Mark Haydock - World Record Holder, Engineer and Father.
I managed to catch up with Mark Haydock over the past few weeks, talking about his day to day life, training, nutrition, advice, mistakes made and accomplishments (which is to be honest, a ridiculously long list). He has not only lifted the Dinnie Stones, he’s the current world record holder and in the guiness book of records for his feat of strength by holding them for 46.3seconds on the 18th of May 2019.
Add this to a roster of having broken over 100 World Records in BDFPA (British Drug Free Powerlifting Association) , WDFPF (World Drug Free Powerlifting Association) and IAWA (International All-Round Weightlifting Association) competitions. Including being the first British lifter to total 800kg in the British Drug Free Powerlifting Association. I will list them at the end of the article for those interested in specifics!
So we know Mark’s legit, he’s strong. Strength helps every aspect of life, from daily activities to sport specific advantages. So in this Q&A I wanted to pick his brain, on how he got to where he is, any advice for people looking to get stronger and mistakes he’s made along the way so we can learn. Not everything is in the scientific literature, practical experience can be invaluable!
For those unfamiliar with the Dinnie Stones, they reside in Potarch, Aberdeenshire, Scotland and have a combined weight of 332.49kg!
One of the stones weighs 144.47kg (318.5lbs) and the other a massive 188.02kg (414.5lbs).
Named after Donald Dinnie, there are two challenges associated with them. One is to pick up and hold the stones, the other is to carry them across the Potarch Bridge. To date, according to the official donald dinnie website, there have only ever been 8 men able to carry the stones the length of the bridge unassisted. Mark Haydock is one of them.
His feats with the stones also include:
Lifting them with two people stood on them for a total combined weight of 466kg
25 reps of lifting them side by side
10 reps in 52 seconds. PLUS an hour later heading to the Inver stone and carrying it 80 feet. 😮
How Mark got into Strength Sports ✍️
We all started where mark did, his first pair of dumbbells. At 10 years old he got a 4.5kg pair and the rest was history. Joking, there’s more to it.
Playing Rugby in secondary school, weight lifting was pursued to help with rugby, after all, strength does help quite a bit in that sport. The weightlifting took over and his focus shifted. Introduced to powerlifting by two local powerlifters, Andrew Davies and Kevin Gorman.
Mark states they were pivotal in showing him the drug free direction in the sport and thinks that too many young lifters easily end up on the PED path simply because of the gym they walk into and the people around them.
His day to day life 🏠
Mark’s a self employed electric and mechanical engineer, he also owns his own company that make grip training equipment (and from his unassisted carry and hold of the Dinnie Stones I’d say he knows what he’s making to help others improve grip strength). You can check Magnigrip’s website out HERE.
He also owns a few rental properties, some chickens 🐓, and has two very busy daughters and school runs to fit in.
Before children and a busier workload, Mark used to train 3 days per week (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) for 3 hour sessions, stating he never missed a training session, set or meal.
Now, like most of us with busy schedules, Mark has to fit his training around his work and family. Wake up 5.45-6am & bed about 11pm, saying he very rarely has time to even watch any tv. With more life to fit in, he has had to adapt his training over the years, shuffle training sessions about and adding in supersets to get through his volume quicker. He states most importantly taking extra days off when required to allow him to recover.
Mark’s Advice to anyone starting out 🪨
“My advice to anyone starting lifting , stone lifting , or general strength training. Be patient, learn the basics, be consistent. Don’t fool yourself by putting on supportive kit and thinking you have become stronger! Build the strength with minimal equipment, this will be a true gauge of your strength and will pay off in the long run.”
“Always keep in mind the big picture, most of us compete at an amateur level, we travel under our own resources, take time of work, pay for physio, etc. I would always advise to consider a risk by looking at the big picture. If you have bills to pay, work on Monday, nobody is coming to save you!”
Mark recalls during his Dinnie Stone carry over the bridge at Potarch he snapped his achilles tendon, the crowd dispersed and he was on holiday for a few days with a hired camper van, having to drive the van for 3 days with a snapped achilles tendon as he had few other options. Getting back home, he went to hospital, had a boot fitted for 8 weeks. No driving meaning school runs were a problem, couldn’t work on site and he can count on one hand the amount of people who contacted him to see how he was getting on.
His point being to always consider the risk to reward within strength sports.
Training to set the Dinnie Stone world record 🥇
Mark states that on the run up to his attempt he didn’t alter much of his normal training.
The strength to lift the Dinnie Stones was built with the basics, belt free squats and deadlifts, no straps. His first ever Dinnie session on training rings was 193kg/152kg side by side. For the hold record he added in sub max timed holds on the rings, weighted holds from the chinning bar and dumbbell holds.
Marks Current Training Schedule 🏋️
He is currently training to compete at the IAWA British in July, and Worlds in October. As it's all round lifting, the lifts change every year for these two events.
He trains the lifts set in the competition in group sessions keeping it event specific. So currently:
Session 1 - Continental Snatch / Power Row / 2” Bar Straddle Deadlift
Session 2 - One Hand Dumbbell Swing / Pullover (at arm’s length) / One hand dumbbell deadlift
Session 3 - Squats
Session 4 - Clean and Push Press / Continental Clean to Belt / One hand Dumbbell Clean & Jerk / Cheat Curls
Session 5 - Pullover and Push / One Hand Zercher / Hacklift
He states that most sessions include working sets of 6-9 sets of singles, and squats in the 3-5 rep range. Depending on recovery he usually aims to train day on / day off.
100x40.5kg Catches / Dinnie Stone World Record lift / 320kg Double Deadlift
“If you could only PERFORM 5 movements for the rest of your life, what would they be and why?” 5️⃣
Squat - “It is quite simply the king. Psycologically and physically. The weight is on your skeleton for the whole duration of the lift. It builds great leg, lower back, and hip strength and builds overall durability.”
Clean & Push Press - “Ticks many boxes. Speed, grip, timing, pressing.”
Frame carry / Farmers Walks - “Grip, back, legs, upper back, cardio!”
Trap Bar Lockouts - “Seriously heavy work here. Grip, legs, back, traps, overall fortitude.”
Hand to Hand catches with a Thick Handled Implement - “This is a great finisher of a session when done for high reps. Grip, timing, endurance/conditioning. I often do these with some 40kg shackles with a 3” live pin handle( +the odd 5kg!)”
Mistakes along the way 🤕
Most of the mistakes mark has made have been the usual. Overtraining was always a problem when he was younger, stating he has since learned that less is sometimes more.
A lot of his injuries over the years have come from overtraining. Giving some advice he says “If you feel really tired, warm up weights feel really heavy – listen to your body, rest or adjust the workload”
“In contrast to the overtraining point I will say this, seize every chance you can if you are fit – time flies, it’s 2024 and I remember walking out in Gyor, Hungary at the IPF World Juniors in 1998 like it was yesterday.”
Diet? 🥩
Breakfast - Porridge
Lunch - Often tuna wrap, yoghurt, banana, etc.
Evening meal - Meat with pasta/rice. Sometimes just a steak with 2/3 eggs and a pint of full fat milk.
Past ACCOMPLISHMENTS and Goals for the Future 🏆
As I stated at the top, Mark has broken over 100 World Records in different federations and currently holds the World Record for the Longest hold of the Dinnie Stones. Below is a shortened list of his best lifts (I’ve had to shorten it because quite frankly the list is ridiculous).
BAWLA U23 British Champion x 2
First BDFPA lifter to total 800kg unequipped
Multiple WDFPF European and World Champion
Double Bar Deadlift - 320kg
Deadlift - 332.5 kg (Belt Only)
Squat - 305 kg (Belt Only, Bare Knees)
Clean and Strict Press -125kg
Clean and Push Press - 137.5kg
Dinnie Stones - Records listed earlier in the Article
Inver Stone - Carried 80 feet
Future?
Mark’s goals for the future are to keep going, stay as fit and strong as possible for as long as possible!
This year he has the IAWA British in July, then the IAWA worlds in October which he is focused on hitting in good form. Long term is to keep pulling 300kg+ for as many years as possible.
If you would like to follow Mark’s endeavours you can find his Instagram Account ➡️ HERE.
Magnigrip - Mark’s company that make grip implements can be found ➡️ HERE.
