Following an injury while serving in Afghanistan, British Army veteran Martin Tye lost the use of his legs, developed arthritis as a result of his many surgeries, and was diagnosed with PTSD. But he found a new sense of purpose and direction when he started competing in the Britain’s Disabled Strongman Competition, and last year he set a new world record for the heaviest seated deadlift.
“After being injured, I went through a 3 year patch of not doing very much,” he says. “It was actually only sport that started to help me. Before that I wasn’t really engaged with anything… Since I’ve found sport, and especially Disabled Strongman, that’s what’s really given me the last few years, and the confidence has just come back massively.”
After competing at the Invictus Games, Tye started “mouthing off” on TV and said he wanted to break the record for world’s heaviest deadlift. But it was only when his partner Beckie Ingram signed up for the event on his behalf that he was forced to put his muscles where his mouth is.
“Some people like to get really angry and use aggression,” he says. “I don’t do that in my prep. I kind of go away into my own little place in my head, I visualize the lift and how I’m going to lift it, I tell myself that it’s light, I’ve got this, I know I’ve got this, and just go.”
On May 6, 2019 in Somerset, England, Tye made history by pulling 1,113 pounds (505 kgs).
“Although people said it looked easy, believe me it wasn’t!” He says, adding: “I know I’ve not hit my potential yet, there’s still more in there, and hopefully when I unlock that I can go for an even bigger weight.”
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