The Starting Strength Interview Series

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PR Friday: Post weights lifted, gained, or eaten as well as pants ripped, girls lifted, and children tossed.

Some of you may remember me mentioning that Rip will be interviewing some interesting people to put on his Starting Strength website. There are two interviews uploaded — one with Shane Hamman, and another special edition with Eva Twardokens.

Shane at the 2004 Olympics

Shane at the 2004 Olympics


Shane and Eva are two-time Olympians — Shane competed in weightlifting in the 2000 and 2004 Olympics and Eva competed in downhill skiing in the winter Olympics in 1992 and 1994. Each interview focuses on the athlete’s particular sport, and Eva’s is quite useful since we are in the middle of the winter Olympics. Both interviews are conducted in a unique way that is not a monotonous, irritating question/answer session aimed at finding out how the interviewee “feels”. Take a gander and see how you like them.

I have never had the pleasure of meeting Shane, but Eva is a friend of mine, a sweetheart, a fiery competitor, and pretty damn strong. Nevertheless, she still succumbed to being pressed overhead…by me.


94 thoughts on “The Starting Strength Interview Series”

  4. PRs: Squat 365×1, bench 245×1. Missed 375 and 255 due to a lack of food, so I came home and ate an entire pizza, a chicken breast, and a quart of milk.

  10. Only PR this week was press at 135.

    However, last night I went to all you can eat wings with my boss and put away 40 wings and a pitcher of beer while he looked at me with confusion and sickness. I feel it”s safe to say there is a new level of superiority established at the office.

    Also, I think I might be late on this but has anyone seen the “Epic Beard Man bus fight” video? I didn”t want to post the link here but it would definitely be enjoyed by this crowd.

  11. Bodyweight still about 197. Bad couple of weeks traveling. I reset my squat and presses a bit, so I”m about a week or two away from PR territory there on those lifts. Deadlift I decided to gut out. My reward? A 10lb PR tonight.

    DL: 410 for a set of 5

  12. Thanks for the sweet comments, I am hoping to find a fabulous strong man to spend my life with, and he”ll have to be able to press me…at least. Cheers to all the great lifts I am seeing on this site. Ya”ll are amazing!

  14. BS 405x5x3
    DL 405x5x1

    busted shoulder hope to get back up next week.
    Yes, I do squat more than deadlift with proper form on squat, just have trouble with a couple of disc in my neck.

  17. first time posting. 3 weeks into the program
    5”10
    BW PR:180
    SQ:210
    DL:275
    PC:145

    had to reset both bp and pr, i have shitty shoulders. i”m in gary gibson territory “don”t ask me about my bench, ever”

  18. END OF WEEK ONE ON STARTING STRENGTH
    (recovering crossfitaholic)
    5”11 205lbs PR i gained 15 lbs in 8 days. wow.
    back squat 315 3×5 PR
    bench press 235 3×5 PR
    power clean 210 5×3 PR
    press 155 3×5 PR
    deadlift 400 1×5 PR
    GODDAMN IT FEELS GOOD TO TRAIN LIKE A MAN!

  19. @Jake- Yup, saw the vid. I used to live in the Bay Area so those kind of altercations are all too common, just not usually with a 67 year old man. You could tell from the beard that he was no joke.

  20. saul: 420x2x5 Squat
    165x3x5 Press
    67.5x3x5 Chin
    Injured my left wrist with a bad Clean tuesday, healed enough to try wrapping it and benching Thursday but only lasted one set…
    252.5x5x1 Bench

    becky:
    160x5x3 Squat

  21. Was asked by two girls to pose with a scantily clad girl last Monday for a magazine photo-shoot. They do like 70s big wannabes. Thankfully it was with a shirt on!

  24. A first PR for me – ripped my pants!! Getting amped about squatting this afternoon and did 2 air squats (yes I am a dork) and ripped my pants!!!

    AC – Don”t know if a shart in it of itself is a PR or not, but if he finished the set that is definitely a PR!

  25. Weight PRs (kg):
    Bench 120 3*5
    PC 102.5 3*5
    Press 72.5 3*5
    Bodyweight 111

    Moshpit PR:
    Saw Lamb of God in concert last night. I”ve put on about 15kgs since I was last at a metal concert. I felt like a cat amongst pigeons; it was glorious.

    Facial Hair Age Misconception PR:
    Some girl in a bar thought I was over 30. I”m 21!

    Rugby season winter break is almost over, can”t wait.

  26. Oh yeah, and I ripped a fucking massive hole in my jeans as I walked back from a lecture and slipped on some ice. Like from arse to knee. And then I had to walk the rest of the way home.

  28. Snatch P.R. 75kg

    I”m pretty stoked, the mysteries of the snatch have always been frightening and confusing to me!

    P.S. I am a little guy, this is a body weight snatch for me.

  29. I”m 190 @5”9 now..still rising daily. This has paved way for a PR 280 3×5 squat and really improved power clean. Didn”t press a girl overhead, but did lift one off me while lying down..she was suitably impressed. I also ate a small cow on thursday.

  31. @boner & Jake

    I just watched the beard man fight video again and realized the guy was wearing a shirt that said “I AM A MOTHER FUCKER”.

    Who would pick a fight with an old man wearing that shirt? It”s like fighting someone with a 70”s Big shirt.

  33. Squat: 275×5/3
    Bench: 240×5/3
    Deadift: 365×5
    Power clean: 155×3/5
    Press: 140×5/3

    All PR’’s. Reset on press worked. I ripped my shorts from binus to beltline while squatting.

    Speaking of belts, it”s breaking in quite nicely and fits like a glove. I”ve had it for about four weeks now and it kicks ass. Bestbelts.net.

  37. Great interviews!

    I don”t know if anyone else watched some of the bobsled last night but some of those guys are up over 250 and many for former football and sprinters. I was interested in their training so I searched and found a video of the US team training, link below. I thought some of you may find it interesting as they show them power cleaning, squating and doing RDLs from about 3:50 to 4:50 in the video.

    http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-videos/how-they-train–bobsleigh_265006g126692-Ys.html

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