I have asked the strength athletes and the powerlifters

[CardiMuscles]

And now the bodybuilders get to have their say

"Who's stronger? Off season bodybuilders or contest strongmen?"

This is a question that I have been asked on numerous occasions on All Experts and decided that instead of saying "I don't have that data to hand" I should try and find out the answer, so here goes then

* Fill two buckets of water up to the handles and then weigh them
* Weigh yourself and make a note of the proportion that the buckets weigh (for instance, if the buckets weigh 20lbs and you weigh 200lbs, then the proportion is 1/10th)
* Get a spotter and a timer
* Stand straight with both arms level with your shoulders (as if performing an Iron cross on the rings)
* Tell your spotters to place the buckets into your hands and to start timing
* Hold the buckets for as long as you can
* Note the time and then PM me or reply to this posting with the following information: Name / ID, Age, Weight, Proportion of bucket to weight, duration

I would also like to know if I should even bother to answer the question as I know that strength athletes have to be stronger than bodybuilders through sheer needs.

[deadprague]

Well it should be quite obvious, strongmen train for a variety of endurance and strength feats. Bodybuilders train for size, proportion and mass. Two completely different training styles, so a strongman will be stronger.