When Connor Hunt is in the room, you can’t help but notice him. The 6’9”, 400-pound Santaquin man tends to make an impression. But it’s the Strongman competitor’s remarkable strength that really turns heads. Though relatively new to the Strongman scene, Hunt has already put some impressive notches in his belt. He currently holds the Utah Stones of Strength record within the Strongman competition, and his next big goal is to go pro.
Hunt grew up playing sports, including football, track and field, basketball, and wrestling. After high school, he played football at Snow College for two years. But once he was done playing college sports, he felt lost for a while.
“I kind of got a little down and depressed and didn’t know what to do with my life,” he recalled.
Aside from his job, he didn’t have much going on to keep him busy and fulfilled. During that difficult time, Hunt and his family frequently watched the television show “The Strongest Man in History” together. Hunt looked up to the pros on the show, including Brian Shaw, Eddie Hall, Robert Oberst, and Nick Best. While Hunt enjoyed watching the competitions, it wasn’t until a simple family landscaping project when he considered one of them himself.
He and his siblings were tearing out the family’s old fence to install a new one using 8-foot railroad ties as middle beams. It took two or three of Hunt’s siblings to move each beam. Hunt, however, had no trouble pulling a beam off the pile and hauling it over his shoulder without any help. Seeing this impressive show of strength, one of Hunt’s brothers suggested that he should “try that strongman stuff.”
Despite his brothers’ confidence, Hunt doubted whether he could truly be a successful strongman competitor. He hadn’t lifted in years and wasn’t sure of himself, but the idea was intriguing. He asked his mom, Heather Hunt, whether she thought he could do it. With her encouragement, he decided to start training right away.
Given his lack of experience in the strongman world, Hunt wasn’t sure how to train. For the first few months, he tried to figure it out on his own before getting a professional coach. Hunt currently trains at the Valhalla Strength Gym in American Fork. Rebecca Child, an accomplished professional powerlifter, has been his coach throughout his entire strongman career. Hunt said he values Child’s knowledge, intuition, and friendship.
“I have full intention of (us) going all the way to the top,” he said. “She will be my coach when I win World’s Strongest Man and will be my best friend for years after that. Not only does she push my strength levels to leaps and bounds, but she’s been in the game so long she knows exactly what the body needs.”
In addition to training hard and staying focused, Hunt must also keep his calorie intake up and watch his diet as he approaches competition season. He maintains a rigorous year-round workout schedule that includes three- to four-hour workouts, four days per week. During competition season, his workouts become more focused and event-heavy.
Hunt eats a protein-heavy diet (between 385 to 400 grams per day) and consumes 4,000 calories just to maintain his muscle mass. When he goes out to eat, he will often ask for three times the amount of protein normally offered. Sometimes, he’ll sit down with a cereal bowl at home and pack it full of 24 ounces of chicken just to meet his daily protein goals. His go-to meals often include chicken, tuna, turkey and rice.
In 2002, Hunt broke the Utah Stones of Strength record previously held by pro-strongman Kevin Faires, taking the record from 70 feet to 100 feet. That record remains undefeated. He said he plans to compete in a few more strongman events and get more accolades under his belt before going pro. His ultimate goal is to win the World’s Strongest Man competition at least five times. That would tie him with Mariusz Pudzianowski, who is currently the only person in history to have won the coveted title five times.
There is no question it takes exceptional effort, discipline, and hard work to become an accomplished strongman competitor. For Hunt, it’s all worth it.
“It adds purpose to my life and makes me feel accomplished in ways that nothing else could,” he said. “I think if I found Strongman when I was in high school, I genuinely don’t think I would have continued football. It’s just something that’s fulfilled my life more than any other sport has.”
