JOHN BRZENK Masterclass | How To Arm Wrestle from the Greatest Armwrestler of All Time | Part One

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Table of Contents
Part One
John Brzenk’s health
Disputing Travis
Table Time
The Set-Up
The Hit
Johnny Walker
Devon Larratt
Agree with Travis
Better Grip
The Strap
Cobra Rhodes
Brzenk’s Youth
Weight Training
Cupping Strength
Training Partners
The Punch
The Hand
Find the Weakness
Part Two (hosted on Travis Bagent Unfiltered)
• John Brzenk Masterclas...
Listen to body
Rest
Nervous Energy
Stone Cold Puller
Recovery
Elbow Pain
Injuries
Cardio
Diet
Russians
Family
Rules
Running Fouls
WAL
Levan
Dave Chaffee
Coaching
Ryan Bowen
RVJ
Denis Cyplenkov
Andrey Pushkar
Pads
Sit Down Armwrestling
Sharon Remez
• John Brzenk Masterclas...
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[@juap]

So the secret is to train A LOT

[@armtv]

teespring.com/just-armwrestle-a-lot?pid=46&cid=2743

[@unknownu5264]

Just armwrestle a lot.

[@bbqnarmwrestling]

@@armtv Hey Gary, where can I get the footage from Gators in Portland 2012 :) - Alan

[@LITMOVIESCENES]

Seems like hours of forearm workouts a day

[@bosesebi6685]

no, genetics.

[@jordanchamp6126]

I'm only 30 seconds in and I just want to say THANK YOU for attaching a mic to john and not the room

[@armtv]

Very important for me to have JB mic’d

[@bayareaarmwrestling6294]

Smart

[@ARMWRESTLINGNEWZ]

@@armtv Thank you.

[@kv6639]

YES agreed! Huge difference.

[@mindaugasdumbra1482]

Indeed

[@soda5730]

This video should be titled: '28 minutes of people asking John the same question, expecting a different answer and not getting it.'

[@kevinlifespositive8290]

They had different groups of people going around the room to listen to the different seminars. Different people asking the same questions. That's why he said "I'm not sure if I told your group"

[@jonconnor2965]

The definition of an insane person.

[@FakeAccount-xy6fu]

Thats insane!!

[@ceee9793]

Because they know John is lying. John really have a secret training and he doesn't want to share. Just a few advices.

[@Ultimate.Tennis]

John is so naturally gifted. He went from benching 200 pounds to benching 400 pounds in 8 months. That is crazy.

[@StrongerThanBigfoot]

And people claim he was natural lol

[@karuonline3294]

​@@StrongerThanBigfoot he was..until he hit 40 and a lot of roided monsters started coming into the sport cuz money was now substantial...then John got on TRT... that's all..no steroids..

[@ZaneGeeting]

​@karuonline3294 testosterone is a steroid. As a matter of fact, it is the most popular steroid in history by a wide margin.

[@llllKyonllll]

I think the most important remark made by John here is probably "It's a fight, it's not whose stronger". It explains his mindset and the reason he can't answer any of these questions in the way that people want. He was just training for fights by sparring and fighting because he loved to fight. And then he became an amazing fighter. End of story.

[@llllKyonllll]

Does John really strike you as that kind of guy? He’s retired and he loves the sport so so much. It seems like a highly unlikely explanation to me.

[@ljgarrison6910]

I agree

[@OoogaBoog]

@@moishele328 you are reading into something not there, and making assumptions with no evidence. classless and borderline delusional.

[@georgepoly4842]

@@llllKyonllllwell this comment has aged like milk lol

[@Uaintfirsturlast]

When you were born to do something you have the benefit of not trying to become something you just are it and that’s John

[@YT13293]

He seems like a really normal and well adjusted person. Not crazy or radical about the sport. A good example of humility mixed with strength and awareness. Good for the sport.

[@morpher728]

Crazy or radical about the sport? What lmao

[@r2dadizubz]

@@morpher728 Like Devon

[@DrumDisciple1]

John: Everybody's built different Me: John Brzenk says I'm built different

[@alden2826]

😂😂😂😂

[@empizzle8]

Had a great belly laugh from this comment🤣

[@robertlee4809]

"He called me a steed..I'm a steed!"🤣🥰

[@camilopardo995]

John Brzenk you are in the eyes of everyone the greatest of all time. And your humbleness, character and passion/contribution to the sport is and will be unparalleled to none. Simply the best

[@r2dadizubz]

Except Devon fans.

[@karuonline3294]

In your eyes and that of almost every pro arm wrestler for the last 20 yrs :)

[@brandonschlund8089]

His grip strength must be just insane to feel

[@OmarDelReal45]

Ok hearing his voice at this age is so refreshing. He sounds like a 20 year old. This means that he probably never took any steroids. You hear anyone else and you can tell the juice in their voice.

[@StrongerThanBigfoot]

He said his bench went from 200 to 400 in 8 months. Yes he was on juice

[@prashantsinghsisodia6709]

​@StrongerThanBigfoot he said that he took trt to prevent muscle loss. 8 months is a lot of time for a beginner to show great progress, and he has really great genetics also .

[@attieyag]

The humility of such a great champ… truly an inspiration.

[@florkiler6242]

dude john underplays his own lessons so so much for example the one about the hit and how it can be a double-edged sword he sad both that a lot of guys will put themselves in the bad position but he still doesn't realize how valuable that is for people to learn that from him

[@ReturnOfJackDawson]

What a genuine Legend love the guy!

[@wild-oliveprick9051]

God bless you John, GOAT of Arm-wrestling!

[@leezo2123]

such a humble guy and no question one of the greatest athaletes of all time

[@Fox8ball.]

No athlete in any field has dominated they're sport as much as John has AW. Imo the greatest sportsman of all time hands down

[@doptimist]

Kelly Slater. You can practice armwrestling as much as you like. The same can not be said for surfing.

[@1515ben1]

Ricky Carmichael has to be considered.

[@nzigga06]

Agree. Much more impressive that he done it mostly for the love of the sport and not because he was making big money

[@Oscar-cw9uy]

Alexander Karelin Russian greko roman wrestler, Michael Phelps Amerian swimmer

[@Fox8ball.]

@@Oscar-cw9uy no not even close

[@alfredhuff9933]

The absolute best to ever do it! Not to mention the last true gentleman of the sport. 🍻🍻

[@karlfbecker]

People need to learn to shut up. Ask a question and let John answer it. People constantly interrupting.

[@pallin2198]

Yup

[@dqreps]

Ya one in particular...

[@Fox8ball.]

Would you rather John was like listen to me I'm the man respect my authorotah or the John we actually get?

[@karlfbecker]

@@Fox8ball. I'd like John just to be John but I'd rather people shut the f**k up and let him speak.

[@pepe10296]

indeed, it's very annoying

[@mikelim108]

Gary, this is a real treat! Please tell john how awesome and how much appreciated this is. 💪🏼🤗

[@sethgilbertson2474]

I’m a 4th grade teacher and I got a few of my students into arm wrestling. They get after it almost everyday!

[@maalikserebryakov]

Uh just make sure their postures are correct otherwise they will break some arms

[@theosmets2582]

To learn armwrestling from John "The perfect Storm" Brzenk means learning from the undeniably best! And what a heart warming man that person is!

[@radicalstreet7029]

The dude has already dominated the sport for years and accomplished so much. He's at the age now where he just wants to chill and just enjoy the sport without fully dedicating himself to it like he once did.

[@denniskucan9796]

John we all know u r the all time best..u proved it year after year after.... many years..

[@brucetheirishhammeryates8119]

Really enjoyed listening to John here. Very simple and straightforward responses.

[@xfirefabio]

1:43 So happy, that i'm not the only one whose shoulder pop, and hand and wrist are making strange noises.

[@xfirefabio]

@@lowmax2033You're my brother in pain. I'm only almost 18 😅

[@maalikserebryakov]

@@xfirefabio my knee, shoulder and wrists began popping and whirling at age 13 thanks to bad boxing technique

[@jorzmak]

This video is Pure Gold, thanks to John, and ARMTV!!

[@christcooks0156]

I think armwrestling comes so naturally to john that there's no real way to break it down step by step like how it needs to be broken down and thought to normal pullers. John just simply isnt normal, he dosent need a strict training regimen or diet he literally only needed to pull.. it might seem useless to the average puller or even an experienced puller who is looking for valuable tips and tricks because for john he never really needed that. All john ever needed was the basics and that alone is what he used to take it to the top, hook, top roll, press, back pressure, cupping, proper set up, and a hell of a lot of table time. I see nothing wrong with the fact that his advice isnt super detailed and insightful for the average puller, infact I think it further proves just how different of a puller john is all around.

[@klooger28]

This probably doesn't translate correctly, but my experience is in getting good at video games; and I honestly think it's a really similar thing, some people just over complicate it by going to all these extreme methods to try and improve specific aspects of their abilities, but in my experience the best way to improve at something is to just keep doing that same thing over and over, and it's prettymuch that simple.

[@mikoriikonen7651]

@@klooger28 Yeah exactly, basic principles takes far not fancy tricks.

[@juap]

His secrets remains on extreme hard training, the genetics are just a help.

[@christcooks0156]

@@klooger28 exactly, and when it comes to prodigy's it can be translated in pretty much anything that normally requires a complex learning path. Weather its music, video games, sports, etc. A prodigy is simply that, prodigy. And I also believe lots of table time is the key to becoming a good armwrestler for anyone in the sport so his advice is still very meaningful even if its basic to most.

[@tyjones5019]

Well said. A once in a generation or lifetime prodigy can't always explain how they are that great. And that's part of the beauty and wonder of it to the rest of us.

[@teambroodling1901]

The Prof.John Brzenk Best Video Ive ever watched Thanks a lot from South Korea

[@dougw1650]

Knowledge bombs! Thanks SO much Gary, top quality content once again!

[@fireandgrace9456]

Definitely the best Arm Wrestling video I’ve ever seen and I’ve seen all of them

[@NSB25445]

I don't think that John quite grasps how incredibly great he is. Probably the best athlete in the history of sports.

[@producermind9030]

The tip about turning your body in the hook is invaluable. I was kind of strong arming it.. which never worked.

[@lukashensley8150]

THANK YOU for posting this

[@ptysiallo]

true legend and best armwrestler of all time!

[@michaelcuni6567]

THE GREATEST NO DISCUSSION END OF STORY THE ONE THE MAN

[@DARK24-7]

Mr.Brzenk seems like such a pleasant guy-the guys he arm wrestled probably thought that until he ripped their arms off!!!

[@beemrmem3]

You have to remember when John says all he did was armwrestle he had two huge advantages. 1. He started from a young age. 2. He has top 0.0001% genetics for armwrestling. He always had a thick and built hand and wrist and a thick bone structure.

[@soi68]

more zeros pal

[@epicnavigator]

All you mentioned is true and I add also the so called table IQ. He could understand to many things on the table from a very young age.

[@beemrmem3]

@@epicnavigator agreed, big factor in his success. I’ve seen pullers with great potential that it never clicks.

[@AllThingsFascinate]

He worked as a mechanic. That's a ton of hand training

[@elgenfranord1651]

You dont need to start young to be good i started late and im mad strong at the table

[@nicholasschroeder3678]

Amazing that such a badass sounds so normal and nice

[@ketz108932]

The GOAT

[@michaelpincavitch5245]

The g.o a t. 25 yrs of kicking ass !

[@Garouwan]

John “what the crap is happening” Brzenk Goat💪🏼

[@shootermcgee628]

FYI folks, it's one year later and the champ himself Devon is saying the exact same thing as John right now. Your best training is on the table. Get a partner or group and start there.

[@skyregar4582]

We missing you John

[@chiweenie96]

I love the training with 13 yr old, he says thats crap i got a great session outta it! Guess there no excuses!

[@dhedge9418]

I found a decent way to pronate , lat pool and cuff all at the same time, I have a empty spool that rope was on and tied rope to it with a 40 pound dumbbell tied to the end. Then the rope is hung off the back of a chair with a piece to kind of help it stay center.. Then I have knots on the rope and I'm telling you if you don't hit it perfect all the way thru you will not pull past those knots.. You have the dumbbells weight plus the weight of the gravity and pressure pulling against the chair .. Plus the empty spool is round and about 3 inch's wide.. It's rough and crazy difficult but I notice it helped with follow thru technique because like I said you can't explode past the knots unless you get the perfect hit and follow all the way through and surpass all the knots in one motion but if you don't pull past all the knots then you can't get to your finishing pinned position..

[@dhedge9418]

anyways it sounds silly but it's kinda crazy how much it feels like a super difficult struggling arm wrestling match .. especially when done correctly and trying to also roll all the way in and over to aim your knuckle down for the pen.. the way the rope is run right through the spoil it's like a wrist combating you not allowing you to over roll like that, because the rope is so tight coming down around the plastic edges of the spool.

[@HARDCORECLASSIC]

@@dhedge9418could you do a short video of your set up would love to see it ❤

[@johnnixon1026]

I could listen to him all day…

[@nss-diver]

When you are the GOAT and so humble

[@PaulLinn717]

This video is exceptional

[@MitraDaGalp]

You're number one, Gary!

[@ASB88]

How I wish Big John was still healthy and didn’t have that shoulder issue. Still think he would be one of the very best today just pulling a few hours a week. Truly the man was just blessed with natural strength and an incredible physical structure. He doesn’t/didn’t work out much at all and he has always been built like a Titan of a man. Huge head, broad shoulders, gigantic wrists and thick hands, super long and full muscle attachments. None of this can be acquired. Truth be told John Brzenk was born to arm wrestle and be the man we all idolise. And he did it with a humility, honour and internal love for the sport that is even rarer then his physical gifts. Hope John stays on the scene for the rest of his life. What a pleasure and honour just for him to share his advise and knowledge.

[@davemeyer505]

Brzenk. 'Nuff said.

[@jaircabrera4272]

Maestro joon brezen 💪

[@boxman_ninja0819]

30 mins of John saying "eh idk"

[@kingkoy54321]

I would like to know how does he felt about Pushkar's hand and wrist strength in 2014 and 2015. :)

[@Fox8ball.]

When John mentioned Andrei near the end he was overcome with sadness and clearly had to fight it for the purposes of the interview. That should tell you all you need to know 💪

[@danielvivas6493]

Love it👌💪

[@slimrockwrestlers7334]

Really enjoyed this

[@anastvezy1485]

Just remembere when he was enough strong to win against denis tsyplenkov,this guy at his prime was the strongest armwrestler in the ever

[@Oscar-cw9uy]

just remember that Denis wasn`t at his best and also he was still able to beat Brzenk 2 years later, Denis was probably strongest against Larat and we know what happened there and it`s silly in general to make this kind of comparisons you`ll need a time machine and those two to travel in time when they were supposedly strongest

[@anastvezy1485]

@@Oscar-cw9uy he won john only because they was playing in left hand

[@Oscar-cw9uy]

@@anastvezy1485 not sure what are you trying to say here.. Loss is a loss win is a win simple as that

[@anastvezy1485]

@@Oscar-cw9uy lol you kidding me? I not gonna talk with you any more

[@Alexander_Tronstad]

200lbs of progress in the bench in 8 months, and he just carries on like that is not insane. What an absolute genetic freak.

[@vitorarthuso7327]

Give me a Lot to think about love the game blessings John the legend amazing person ,,, thanks a lot

[@solodad001]

I should have gone to this event. Thank you for the video, Soren

[@MrSilus2000]

He basically shit on the whole fitness industry for trying to replace exercises with real world training.

[@colintoews7458]

I think his bones, tendons, and genetics are just superior to everyone for the sport of arm wrestling which is why he never had to hit the gym that much.

[@vladimirgertner3960]

Hitting the gym is overrated if you train on the table as much as others train in the gym. He did a specific movement with all the necessary muscles engaged all the time. He spent probably the most table hours in the world of all people. So yeah, if you can handle prolonged pulling sessions and keep at it almost every day, you will get good at the specific movements. It's not just genetics.

[@juap]

Nah, he train a lot.

[@rileyneufeld7001]

Early in his career he trained ALOT, just not with weights. You don't have to lift weights in order to be strong. Arm wrestling is the best workout you can get. But later on in his career he said he would only pull for 1-2 hours once or twice a week which seems like a good balance of elbow conditioning and hitting all the right muscle groups. I think had john used some gym training in between sessions for his Pronation, for his cupping, he could've been at an even higher level than we ever saw.

[@llllKyonllll]

@@rileyneufeld7001 And as an added advantage he became technically versatile and an extremely instinctive puller. He is often quoted saying he knows what to do the second he grabs someones hand and I think that this just leads to extremely effective application of strength.

[@rileyneufeld7001]

@@llllKyonllll 100% John doesn't have an "ace move" he could transition from hook to toproll and finish with a press, which hes done throughout his career. This is hard for his opponents because they don't know if he's going to attack their fingers, their pronation or their arm.

[@prodbyecho_]

0 dislikes. GOAT

[@armtv]

That’s when someone will sneak in just to break a record.

[@ogs1mpson609]

Great editing!!

[@elliottberry5317]

John Brzenk: G.O.A.T 👍👍

[@wd8557]

I am at work don't know why this popped up, however I got interested. Watched the movie about him. Amazed at his undefeated record that will never be touched. And on top of all that he is a well rounded man. He is a aircraft mechanic I am a refrigeration mechanic. I would love to have a beer with him. Thanks' for introducing me to the sport of arm wrestling, I have watched about 6 hours of this sport at work lol.

[@armtv]

awesome!! thanks for finding the channel. yes John Brzenk is an amazing ambassador for the sport! Please sub to the channel we have thousands of clips to share from through out the years.

[@GarcDi3]

I wish John decided to be a more consistent KZbinr especially now that armwrestling is blowing up more and more. Devon and Michael are doing so well with KZbin and John seems like he would too.

[@sdytrsabvdhur5816]

Can’t learn to swim without the water. Same goes with arm wrestling that’s his philosophy. His training is to arm wrestle that’s why he’s the greatest across all size.

[@jesseanzures2327]

Look at breznk now!!

[@DexterHaven]

At the end, when he listed strong pullers, he could have easily added Scott Norton, Gary Goodrich, Vovoeda, Travis, Bath, Hutchins.

[@johnbraucher1499]

But then that wouldn't have been HIS favorite pullers, that would be YOUR favorite pullers.

[@DexterHaven]

@@johnbraucher1499 How do you know they would not have been HIS favorites too, dummy? You obviously don't know what John has said about Scott Norton and their training history. So don't claim to know they "wouldn't have been his favorite pullers" too, when you have no basis for it. Plus, their arm fights against him obviously proved to him, and to everyone, they were among the strongest he's faced.

[@wayd19]

People don’t listen to John when he says he didn’t lift weights to get stronger. How many people are gonna ask him the same friggin question?

[@ljgarrison6910]

Yeah man

[@StrongerThanBigfoot]

He lifted weights. He lifted weights since like 12 years old. He says on pulling John and there’s photos of him and his weights. I also think the major key was was him Armwrestling at a young age developing the tendons for his sport. He also said his bench went from 200 to 400 in 8 months which also says he juiced

[@maalikserebryakov]

@@ljgarrison6910 “yEaH maN” Watch Brzenk’s recent videos explaining the reason he didn’t lift mucb is because he didn’t need to. He was destroying everyone and didn’t see the point in lifting. Then he said if someone like Levan came along dueing his Youth, he would definitey spend more time in the gym

[@eliantruth1244]

2021 shall be like u brzenk

[@drunkinmaster1]

legend

[@Ethernet480]

to me it looked like Brzenk was upping his game late 2005 through 2006. He probably weighed 20 lbs heavier than he did in previous years prior. He was effortlessly toying with some of the top guys

[@karuonline3294]

a motivated Brzenk is a nightmare for just abt anyone to handle ..too bad the sport didn't offer much money in the 90s..who knows where John would have been otherwise?

[@Kiyani-vlogs]

Love u john from Pakistan ... ur dangerous goat of arm wrestling... hats off

[@HeatherWinkler1331]

Love yal thanks god bless kings hell love this part of this always thanks

[@monkeyb1820]

It's a shame that this isn't a college sport, although I do remember that during 'greek week' (fraternity competition), one of the events was arm wrestling.

[@andizultan]

he's a legend

[@lysdexic9129]

awesome bloke

[@chrisfiske]

It’s crazy how he don’t even work out and still got that strong just from the table…

[@demetriuscooksey7147]

Just in case ya'll didn't understand, sports specific training works. If you want to be a good at something, you have to do it. People just didn't want to believe that answer.

[@armtv]

☝️

[@Trailtested]

Great vid! I had no idea he is basically table only

[@ayushsharma6437]

GOLD

[@ПростойМастер2022]

John Brzenk legend

[@pablofernandez6906]

Great!!

[@Gnathorn]

I want John Brzenk!!!!

[@We_are_the_light]

Incredible human

[@bayareaarmwrestling6294]

Pretty stoked to watch this!

[@michaelmartin7073]

It helps the most when you name is John Brzenk.

[@rsport2053]

Very nice!

[@armwrestlingfan6804]

I want the best for John

[@DrumDisciple1]

That’s definitely Lindley talking to John in the beginning

[@armtv]

🙌 yes

[@shiningforce2201]

G. O. A. T

[@MrTmel123]

"Its a fight. Its not about who's stronger" That should clear a lot of things up in the arm wrestling world. lol

[@DJTechnoboom]

wordddddd

[@64kdawg]

Hail the Goat 🐐 Brzenk 💪👍

[@natepolidoro4565]

GOAT

[@lemonjoy19]

Enormous hands. I dont think people realize that.

[@clash5j]

John was a big dude. I think people think he is small because so often the guy across from him was a giant

[@camilopardo995]

He still is a big athlete

[@kaganturktur]

Exactly his hands are too big

[@LyricTenor85]

Agreed.....frying pans

[@camilopardo995]

And that goes to show how strong and big John is in fact. All around solid where his hands do not seem to be huge but they're actually large in size. Legend. GOAT.

[@overthebar]

Around 15 minutes in where John is talking about being serious about lifting for 8 months and benching 400 is crazy, but the way he says it's just so funny :D He said he was benching 200 when he started, most people start at a plate, and he was not a big dude back then probably. That's some real good base strength he's got, that's why he thrives so late in his career