Strongman, as a professional sport, requires specialized equipment such as Atlas stones, logs, yokes, and heavy-duty barbells capable of withstanding loads exceeding 1,000 pounds. Conversely, Planet Fitness, one of the largest health club franchises in the United States, markets itself as a "Judgement Free Zone," prioritizing accessibility and affordability for casual gym-goers. This disparity in purpose created a unique environment for the two athletes, whose combined body weight exceeds 800 pounds and whose strength levels far surpass the mechanical limits of standard commercial gym machinery.
The Logistical Challenges of Elite Stature in Commercial Spaces
The session began with an immediate confrontation with the physical limitations of the facility. Brian Shaw, standing 6 feet 8 inches tall, and Eddie Hall, known for his immense shoulder width, found that the ergonomics of standard commercial equipment were not designed for individuals of their proportions. The primary issue identified was not merely the weight stacks, but the physical dimensions of the machines.
Most Planet Fitness locations eschew traditional squat racks and power cages in favor of Smith machines. This is a strategic choice by the franchise to minimize injury risk and reduce the intimidation factor for novice lifters. However, for athletes of Shaw and Hall’s caliber, the fixed plane of a Smith machine presents biomechanical hurdles. The duo noted that the width of their frames made it difficult to center themselves under the bar. During the squat portion of the workout, Shaw was forced to stabilize the machine by holding onto its frame, as the lateral forces generated by his movement threatened to shift the entire apparatus.
Despite these constraints, the pair proceeded to load the Smith machine with five 45-pound plates on each side. While this total—roughly 495 pounds—is a significant load for the average gym member, it represents a fraction of the maximum capacity for Shaw and Hall, both of whom have recorded back squats in excess of 700 to 800 pounds in professional settings.
Technical Breakdown of the Training Session
The workout followed a standard hypertrophy-focused leg day structure, adapted for the available equipment. Following the Smith machine squats, the athletes moved to the abdominal crunch machine. This particular exercise highlighted the disparity between the athletes’ power and the machine’s resistance. In professional strongman training, core stability is often built through heavy carries and static holds rather than isolation machines.
The transition to the leg press machine provided the most significant test of the facility’s equipment. Commercial leg presses are typically rated for specific weight capacities that do not account for the extreme loads required by world-class strength athletes. Hall and Shaw loaded the sled with six 45-pound plates per side, totaling 540 pounds, and added an additional plate on top of the sled for extra resistance. Observations from the session indicated that the athletes moved this weight with high velocity, suggesting that the mechanical tension provided was insufficient for a true "max-effort" stimulus but served as an effective metabolic tool.
The session continued with a circuit of isolation movements, including:
- Leg Extensions: Focusing on quadriceps isolation.
- Adductor and Abductor Machines: Used to target the stabilizer muscles of the inner and outer thighs.
- Seated Leg Curls: Targeting the posterior chain.
A recurring theme throughout the session was the "bottoming out" of weight stacks. Most machines at Planet Fitness feature weight stacks that cap out at 200 to 300 pounds. For Hall and Shaw, whose legs are accustomed to moving massive implements like the 1,000-pound "Leg Press" seen in the World’s Strongest Man competitions, these stacks were exhausted within the first few repetitions of each set.
The Competitive Finale: The 20-Station Circuit Race
To conclude the session, the two champions engaged in a high-intensity challenge within the gym’s designated circuit training room. This area is typically used for 30-minute express workouts, where members move between stations on a timed interval. Hall and Shaw adapted this by performing one repetition at the maximum available weight on all 20 stations in a timed race.
This challenge shifted the focus from pure strength to cardiovascular endurance and transition speed—areas where Hall has recently focused his training following his transition into boxing and his subsequent return to strength sports. The results were remarkably close:
- Eddie Hall: 1 minute, 15.09 seconds.
- Brian Shaw: 1 minute, 19.00 seconds.
Hall’s slight edge in the circuit reflects his recent emphasis on conditioning. Since losing significant body mass for his 2022 boxing match against Hafthor Björnsson, Hall has maintained a higher level of "work capacity" relative to his previous competitive weight of 440 pounds. Shaw, while maintaining his massive frame, showed comparable agility, demonstrating the athleticism required to remain at the top of the strongman circuit for over a decade.
Cultural Context: The "Lunk Alarm" and Gym Etiquette
A significant aspect of the video was the interaction between the athletes and the specific culture of Planet Fitness. The franchise is famous for its "Lunk Alarm," a siren intended to discourage "lunk-like" behavior, such as grunting, dropping weights, or wearing intimidating clothing. The presence of two of the most physically imposing men on the planet created an inherent tension with this policy.
While the athletes engaged in some lighthearted "pranking" by making exaggerated noises to test the gym’s response, the broader implication highlights a divide in the fitness industry. The "Judgement Free" philosophy is designed to protect beginners from feeling inadequate, but it often excludes the high-intensity training styles required for professional athletics. Shaw and Hall’s visit was, in many ways, a performance art piece that juxtaposed elite-level capability with a "safe space" fitness environment.
Professional Trajectories and Upcoming Competitions
The timing of this training session is significant for both athletes. Brian Shaw was in an off-season phase during the filming, focusing on maintaining his base while managing his various business ventures, including the Shaw Classic, which has quickly become one of the premier events in the sport.
Eddie Hall, however, was in the midst of preparing for a high-profile return to the competitive arena. After retiring from individual competition following his 2017 WSM victory, Hall accepted the role of captain for Team UK in the "World’s Strongest Nation" contest. This event, scheduled for November 26, 2022, at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool, England, was designed as a team-based showdown between the UK and the USA.
The captain for Team USA in that same competition was Martins Licis, the 2019 World’s Strongest Man champion. The rivalry between these nations and their respective captains added a layer of professional stakes to Hall’s training. His visit to Planet Fitness with Shaw—a pillar of the American strength community—represented a rare moment of camaraderie between two men who have spent their careers competing for the same titles.
Impact on the Fitness Industry and Public Perception
The video of Shaw and Hall’s Planet Fitness takeover has garnered millions of views, sparking discussions regarding the adequacy of commercial gyms for serious strength training. Industry analysts suggest that such content serves two purposes: it humanizes elite athletes by placing them in familiar, everyday settings, and it highlights the limitations of the "one size fits all" approach to gym design.
From a branding perspective, Planet Fitness likely benefited from the exposure. Despite the "Lunk Alarm" friction, the video demonstrated that the equipment is robust enough to handle even the world’s strongest men, provided they adapt their training style. For the strongman community, the video reinforced the "anywhere, anytime" mentality that many athletes had to adopt during the gym closures of the early 2020s.
Conclusion and Future Outlook
The sight of Brian Shaw and Eddie Hall navigating the purple and yellow aisles of a Planet Fitness remains one of the more surreal moments in recent strength sports media. It served as a reminder that while specialized equipment is necessary for peak performance, the fundamental principles of effort and adaptation remain universal.
As Shaw continues to build his legacy as an organizer and Hall re-enters the competitive fray, their collaborative content continues to bridge the gap between the niche world of Strongman and the broader fitness public. Their leg day in Colorado was less about the specific physiological gains achieved and more about the enduring appeal of seeing two titans of strength navigate a world not built for their size.
The "World’s Strongest Nation" contest in Liverpool will serve as the next major milestone for Hall, where the conditioning and machine-based volume training seen in his recent workouts will be tested against the raw, heavy implements of international competition. For Shaw, the focus remains on the evolution of the sport and the continued growth of the Shaw Classic, ensuring that the next generation of strongmen has the specialized facilities they need—even if they occasionally stop by a Planet Fitness for a change of pace.
