Björnson equipped himself with some fancy new equipment.
In early 2023, Hafthor Björnsson revealed that he would be returning to both professional strongman and powerlifting. However, after making significant progress in training, the former 2018 World’s Strongest Man (WSM) champion tore his left pectoral muscle, temporarily derailing some of his planned competition timeline. As he works to regain strength, Björnsson recently revealed that he has been keeping busy in other ways.
On July 20, 2023, Björnsson posted a video to his YouTube channel where he explained how he used a new (total) $116,000 investment to expand his personal gym in Kópavogur, Iceland. The athlete has thought of seemingly every avenue, purchasing and displaying a variety of high-quality equipment focused on building leg, upper body and back strength.
Björnsson bought the unit next door to his gym’s primary facility, primarily to accommodate his new pieces of equipment for larger athletes. Here’s an overview of what they went through in the video:
Belt squat
Bjornson said his favorite purchase was his new belt squat machine. The machine allows the athlete to squat without a barbell and without additional stress on the muscles of the neck, shoulders and back. Athletes are locked into the machine wearing a belt from a seated position.
“This belt squat is probably the best investment I’ve ever made,” explained Björnsson. “Because I’ll be able to train my legs right away… I’ve been wanting this for years and I finally have one.”
Lying hamstring curl
The lying hamstring curl allows athletes to build muscle and strength in their hamstrings by curling with both legs or performing single-leg variations from a prone position. Björnsson’s new curl machine was twice the size of the traditional machine.
Standing calf raise and leg extension
Like most of his equipment, Björnsson’s calf raise machine can load more weight than standard machines, making it potentially ideal equipment for more robust, larger athletes. Meanwhile, the leg extension machine is a more traditional type and helps mold the quad muscles accordingly.
Flat chest press and incline chest press machines
Bjornson placed his flat chest press and incline chest press machines near the entrance to his new unit to accommodate athletes looking to refine their chest muscles. Both are currently standard options for working the chest as an alternative to the more traditional barbell bench press.
Combo Peck Fly-Reverse Fly, Cable Machine and Inverse Leg Curl
In his tour, Björnsson presented a dual-purpose upper body machine for performing chest flies and rear delt flies. He demonstrated an adjustable cable machine to isolate and contract upper body muscles from different angles. The inverted leg curl machine presents a change of pace but is an effective way to work on balance and functional strength from an unconventional position, similar to the bodyweight-only Nordic hamstring curl. The exercise can be more challenging for larger athletes, given how much body weight they must lift and the inversion curl machine allows for resistance to be added to aid the movement.
Björnsson appeared to be a big fan of the latter.
“This [the inverse curl] Too cool for the heavy guys,” Björnsson said. “It’s a killer for the hamstrings. The more weight you put on, the easier it gets. I think it’s made for bigger guys, because bigger guys have a harder time doing this particular movement.
Seal row, hip-quad machine, hack squat
To finish his tour, Björnsson introduced the Seal Row, a strict barbell row equipment with athletes performing variations. The difference is that athletes perform the row face up on a seal row bench, taking the legs and lower back out of the equation. The hip-quad machine effectively isolates the thigh muscles, and the hack squat demands more from the quads than the barbell squat due to the machine’s positioning, as well as upper body support that reduces lower back strain.
As of a July 2023 Instagram post, Björnsson is on the way to a full recovery from his pec injury. The athlete clarified that he is starting to regain “full range of motion” and is “feeling better” by the week. Perhaps, in due time when he is healthy, he will begin to use his new tools in earnest.
Featured Image: @thorbjornsson on Instagram
