The Strongest Bodybuilder in the World w/ Stan Efferding - 281
Release Date: 10/11/2017
Barbell Shrugged
In this episode of Barbell Shrugged, Doug Larson, Travis Mash (powerlifting world champion), and Dr. Michael Lane break down how to deadlift across the entire lifespan, from kids learning to hinge to lifters in their 40s, 50s, and beyond chasing strength without paying for it later. They start with youth training principles that actually work: keep it simple, keep it safe, and keep it fun. Kettlebell deadlifts and goblet squats win early because they naturally put kids in solid positions with minimal coaching, while the real focus is learning a neutral spine, good mechanics, and building a...
info_outlineBarbell Shrugged
Dr. Gabrielle Lyon returns to Barbell Shrugged with Doug Larson, Travis Mash, and Dr. Mike Lane to lay out a simple case: muscle is the missing centerpiece of modern health care. Our culture’s weight loss obsession has distracted us from the bigger problem, under-muscled, metabolically unhealthy people aging into frailty. Drawing from her training in nutritional sciences and geriatrics, Gabrielle explains why obesity is often a symptom of poor skeletal muscle health, and why longevity depends on preserving strength, power, and mobility, not just shrinking the scale. They break down “muscle...
info_outlineBarbell Shrugged
In this episode of Barbell Shrugged, Doug Larson is joined by longtime co-host Travis Mash and new co-host Dr. Mike Lane for a return visit from one of the show’s most popular guests, Dr. Tommy Wood. Tommy breaks down the core thesis of his new book, The Stimulated Mind (releasing March 24), which uses dementia prevention as the headline but is really about boosting cognition at every stage of life. The crew sets the tone early: brain health is not “old people stuff,” it’s performance, learning, and resilience, built daily through how you live and how you train. Tommy makes the case...
info_outlineBarbell Shrugged
In this episode of Barbell Shrugged, Doug Larson is joined by longtime co-host Travis Mash and new co-host Michael Lane as they welcome back John Rusin for his first appearance on the show in five years. The conversation opens with a candid transition moment for the podcast, acknowledging Anders Varner’s departure and setting the stage for a new chapter of Barbell Shrugged. From there, the crew dives straight into Rusin’s background in sports performance, physical therapy, and global coaching, including his work with elite athletes, Olympic committees, and thousands of coaches through his...
info_outlineBarbell Shrugged
In this episode of Barbell Shrugged, Doug Larson and Travis Mash officially welcome Dr. Mike Lane as the show’s new co-host. Mike shares his full origin story, from growing up a sports-loving kid in St. Louis, to discovering strength and conditioning in college, to earning his PhD and becoming a professor of exercise physiology. Along the way, he reflects on the mentors who shaped his thinking, including time spent around Westside Barbell, Olympic lifting culture, and elite academic labs that blended hard training with hard science. The conversation dives deep into the intersection of...
info_outlineBarbell Shrugged
In this episode, Dr. Karen Esser Professor and Chair of the Department of Physiology and Aging at the University of Florida joins the crew to break down one of the most overlooked performance variables in human physiology: circadian timing. After a career spent studying muscle adaptation, Dr. Esser shifted her research toward the molecular clocks inside our tissues, uncovering how every cell in the body keeps its own time. She explains how these clocks govern fuel storage, protein repair, metabolic readiness, and ultimately the way muscle responds to training. The team digs into what these...
info_outlineBarbell Shrugged
In this episode, Dr. Bill Campbell returns to the show to discuss a major pivot in his research from building muscle and optimizing fat loss to understanding menopause and its effects on women's body composition. After watching his wife struggle through a severe perimenopause transition that resisted every traditional fat loss strategy, Campbell uncovered a massive blind spot in the scientific literature: almost no research exists on fit, resistance trained women going through menopause. His public comments sparked hundreds of messages from women describing the same struggles including...
info_outlineBarbell Shrugged
Former Marine and general contractor Andrew Kavanaugh joins the crew to share the origin story of Black Root Recovery, a company he founded after watching too many of his fellow Marines struggle physically, mentally, and emotionally after returning home. What started as a personal quest to rebuild his health led to a 90-pound weight loss, the elimination of sleep apnea and nightmares, and a profound shift in cognitive clarity and emotional resilience. Andrew combined the modalities that changed his own life (grounding, infrared therapy, red-light therapy, and traditional sauna heat) into a...
info_outlineBarbell Shrugged
In this episode, the world’s #1 pickleball player, Ben Johns, joins Anders Varner, Doug Larson, Travis Mash, and Dr. Mike Lane to unpack what it really takes to stay at the top of one of the fastest-growing sports on the planet. Ben walks through the insane travel schedule, the perpetual in-season demands, and the growing physical toll of a sport played in deep athletic stances, high-velocity lateral movements, and multi-hour tournament days. For the past year, Ben has partnered with RAPID Health Optimization to build a data-driven system around sleep, recovery, hydration, nutrition, and...
info_outlineBarbell Shrugged
In this episode, the Barbell Shrugged crew explores how next-generation MRI muscle analysis is transforming the way high-performing athletes train, recover, and prevent injury. Dr. Doug Goldstein walks Anders Varner, Doug Larson, and Travis Mash through Doug Larson’s full Springbok Analytics scan a 3D “digital twin” of his musculoskeletal system that reveals muscle volume, asymmetries, and tissue quality with a level of precision traditional assessments can’t match. The team breaks down how this data gives coaches a clearer understanding of the body’s true strengths, weak links, and...
info_outlineWant to gain more muscle? Bodybuilders can show you the path. Want to gain strength? Powerlifters will show you the way. Want both? Talk to Stan Efferding.
IFBB Pro bodybuilder Stan Efferding holds the all-time raw world powerlifting records in the 275-pound-class and is often referred to as the "world's strongest bodybuilder". Best lifts include: 606 raw bench, 865 squat w/ wraps and an 837 deadlift. Truly impressive!!!
It's no accident that Stan is jacked, lean and incredibly strong. He's dialed in his training and nutrition with decades of consistent focus, intense study and a lot of trial and error.
In this episode Stan talks about:
- How training for hypertrophy is massively helpful for getting stronger
- How training heavy (1RMs) doesn’t always mean you’ll get grow larger muscles
- How he programs when focusing on staying healthy (lookin good and feelin good)
- How he utilizes movement to speed recovery
- Why he uses conditioning tools like 20 rep squats and 500 lb weighted carries
- Why he eats the same few simple foods almost every day to build maximum muscle
- How to make consistent progress without “overloading your system”
If you want be lean, muscular and very, very strong then sit back and learn from the master, "The Rhino", the strongest bodybuilding in the world; Stan Efferding.
Train smart,
Mike and Doug
► Subscribe to Barbell Shrugged's Channel Here- http://bit.ly/BarbellShruggedSubscribe
📲 🎧 Listen to the audio version on the Apple Podcast App or Stitcher for Android Here-
http://bit.ly/BarbellShruggedApple
http://bit.ly/BarbellShruggedStitcher
Barbell Shrugged helps people get better. Usually in the gym, but outside as well. In 2012 they posted their first podcast and have been putting out weekly free videos and podcasts ever since.
Along the way we've created successful online coaching programs including The Shrugged Strength Challenge, The Muscle Gain Challenge, FLIGHT, Barbell Shredded, and Barbell Bikini.
Find Barbell Shrugged here:
Website: http://www.BarbellShrugged.com
Facebook: http://facebook.com/barbellshruggedpodcast
Twitter: http://twitter.com/barbellshrugged
Instagram: http://instagram.com/barbellshruggedpodcast