I’m not really sure how you could have made it this far and not heard of Ed Coan, but I like how Joe Koenig introduces to you him:

When you go to the gym tomorrow, I want you to head to the squat rack and load it up with twenty 45 pound plates. That’s right, put ten on each side. Now just stand back and look at it and try not to pee your pants. Guess what? Ed Coan has squatted about 50 pounds more than that. Over the next week, see how much you can squat for a single rep. Then do the same with the bench press and deadlift. Add those numbers up. If you can squat 500, deadlift 450, and bench 300, well, you’re only at about the halfway point to equaling Ed Coan’s total. Scary, huh?

Coan has been touted as the “Michael Jordan of powerlifting” because he has set over 100 world records, has won 12 senior national championships, and 12 world championships. He is one of the strongest lifters in history with a PR total of 2,463 lbs while weighing 218. To put this in perspective, Bill Kazmaier’s best total was 2,425 (although it is very important to note that Kaz was in a different era and didn’t wear any gear whatsoever and moved away from powerlifting to have a long and successful career in other strength sports). Coan moved on with the times to compete in single ply gear, but always deadlifts without a suit. His best competition lifts (he doesn’t max out in the gym) are a 1,038 squat, a 578 bench (long arms), and a 901 deadlift — all while weighing under 240 (he’s 5’6″).

Coan describes himself as a “regular guy who lifts a lot of weight”. He started powerlifting as a teenager after seeing Bill Kazmaier on TV. He started lifting in the 75kg/165lb class and moved up to the 110kg/242lb class by the end of his career because he wasn’t interested in cutting weight and wanted a challenge. He set records in five weight classes in his career — a phenomenal feat because he was amazing regardless of what class he lifted in.

Coan’s huge numbers and total instantly put him in the 70’s Big Hall of Fame, but when you consider the fact that he consistently got bigger (as a result of his increasing strength) throughout his career…well, I don’t know another way to demonstrate a 70’s Big mindset. So he’s crazy strong, has had wild success in every single weight class, and also has had a career that lastedover 25 years (in a sport that eats people up with injuries), and you have an easy HoF pick. His mantra shows through his numerous interviews: keep it simple, and don’t overtrain since it will limit success and make you injury prone. Even though his career lasted so long, Coan no longer lifts due to an injury he suffered while squatting in competition (avoid watching this video at all costs, it is frightening). While his records will fall with with the prevalence of geared lifting, his legendary achievements will live forever.

Here is a compilation of some of Coan’s lifts. Some highlights include squatting 950 for a double, benching 550 for a double, and doing a behind the neck seated press with 400 lbs. Oh, and it has a pretty sweet song:



Coan’s best deadlift:



Continue reading →