Lifting stones is without doubt one of the greatest ways to test your strength. Whether you're a Strength Coach passing the skills on to others, a Strongman looking for a competitive edge or a serious fitness enthusiast just wondering what it's all about; you've come to the right place. This page will tell you what, why and how to do a little stone lifting.
Varieties
Firstly, let's take a look at the different types of stones commonly available. These vary enormously in size and weight, so there's an ideal starting point for everyone.
Dinnie Stones
The Dinnie Stones are perhaps the best-known example of Scotland's 'Clach cuid fir', or "Manhood Stones". Traditionally, a young man was welcomed into manhood when he was able to lift his clan's testing stone to waist height.
Bodybuilder Imlach Shearer.Although originally intended for a different purpose (they were used to assist the pointing of the bridge over the Dee at Potarch), they're now used as a test of strength for lifters the world over.
Comprising two stones weighing about 785lbs between them, each with a metal handle (through which was placed a rope, to do the pointing noted above), there have been a number of attempted lifts over the years. The successful ones are listed here.
Kviahellan (Husafell Stone)
The Husafell Stone (aka Africa stone) is a fairly flat, almost triangular stone weighing around 175kg (385lb) which has been used in Strongman events for a number of years.
Photo by Hjalti Arnason.This stone originally formed the basis of a challenge in Iceland's Husafell Valley (hence the name). The task was to lift and carry the Kviahellan approximately 50 meters around Sira Snorri Bjornsson's goat pen - quite a feat. Those who were able to achieve this are known simply as 'Fullsterker' (fully strong).
In the World's Strongest Man competitions the Husafell stone is lifted from a waist-high platform to chest height, and carried for distance. Once the stone is dropped, or in the case of the competitor moving outside their designated lane, the carry is terminated and the distance measured. During the years in which this event took place on African soil, the stone was known as the Africa stone (and shaped accordingly).
Atlas Stones
The Atlas Stones frequently seen in Strongman events are based on another variant of the Clach cuid fir' ("Manhood Stones") mentioned earlier, the McGlashen Stones.
Canadian strongman Hugo Girard.The modern variants are perfectly spherical (or as close to it as possible), and range in weight from 100kg to 160kg. In total there are 5 of these stones.
Basque Stones
Stone lifting is a popular form of herri kirol or rural sport in the Basque Country area. Although the sport includes several stone-lifting events, perhaps the most well-known is the 100kg zilindroa, or Basque Cylinder. Other stones range from 125 - 212.5kg in weight.
Cynthia Morrison ('Cindini') lifting Basque Cylinder.Found Stones - Typically on a Beach or Riverbed
If you're up for a challenge, head for the beach. Max explains the process well in the article Real Stone Lifting, but this snippet will give you an idea :
When you lift real stones, each lift is a battle. You and mother nature and nothing else. There are no handles on a real stone, and there is nothing easy about lifting it off the ground. You'll know an ab workout when you zercher squat a stone.
Good stuff.
The Equipment
- plate-loading 'virtual stones', typically based around loading pins
- home-made stones, designed to accurately replicate what you'd be using in competition
- the 'genuine' stones used in competition
- accessories which aid the training and competition aspects of many of the above
Learning What to Do
The technique itself is relatively straightforward, though it will certainly take a bit of practice. For a detailed look at both the manufacture and use of your own home-made Atlas Stones, grab a copy of 'Napalm' Jedd Johnson / Steve Slater's superb 'How to Make Atlas Stones' DVD. The perfect way to learn.
You can grab a copy right here :
Love it.
Further Reading
Want more? No problem. There's a wealth of stone-lifting information on this site, the forums and a whole lot more. Here are a few of my favourites.
- Thomas Topham : The First Modern Strongman : Fascinating guy. And strong.
- Blast from the Past : Stone Training : How do you...like this.
- Debut of the Stonebell : Finally, a rather unusual combination - the Stonebell. Take a look.
NB : with any of the stone training articles on Straight to the Bar, just click the tag 'stone lifting' to see a constantly-updated list of the many aspects of it we talk about on here. Enjoy.
Final Thought on Stone Lifting
As I said in the beginning, lifting stones is without doubt one of the greatest ways to test your strength. The perfect combination of physical strength, planning, tenacity and much, much more.
Love it.
