#266 Strength Travels with Jón Valgeir Williams

After 3 weeks of back to back guests Peter & James catch up, discuss recent thoughts & conversations & what they’re working on at the moment. The conversation shifts to Longevity & a quiz James has been working on. They discuss areas of life that can have a big impact but are often overlooked or undervalued & how looking to the future can inform your current decisions. As Peter often says “What does it look like in years?”

We are joined for a record breaking 12th visit by the fountain of knowledge AND seemingly discoverer of the fountain of youth, Dan John, all the way from Murray, Utah, USA. We discuss Dan’s recent travels to Australia, his latest book - The Art of Coaching & the concept of ‘Game-changers’ in coaching & life. What is a coach? What are some simple ‘coaching truths’ that Dan has uncovered after over 40 years of experience. How, as a coach (and athlete/client) do you stay focussed & avoid all the noise & distraction that threatens to derail progress. As usual, Dan makes the complex simple (and enjoyable) & we have a lot of fun in this insightful conversation - enjoy.

We are joined by a big friendly giant - Icelander turned Londoner, Jón Valgeir Williams. Jon is the founder of ‘Valgeir Strength Trips’, a Personal Trainer & Strongman Coach based in London & the father to a very strong 18 year old son - Erik. Jon was a competitor at the Worlds Strongest Man competition in 2002 & 2003 & was also the mentee & training partner of 4 x WSM & former Health Oddity guest Magnus Ver Magnusson. We discuss training, competing, travelling, stone lifting & what a lifetime of being incredibly strong (& the injuries that come with that) has taught Jon about training the general population & being ‘strong for life’.

We are joined by pound for pound probably the strongest stone lifter on the planet. Andy Crawford lives in far North East Scotland & is making waves around the globe from his home garage gym. We learn about Andy’s athletic background, including running a near 5 min mile, 18 min 5km & throwing before getting into barbell training, going ‘all in’ on stone & sandbag lifting & niching down even further into the art of lifting VERY heavy stones to shoulder & even having a ‘Limbo’ off with Luke Stoltman! For fans of 80s/90s movies, we also discuss the Jean-Claude Van Damme classic A.W.O.L - and yes, there is context behind that as well.

After 5 weeks of fantastic guests & the summer break Pete & James reconvene to discuss what they’ve taken from recent guest conversations & events such as The Donald Dinnie Day & Chloe Brennan workshop at Unique Results. They also discuss the upcoming Walking Solves retreat, Britains Disabled Strongman & Strongwoman Competition & how to mentally deal with niggling injuries that get in the way of training & your usual routine.

We are joined from Barton Under Needwood, Staffordshire by Steve Gardner to discuss his 50 years in the Iron Game & Strength Sports. We met Steve when he was M.C at the recent Donald Dinnie Day in Scotland & spent a couple of evenings with him where we started to hear about his experiences over the last 50 years. In this podcast we discuss Weightlifting, Strongman, Highland Games, Tug of War, Arm Wrestling, training with Geoff Capes, coaching & how Steve’s life has been shaped & directed by physical culture & a love of lifting. (& YES, that is a picture of Steve with the great Jón Páll Sigmarsson in 1985 - before beating him in the World Lorry Pull Championships!)

We are joined from Aberdeenshire, Scotland by Jeanette (61) & Roger (65) Dunridge. A couple who are defying the stereotypes of ageing by leading an incredible active lifestyle & still challenging themselves through high level competition. Janette is a competitive Natural Bodybuilder & Roger is an extreme endurance runner (& they both walk their dogs twice every day in the rugged Scottish landscape as well) Hear about their back story & their simple tips for staying fit & healthy as you age - & maybe be inspired to try something new or set yourself a challenging goal!

We are rejoined by David Amerland (last with us on Episode 243) for a wide reaching conversation including what is required to live to 100 (according to the most recent science), Building our mental resilience, coping with everyday stress & a simple way to gain control of our day from the moment we wake.

We are delighted to be re-joined on our 5th Birthday episode by recent popular guest, UK NHS GP of 25 years - Dr Nancy Allen. Dr Nancy answers listener (& host) questions on all things health related including; cholesterol, statins, training with Kidney Failure, the importance of tracking & personal responsibility & what to look for when getting a blood test done privately. We also learn how the NHS quantifies patient risk & how you can track & reduce your own risk factors for developing cardiovascular disease. An interesting, informative & relaxed conversation with Health Oddity’s resident medical expert.

We are joined from Woodbridge, Suffolk by Andrea Thompson; 2018 Worlds Strongest Woman, 2023 Worlds Strongest Masters & 4 x Britains Strongest Woman (2016-2019). Andrea is also one of the stars of the documentary ‘A Strong Woman - The truth behind the world’s strongest women’ alongside former Health Oddity guests Lucy Underdown & Chloe Brennan. We discuss Andrea’s life, training, being one of the pioneers of UK Strongwoman & finding one’s true identity through personal struggle both mentally & physically.