refuelling is a job in itself: in the lead-up to competition, both Tom and Luke can put away 9,000-plus calories a day. Sometimes, that means eating the stuff you’d expect – steak, fish, 10-egg omelettes. At other times, particularly in the days before a big event, it’s simply about getting as much high- calorie, high-carb food into their bodies as possible, pizza included.

Three world-title-winning performances are not enough for Tom. ‘I want to win it, like, five times,’ he says. ‘I want to be the greatest World’s Strongest Man competitor of all time.’

Tom Stoltman’s Daily Diet

A typical day’s eating for Tom when preparing for a competition can involve:

Breakfast: Pancakes and bacon, followed by sweets and chocolate. ‘Often we’re just eating it for the sake of it,’ says Tom. ‘We just need as much easy carbs as we can to get in our body.’

Lunch: Two portions of burgers and chips. ‘My second meal is at about 11am. I usually go for a Five Guys, and then I have another one two hours later.’

Dinner: Pasta, pizza and cheesecake. ‘At night, it’ll be a pasta dish. And then, the last meal before bed will be a pizza and dessert. We’re burning a lot of calories. So it’s pretty extreme.’

Quick Fire Q&A

Desert island gym tool? Atlas stone.

Fantasy training partner? Arnold Schwarzenegger. 100%. He’s a legend.

Favourite post-event meal? Burger and chips.

Robert Hicks is the Executive Editor at Men’s Health UK. A Sport Science graduate and author of three fitness books published by Bloomsbury, Robert has written numerous articles on health, fitness and nutrition and created several documentaries, most notably Britain’s Steroid Epidemic and The Faces of Attempted Suicide. Robert has been working at Men’s Health UK for seven years.