Also, the documentary (Pulling John)is pretty good. I have watched it twice, it is on youtube and Netflix. Highly recommend it even for people who are not into arm wrestling. Just a very cool look at the niche sport and all the interesting personalities in it over the years. [/quote]
Pulling John is not on Netflix anymore, but it was on Amazon Prime. I watched it last night and really enjoyed the movie.
Mad respect for John Brzenk. I had never heard of him before starting this thread. To dominate any sport for that long is just incredible.
I’m definitely going to be investing some time reading up on technique and maybe watching a few videos. I want to at least be a decent arm wrestler. The only problem is that I don’t know of anyone with a proper table. We just lock up the off hands underneath the hands that are actually wrestling.
So it turns out that what I am calling “arm wrestling” is actually quite different than the actual sport, since we do not use the off-hand as an additional point of leverage.
I think the real solution here is to have my other buddy install a competition table in the dive bar he owns.
[quote]twojarslave wrote:
I think the real solution here is to have my other buddy install a competition table in the dive bar he owns.
[/quote]
Seriously though that would be awesome.
[quote]twojarslave wrote:
I think the real solution here is to have my other buddy install a competition table in the dive bar he owns.
[/quote]
Seriously though that would be awesome.[/quote]
Oh I’m going to mention it to him.
He’s already done riskier things. He used to drop a dump truck full of sand in his parking lot every summer and then put an above ground pool in and a beach volleyball net. He put a fence around it all, thus making it an extension of the bar itself somehow, and it was ALL GOOD for drinking in the pool. PLUS it gave women the pretense they needed to wear bikinis to the bar.
A win/win, if there ever was one.
The city put a stop to that a few years ago. Not sure if his insurance company ever got wind of it, but I don’t think they would have been thrilled about it either.
I wouldn’t put it past him to at least throw a one-time arm wrestling tournament or something like that. I think it would be a pretty big draw for the bar.
I will definitely be floating the idea next time I see him.
[quote]MattyG35 wrote:
Old man strength is funny thing. I remember in high school during New Years at our place, my dad dragged one my friends out with one arm and threw his ass outside.[/quote]
when do you get it? That’s what I want to know[/quote]
There’s no guarantee for old man strength. Just because a man turns a certain age doesn’t mean he’ll get it.
[quote]twojarslave wrote:
So I’ve been lifting weights for well over a year now and have built my strength up considerably. To my great dismay, I was unable to beat my buddy, who is a stout plumber that DOESN’T EVEN LIFT, in a right-handed arm wrestling match. It was very humbling. I did beat him lefty, though.
I’ve already turned my cap backwards and made a mean face. I squat, deadlift, press, and eat a lot of meat. Say my prayers and take my vitamins, all the good stuff.
What do I need to do to take my arm wrestling to the next level? How do I get good at this foolish display of machismo?[/quote]
I’d search local arm wrestling clubs in your area. As others have mentioned, there’s a lot of technique (more than the average person realizes). Then it’s just a matter of pulling, pulling, and then pulling some more to refine that technique and develop your own personal style that works best for you.
I look back at the first time I pulled against a talented guy and just smh at the rookie mistakes I made.
I think arm wrestling is a great way to settle pissing contests and every bar should have one.
[quote]MattyG35 wrote:
Old man strength is funny thing. I remember in high school during New Years at our place, my dad dragged one my friends out with one arm and threw his ass outside.[/quote]
when do you get it? That’s what I want to know[/quote]
There’s no guarantee for old man strength. Just because a man turns a certain age doesn’t mean he’ll get it.
For you, don’t hold your breath.[/quote]
I think it happens when you get angry enough at “kids these days” that you fly into a blind hulk style rage, but being old, once you achieve that rage it sticks like a sore knee so you’re stuck in hulk/beast mode, ergo, Ole Man Strenff.
Regarding the arm wrestling table in the bar, be sure to tell him to post something along the lines of “it’s your own fault if you get hurt, not liable, no suing allowed” or whatever information he needs to do to protect himself.
I had a similar thing happen to a guy I was sure I could beat. I think it ended up going on for a while and we called it a tie. I was a lot bigger than him but he was stronger for his bodyweight, doesn’t lift but does rock climbing which probably gives better advantage to arm wrestling than lifting weights. One thing interesting and kind of anoying about arm wrestling is even someone weaker than you can put up a good fight and make it last over a minute when you go in thinking it will be an quick win. Even though you end up winning just the fact they lasted so long makes you second guess how much longer you can last and if you might actually lose.
[quote]MattyG35 wrote:
Regarding the arm wrestling table in the bar, be sure to tell him to post something along the lines of “it’s your own fault if you get hurt, not liable, no suing allowed” or whatever information he needs to do to protect himself.[/quote]
Make no mistake. People can get their arm broken or bicep torn or both. I’ve seen it a few times (to others, knock wood) and it ain’t pretty.