It’s not often two icons team up to train their strength together.
In terms of accomplishments and influence on the sport of strongman, few athletes could compare to the exploits of Brian Shaw and Eddie Hall. Both are former World’s Strongest Man (WSM) champions, both plan to continue to plug away in various strength endeavors as competitors, and both seem to have no long-term desire to rack their circus dumbbells any time soon. A recent training collaboration between the pair might be a tacit acknowledgment they’re aware of their impact on strength sports overall.
On Nov. 13, 2022, Hall posted a video on his YouTube channel where he and Shaw ran through a challenging shoulder workout together. Hall traveled from his native United Kingdom to join Shaw for the session at the latter’s home gym in Fort Lupton, CO.
Here’s an overview of the shoulder workout Shaw and Hall tag-teamed together at Shaw’s home gym.
Seated Overhead Press
Shaw and Hall began their shoulder routine with a few sets of a seated overhead press. The athletes did not use traditional dumbbells, instead electing to utilize Rogue Thompson Fatbells — which resemble bowling balls with a handle in the hollowed-out center. The pair began with a weight of 53 pounds in each hand on the first set before gradually transitioning to a final set of 150 pounds per hand.
Given that Fatbells require the athlete to put their hands “inside” the weights, so to speak, some might consider them more challenging to train with. This sentiment appeared to apply to Hall after his first experience with the implements.
“Gotta say, never touched them [the Thompson Fatbells] before,” Hall said. “We did five sets, but I feel like we did ten sets. It’s that much harder to stabilize.”
Seated Machine Shoulder Press
Staying seated, Shaw and Hall next performed some sets on a seated machine shoulder press. The athletes began with just one 45-pound plate on each end of the machine and worked to a final set of 450 pounds for 10 reps (five 45-pound plates on each side).
Cable Rear Delt Flye/Single-Arm Dumbbell Lateral Raise Superset
Once they were finished with pressing movements and variations, Hall and Shaw closed their shoulder workout with demanding supersets, pairing a rear-facing shoulder flye in a cable crossover machine with single-arm dumbbell lateral raises. Once the two reached the final set, Shaw ensured he performed at least one more rep (13) than his friendly peer in Hall (12).
Having formally stepped away from strongman after a victory in the 2018 Britain’s Strongest Man (BSM), Hall will return to the sport at the 2022 Giants Live World Nation on Nov. 26, 2022. Hall will be the captain of Team UK, opposing Robert Oberst’s Team USA, in the contest that will take place in Liverpool, England.
Meanwhile, Shaw hasn’t outlined any upcoming competitive plans at the time of this writing. The legendary strongman appears to be focused on bolstering his own YouTube channel with noteworthy strongman content — along with other usual media appearances — first and foremost for now.
One thing does seem certain as Shaw and Hall once again go their separate ways — when these two have a strength meeting of the minds, a lot of weight will be flying around.
Featured image: Eddie Hall The Beast on YouTube
