'The Strongest Man in History' Competitors Are Literally Trying to Lift a 2,000-Pound Car
Updated Aug. 7 2019, 3:45 p.m. ET
If you're not watching The Strongest Man in History, you should be. The History show features famed strongmen Brian Shaw, Eddie Hall, Robert Oberst, and Nick Best as they test legendary feats of strength. (Warning: Do not try anything they do at home!)
On the August 7 The Strongest Man in History, these strong stars will attempt to beat Monte Saldo's most famous feat of supporting a car with people inside. Is it even humanly possible? Here's what you need to know.
Monte Saldo was a bodybuilder who weighed just 144 pounds.
Monte Saldo was born in 1879 in London. According to History.com, his real name was Alfred Montague Woollaston, but he adopted the Italian-sounding stage name later on.
Monte had an early interest in strength and bodybuilding, and he was also interested in becoming a showman. As a teenager, he was an apprentice to German bodybuilder Eugen Shadow.
Unlike many of his contemporaries, Monte weighed in at just 144 pounds.
Monte's most impressive display of strength involved supporting a car with his body.
In 1903, Monte first performed his most famous stunt at the London Pavilion. The risky feat involved Monte holding up a platform while a car full of people drove over. Per History.com, the car and rig weighed about a ton.
Monte supported the weight of it, plus five passengers, with his shoulders and knees in what was called the "Tomb of Hercules" position.
The Strongest Man in History stars are going to attempt to recreate Monte Saldo's famous feat.
But that's not all! They're going to one-up Monte's legendary feat. As Nick put it, "He supported a car. We're going to lift a car." This involves Brian, Eddie, Robert, and Nick heading to Las Vegas and seeing what can they can do with a 2,075-pound car.
Just to reiterate, do not try this at home!
Obviously, Nick, Eddie, Robert, and Brian have to train hard...
These professionals log countless hours in the gym, and to train hard, they need proper fuel. According to History.com's "How to Eat Like a Strongman" breakdown, Nick eats 6,000 to 8,000 calories a day, Eddie eats 12,000, Robert eats 8,000, and Brian eats 8,000 to 10,000 calories a day.
So why do they do it?
If being one of the strongest men in the world was easy, everyone would do it! But as Eddie explained in an interview with History.com, "I think the motivation for me was to always be the best."
"I set the task to become the world's strongest man at 19 and I suppose it's that inner me not letting me let myself down, not letting my family down and not letting my kids down," he continued. "I think my main motivator was knowing that, when my kids grow up, they would be able to say that the house, the cars, everything is from my dad and it was from his hard work and becoming the world's strongest man."
Catch new episodes of The Strongest Man in History Wednesdays at 10 p.m. on History.
