What Are The Limits of Human Strength?
Human strength has always fascinated us. We're not talking about the regular kind—we're talking about the pulling trains with your teeth, lifting cars, and fighting bears kind. Throughout history, ordinary people and elite athletes alike have pushed themselves far beyond what should be possible. Here are 20 examples of people redefining what the "maximum" is.
Paula R. Lively from Zanesville on Wikimedia
1. Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson's Deadlift
Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson currently holds the world record for the most amount of weight any human has ever deadlifted. His massive 1,124-pound lift at a strongman competition this year broke his own previous record of 1,104.5 pounds, and made him the first person to ever deadlift over half a ton in a competition setting.
Paula R. Lively from Zanesville on Wikimedia
2. Angela Cavallo's Car Lift
In a show of hysterical strength, an ordinary woman, Angela Cavallo, reportedly lifted a car in 1982 to save her son. Hysterical strength is a real phenomenon where a person can get a short burst of "superhuman" strength from a fight-or-flight response.
3. Gregg Ernst's Backlift
Canadian strongman Gregg Ernst holds the world record for the most weight lifted. He backlifted a whopping 5,340 pounds of two cars on a platform in 1993.
4. Ashraf Mahrous Pulling a Train with His Teeth
An Egyptian wrestler and strongman set a Guinness World Record when he pulled a 279-ton train for 33 feet with his teeth this year. The same man dragged two ships weighing 1,150 tons together across the water.
5. Dean Karnazes's Long Run
Dean Karnazes became an ultrarunning legend when he ran 250 miles nonstop across California without sleep in 2005. He's known for extreme endurance, like running across deserts and to the South Pole.
6. Mami Kudo's 24-Hour Run
Mami Kudo set a world record for the greatest distance run in 24 hours by a woman at the 24-hour race in Taiwan in 2011, when she completed 158.6 miles. She also previously set the women's 48-hour road world record, covering almost 230 miles.
7. Ross Edgley's Yukon River Swim
Ross Edgley tested the limits of human strength, endurance, and sanity when he swam for 55 straight hours in 48 degreesFahrenheitt water. He swam a record-breaking non-stop 317 miles.
Nigel McGinley from Garlinge, UK on Wikimedia
8. Paul Anderson Backlift
Paul Anderson performed a legendary 6,270-pound backlift in 1957. It was listed in the 1985 Guinness Book of World Records as the most weight any human has ever lifted.
9. Žydrūnas Savickas's Log Lift
Žydrūnas Savickas holds the log lift world record with 502.6 pounds. A log lift is performed with a heavy, awkward log. He also holds the record for repetition log lifts, pressing a 485-pound log four times.
10. Andrea Thompson's Log Lift
Andrea Thompson set the women's log lift record at the 2022 World Log Lift Championships at 308 pounds. She also won the 2018 World's Strongest Woman competition and holds the women's deadlift record at 621 pounds.
11. Becca Swanson's Squat
Becca Swanson holds the record for the heaviest assisted squat by a woman, lifting 854.3 pounds. She's the first woman to squat over 800 pounds.
12. Diana Nyad's Swim from Cuba to Florida
Diana Nyad became the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida without a shark cage in 2013, at age 64. She completed the 110-mile journey in 53 hours.
13. Lydia Angyiou's Polar Bear Fight
In an act of hysterical strength, a woman in Quebec reportedly fought a polar bear to save her 7-year-old son and his friends. She wrestled with the bear until and hunter came and fired his gun to scare the bear away. She remarkably only suffered minor injuries and was awarded a medal of bravery from the Canadian government.
14. Julius Maddox's Raw Bench Press
Julius Maddox holds the world record for the raw bench press, meaning without any equipment. He lifted 782.6 pounds in 2021. He also broke previous records, including a 739.6 lift in 2019.
15. Serge Girard's Year of Running
A rreal-lifeForrest Gump, Serge Girard set the world record for the longest distance run in 365 days. He covered 16,777 miles, which is about 46 miles per day.
16. Christoph Strasser's 24-Hour Cycling Record
Christoph Strasser set a world record when he cycled 637.6 miles in 24 hours in 2021. That's an average speed of 26.57 miles per hour. He overcame rain and minor bike issues to achieve this feat.
17. Hannah and Haylee Smith's Tractor Rescue
In another instance of hysterical strength, two teen girls in Oregon rescued their father, who was pinned under a tractor, by lifting it. The tractor weighed 3,000 pounds.
George Chernilevsky on Wikimedia
18. Wim Hof's Ability To Withstand Cold
Wim Hof, "The Iceman," is famous for his uncanny ability to withstand extreme cold. Studies have shown that he can voluntarily influence his immune system and nervous system and has unusual control over his skin temperature. He has climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in shorts and has run a half-marathon in the Arctic in shorts.
Stefan Brending (2eight) on Wikimedia
19. Colonel John Stapp's G-Force Tolerance
US Air Force Colonel John Stapp shattered the belief that over 18 Gs of force was fatal when he endured 46.2 Gs of rapid deceleration on the "Sonic Wind" rocket sled. He withstood brutal injuries, but his work helped set the foundation for modern safety standards.
20. Jimmy Kolb's Bench Press
Jimmy Kolb set the record for the most weight ever lifted using a supportive bench shirt. He lifted an incredible 1,401 pounds in 2023. He also previously lifted 1,250 pounds and 1,320 pounds.
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20 Times People Tested The Limits Of Human Strength
