Pierre Gasnier died on December 16, 1923.Gasnier was born in France and was one of the first most influential of the old time circus strongmen and performed for Barnum and Bailey Circus. Gasnier stood only 5’ 3 tall and weighed just 143.5lbs and was able to lift a dumbbell weighing 260 lbs over has head.
Oct. 7, 1989 - Marvin Eder received the Association of Oldetime Barbell & Strongmen Highest Achievement Award. Eder’s feats of strength include a 515-pound bench press, squatting 550-pounds for 10 deep reps, 12 one-arm chins and a 365-pound overhead press. At the 1951 Pan-American Games tryouts, he surpassed the world record in the press with 337 at a bodyweight of 192.
Here is my version of what I am calling the X-Cross knee wrap technique. I’m sure there are just about as many opinions on how to wrap a knee as there are people doing it. Hopefully this will lead you in the right direction if you are new to knee wrapping.
Steps
·Start with a tightly rolled wrap.
·Before commencing to wrap make sure the leg is extended, the knee is locked out and the toes are pointing upward slanted back toward the shin.
·Begin wrapping just below the knee cap.
·We recommend wrapping the leg from the inside, pulling the wrap over the top (front) of the leg. This is said to help your knees stay to the outside during the squat. I’m not convinced it makes that much difference but I’m sure it doesn’t hurt.
·Wrap from bottom to top while covering about half the previous wrap as you go up.
·Stretch the wrap and keep it tight with each rotation.
·Once the wrap has reached the lower thigh just above the knee, the next wrap should move downward crossing the knee cap from the inside leg.
·Wrap around the leg (at the bottom of the wrap below the knee) and move upward across the knee cap toward the lower thigh.
·Wrap around the leg for the last time (at the top of the knee) and tuck the end of the wrap under the previous wrap.
At this point, your leg should be wrapped from the upper shin to the lower thigh with the last of the wrap crossing your knee cap from both directions in an X pattern.
Do’s
Wrap the knee tightly. How tight is up to you. Obviously the looser the wrap is the less knee support you will experience.
When wrapping the “X” across the knee, make sure you wrap directly across the knee cap.
Don’ts
Do not use too much wrap below or above the knee joint. Most of the wrap should be utilized around the knee joint.
Don’t forget to wrap over at least half the previous wrap. (The wrap should always overlap.) There should be no skin showing under your wrap when you have finished the squat!
Don’t waste the wrap (pulling it through and) tying it at the conclusion. Excessive wrap should not be left dangling. It is most helpful when wrapped around your knee.
The knee joint is much more stable when wrapped properly. It is our opinion you should always wrap your knees when attempting to squat maximum weight.
The X-Cross is a simple and common knee wrapping technique. There are certainly more complex techniques but this is a good one to start with.
FSS will post more knee wrap techniques on the website in the near future. Let us know if you have questions. We will be more than happy to be of assistance if we can.
PS- When I started to write this article I found it very hard to verbalize this technique so we have also produced a video that will hopefully explain this article further. It is also posted on the video page of this website.
On October 4, 1947, Bob Peoples pulled the “mythical” 700-pound deadlift in
the Bob Hise Show, an official contest in Chattanooga’s YMCA. When the bar was weighed it was 699; nonetheless, this world record
in the 181 pound class outstripped the world record held by Carl
Pepke, by 32 pounds.
September 27, 1879 Adolph G. Pitz was born in Germany. Pitz did some remarkable feats of strength having performed a "One Arm Press" with 178 pounds and a "Two Arm Press" with 220 pounds at a body weight around 165 pounds.
Joseph Curtis Hise died September 26, 1972.
Hise is known as the father of American weightlifting. He is especially famous for creating the well known 20 rep breathing squats program.
Sanislaus Zbyszko died September 23, 1967. He was a strongman and professional wrestler popular in the United States during the 1920s. He was one of the most influential European grapplers of all-time, he was also among the sport’s great pioneer champions.
John Davis, of the United States, on September 13th, 1949 was the 2nd person to lift the Apollon Wheels. Davis was also a World Champion Weightlifter and was the first man to Clean and Jerk 400 pounds under official meet conditions.
September 8, 1900 George Lurich set a world record in “belly toss” of 443 pounds.
(The "belly toss" was done while laying flat on the ground, arching during the lift the way a wrestler bridges. This movement began with the back and leg arching maneuver to get the bar started.)
On September 6th, 1953 at a Strength and Health Picnic in YORK PA. Marvin Eder benched 480lbs in strict style, no arching or bouncing and just failed with 500lbs.
A few comments about the book STERIODS KILL by Tom Ciola.
This book gives a great historical view of the origin of Steroids. It describes the effect Steroids have had and are having on sports today. Ciola explains the psychological dilemma caused by steroids. He explains it is very hard to stop taking steroids after you achieve increased size and strength. He states many athletes don't understand when you stop taking steroids your body will start to loose size and strength. Also, your body becomes accustom to steroids and it takes more and more to get the job done as time goes on.
Ciola talks about the side effects and negative results of taking Steriods. He interviews many people about their experiences with this drug. The book encourages you to be the best you can be without the use of drugs. Cioli outlines drug free training alternatives.
I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about steroids or is thinking about using them.
Keith Payne
Bert Assirati, one of history’s greatest strength athletes and wrestlers died of cancer of the bladder on August 31, 1990. Bert did a straight arm pullover of 200 with ease. He could curl 200 pounds and squat for reps with 550 when a 400 pound squat was regarded as extraordinary. He also did a single-legged squat with 200 pounds.
Walter Podolak "The Golden Superman" was born on August 19, 1909. He was recognized as the strongest man in America in 1933. Posolak once held the world's amateur record for a deadlift of 654 pounds.
