In early January 2023, the former 2017 World’s Strongest Man (WSM) champion Eddie Hall revealed that he will train in preparation for a venture into bodybuilding in the latter stages of the year 2024. In line with those ambitions for one of the most powerful of all. At the time, Hall was already taking steps to prepare for this new career.
On January 22, 2023, Hall posted a video on his YouTube channel where he trained his back with International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness (IFBB) Pro League bodybuilder Jamie “The Giant” Christian. Per NPC News Online, the bodybuilder is perhaps best known for his fourth-place finish at the 2020 British Grand Prix. At 6’5″, Christian is also the self-proclaimed tallest Men’s Open pro bodybuilder in the world.
This filmed session appears to be one of Hall’s first serious looks at moving away from his usual strong focus to create a more ripped and refined body suitable for a period of bodybuilding. . Hall and Christian wasted no time diving in, allowing this unique workout session to speak for itself as part of Hall’s upcoming transition into bodybuilding.
Lat Pulldown
With formal introductions out of the way, Hall and Christian begin the workout by tackling some wide-grip lat pulldowns. Here Hall notes the difference between Christian’s focus on movement. While Hall may have focused on the weight being pulled down, Christian emphasized maintaining tension on the lats. The pair will finish with a heavy drop set, starting with the entire weight stack and dropping two to three plates per set, to close out this part of the routine.
“You’ll feel your lats working more,” says Hall.
Seated Rows
In the following seated rows, Christian again emphasizes maintaining tension in the lats while working through a quality range of motion. The athlete explained to Hall that strength training is more about keeping the muscles contracting instead of relying on “momentum” while lifting the weight. In the final set, the experienced bodybuilder guides Hall through a rest-pause set — training to momentary muscular failure, resting for 20 seconds, and doing more reps to reach failure a second time.
“Momentum is allowing the muscle to relax,” clarified Christian. “So, try to get everyone’s momentum.”
Heavy on the Back
The duo closes the workout diving into chest-supported rows, single-arm machine rows, and a superset of lat pulldowns and seated rows. Overall, Hall and Christian performed nearly two high-rep working sets at high intensity while executing their final lat pulldown and seated row superset as a proper four-set progression.
To make a successful foray into bodybuilding, Hall will likely need all the sport-specific knowledge he can get. Picking the brains of an experienced professional like Christian is a quality start for the powerful legend to ensure that his bodybuilding journey develops the way he envisions.
Featured image: @eddiehallwsm on Instagram
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