Harri Peltomaa is a high level Finnish strongman and powerlifting athlete. He has achieved many things in both sports, for example the under 105kg Finnish Championship, competed in Strongman Champions League and placing 7. In 2013 he competed in the United Strongmen under 105kg World Championships and placed 3rd . In powerlifting he has WPC deadlift WC silver, and in GPA he has WC gold at under 110kg raw. He is a great deadlifter and an overall strong athlete with much improvement left in the tank! Let’s talk with him and learn something new.

So Harri you have many achievements. Do you remember which of these was especially hard for you and which ones do you value the most?

-The hardest competition for me was the United Strongmen under 105kg competition, it was a two day competition with 8 events. After the competition I was exhausted and in a lot of pain. The best overachievement was in GPA Worlds in the deadlift, when I wasn’t in my best condition but as my last attempt I made 342,5kg and that was the toughest 3-0 deadlift and I won my Latvian competitor by 2,5 kilos. I remember very well my Raw Power organizations finals in 2011, when my son was born on 18th of November and the competition was the next day. I was in the hospital the day before and my loved one approved that I lift the next day, making a personal record for the total at 805kg’s and won my weight class.

Extreme strength training at the competition level is tough on the body. How do you manage recovery?

-I do a stretching session two times a week and utilize a foam roller. I take a massage about once a month. My work is physically demanding, and moving around a lot is a way of recovering faster.

Which training exercises demand the most from your body, considering you do two sports?

-Strongman events are the hardest for the body and usually after a strongman day a take a few days of rest.

How do you program your training? How do you manage training and work?

-Mostly I train after work when I work the day and if work is in the evening I train before work. Usually strongman training is in the weekends. My training is pretty constant throughout the year, spring season focuses more on base strength. I strive to be in shape all the time, so that I can compete whenever with short notice. Now with strongman training my schedule is weekends for strongman, tuesdays pressing, mid of week squats and deadlifts. Basic movements and not a lot of assistance exercises. Combining strongman with powerlifting is not too difficult, a strongman needs to be a good squatter and deadlifter also. For me my chest is a problem at the moment from a slight injury and I can’t bench too often. When a powerlifting meet is approaching, I focus more on the squats and of course benching needs to be programmed in.

So bench training, is it only when you know you are preparing for a powerlifting meet?

-I don’t bench much if there is no powerlifting meet ahead. For pressing strength I do a lot of overhead pressing. I always try to keep things simple for keeping strongman and powerlifting together. Strongman events can be trained also while preparing for a powerlifting meet. But when the powerlifting meet is near, it is wise to do less strongman and focus on the technique of the big three lifts. For powerlifters I recommend the yoke walk, it is a great exercise for the core.

Do you have goals for the near term?

-For this year my goal is to make it to a big event in under 105kg class, also to do well in the open category in Finland’s Strongest Man, and for the deadlift I am going for 365kg.

Are these goals very motivating for you, a certain weight that you really want to achieve in the deadlift for example?

-At first my long term goal was 800 pounds in the deadlift, which comes to 362,5 kilos. I did that in the spring of 2013 at Finnish Nationals, but it was redlighted for hitching. Now 370kg at under 110kg is my long term goal. For me 400kg is propably not going to happen, but a 10-15 kilo improvement and being a top deadlifter in Finland is a reasonable goal.

You indeed are a gifted deadlifter. How is your deadlift training?

-I’ve always been good at deadlifting and training it is simpe. I follow my body for training, not going with a strict program. Reps are usually between three to five withdeficit deadlifts or in competition style, sometimes adding chains. For me speed is power so I try to maintain speed in every repetition. The deadlift is a simple measure of strength, so don’t try to complicate it too much!

Do you focus on a lot of volume or going for a hard set for a PR (personal record)?

-Usually I go up with sets of five and a single hard set as last set. Simple but works for me. I add speed and shorter sets in the training too, but most progress is made with the ascending set system. I try not to go to failure until competition.

What events are the hardest for you to master?

-I’ve always had problems with stones, and I’m still working on getting them working for me.

Describe a dream gym for you?

-I love a gym where it is possible to train all the strongman events and of course with a good setup for barbell training. A motivating training group is essential for progress also.

Would you recommend strongman training for the average gym lifter?

-Strongman training is very functional training and I warmly recommend it for everybody. Just start light enough and get feedback from exerienced lifters so you don’t make technical mistakes.

So if you would recommend a single event for a gymrat, what would that be?

-I think truck tire flipping is exellent. It is a whole body exercise and gets your heartrate up! You could add it to one training session and do three to five sets of 8 flips.

Thank you Harri and we all wish you success in your lifting!

Interview by Samppa Nyman, freely translated from Finnish.