Hackenschmidt's exercises. Georg Gakkenschmidt - the invincible “Russian lion. Athlete's legacy. Book The Path to Strength and Health

My personal memories date back to 1897. Earlier, in the circle of the late Doctor Kraevsky, members of the circle, who were aware of all Russian athletic sports, knew about Gakkenschmidt by hearsay, as a first-class athlete, twisting 6 pounds with one hand, which was a great rarity for that time.

In St. Petersburg he was brought by the rich Baltic landowner Baron Ikskul, who introduced him to the circle of Kraevsky. Gakkenschmidt was then a modest young man, dressed, as I remember now, in a shabby gray jacket. When he undressed before the exercises, we saw perfectly developed muscles. On the first day, Gakkenschmidt twisted 6 1/2 pounds with one (right) hand, breaking the all-Russian record. The next day he twisted 7 p. 2 lbs. or 7 p. 5 lb., I don’t remember well, beating the then world record of Sandow.

V young record holder the late "father of Russian athletics", V.F.

To Kraevsky, in his worries about Gakkenshmidt joined, first prince PD Lvov, and later gr. G.I. Ribopier.

Thanks to the support of these individuals, the career of Gackenschmidt began, who from the little professional athlete Lenz (his pseudonym) became world famous on the athletic horizon.

Now Gakkenschmidt, always distinguished by great frugality, is a very rich man, and in 1892 he was a very modest, handsome comrade who enjoyed our sympathies, which are still alive with us, old athletes who remember well "Georges" in his old, shabby suit.

I. V. Lebedev,

professor of Russian athletics

Introduction

I believe that many of my readers will protest against the title of this book, saying that the method I propose can in no way fit into the narrow framework of the life of the average person; in doing so, they will gladly add that they have no desire to create a specialty for themselves from wrestling and weightlifting and that, therefore, their lifestyle should be significantly different from the one I recommend.

Further reading of my book will show that I did not want to limit myself to setting out a number of rules intended exclusively for strong people and athletes; I, on the contrary, wanted to give instructions on how to achieve both strength and health.

True, many are engaged in exercises in order to develop their muscles, and this is very understandable, since increasing strength is the cherished desire of every man. Health is an invariable consequence of strength, and one in no case can be separated from the other. By strengthening his body, everyone will thus best protect himself from disease.

The success of civilization can be marked by the success of medicine; the study and practice of surgery has taken a huge step forward in the last decade; public sanitation and public prevention of disease, taken into their own hands by states and cities, are now widely developed.

And yet, despite all these improvements, a rare medical journal does not complain of generalized physical degeneration.

Common and contagious diseases now do not have the same spread as they had before, but sick, weak and frail people are more common than one might expect.

The reasons for this are shallow. The impoverishment of villages and villages due to the monstrous growth of cities; an increase in the number of people chained to an office chair and leading a sedentary lifestyle; and only weak attempts to regulate the wrong life of these latter, by the only correct method - namely, rational gymnastics.

Many people confuse the general development of the body that is necessary for everyone with the creation of their own specialty from this development, and only because they neglect gymnastics, they do not want to go in for athletics; and these are completely different things.

People do not want to get sick, and yet they often seem to be reconciled with their misfortunes, believing that this is the lot of all the children of Adam.

It seems strange why a person should be sick if he can maintain his body in a state capable of withstanding all kinds of diseases; 15-20 minutes of daily exercise is quite enough for this. For the greatest of earthly blessings - health, this is not a high price.

My proposal is neither idle nor unfounded. Each reader can only test for fourteen days, and I am sure he will see good results before the end of this period. Exercise should be judiciously chosen and prescribed so as to strengthen the entire body; so that every organ participates in harmonious work and every muscle develops.

I do not pretend that I was the first to proclaim this teaching, and I cannot pretend, because I see a great many books being thrown onto the market devoted to the development of the body.

Having studied more or less in detail some of them, I came to the conclusion that the vast majority are written in a language incomprehensible to the common man, while others are engaged exclusively in systems that have not been tested by their authors, and, as far as I know, have never been applied in practice by any strong human. Therefore, I decided to outline such a system, which I myself recognized in practice as useful and best, in terms of the results of muscle development. For the presentation, I have chosen a language that is understandable for everyone and threw out many unnecessary technical details; whether I was consistent all the time and whether I achieved my goal - let my readers judge this.

Exercises for young and old

One point I will defend with particular readiness on the pages of this book is precisely that a person cannot be too old to practice gymnastics. Among the various techniques, I have devoted a lot of space to heavy weight exercises in order to give the practitioner the opportunity to develop their muscles, and I hope that my readers will not be intimidated by these exercises.

Of course, they may object to me that why should a person who does not need great physical development bother himself with working with weights; I will answer the question with a question: why should such a person remain weak?

The Creator, who created man, provided him with muscles and nerves that make it possible to make any movement from those that we should use on our life path.

Modern social relations have robbed the body fresh air, the need for frequent tension and all conditions that produce healthy muscles and tendons.

Since the natural conditions that created powerful generations of previous centuries disappeared, it became necessary to turn to artificial means offered by authorities for the healing of the body.

Only through exercises with weights can you develop significant strength. But these latter must be inextricably linked with burping through a string, running, jumping and other types of simple gymnastics; likewise, if the practitioner neglects light dumbbells in his daily routine, he can never hope to be really strong.

People in their 40s and 50s, who have crossed the age when we yearn for great strength, and who only want to maintain their health, can be content with the exercises that are most suitable for this purpose. I attach particular importance to the sacred duty of each and every one to encourage the surrounding youth to take care of the development of their bodies; after all, young people are so easily inspired. The taverns will quickly become empty (and this is already a significant step forward), the nation, and from it and human race will improve.

(1877-08-01 )

Georg Karl Julius Gackenschmidt (Hackenschmidt) (July 20 / August 1 ( 18770801 ) , Tartu - February 19, London) is a Russian wrestler and circus athlete who performed at the beginning of the 20th century (Baltic German by nationality), one of the first professional wrestlers and the first world champion in freestyle wrestling, who also set several power records, winner of the World Championships in weightlifting. He began his professional career in Russia and lived most of his life in London, where he received the nickname "Russian Lion". He is considered the creator of a number of wrestling techniques and a system of physical exercises.

Wrestler career

George had many adventures in his life, so, once on a tour in Samoa, the local king liked him so much that he immediately offered George royal title and in addition a harem, which he would collect at his own discretion. Georg politely declined. In Manchester, he was attacked by a gang of 6-7 thugs, whom he dealt with in a few minutes.

Gackenschmidt remained undefeated until his encounter with American wrestler Frank Gotch. This battle took place on April 3, 1908, in the pavilion Dexter park in Chicago, it lasted 2 hours 3 minutes. During this time, none of them fell. It is believed that Gotch won unfairly. In order to make his body slippery, he was specially smeared with oil. At the same time, he constantly violated the rules: he scratched Georg's eyes, performed prohibited techniques. The rematch of the battle took place in 1911, but Georg then did not get revenge due to his leg injury. After this incident, he left the ring.

Outside the ring, he tried to develop a scientific system for developing his own strength and did not support the cruel tactics of many wrestlers.

After retirement, Gackenschmidt became a mystic philosopher, wrote Man and Cosmic Antagonism to Mind and Spirit(1936) and other books. He became a French citizen after World War I and took British citizenship in 1950.

Nutrition

Georg paid great attention to his diet. He ate nuts in large quantities, fresh vegetables and fruits. Estonian sources mention that Georg was a vegetarian and did not eat meat.

Anthropometric data

anthropometric data of Georg Gackenschmidt (measurements 1905):

height - 176 cm,
weight - 93 kg,
chest - 125 cm,
neck - 50 cm,
biceps - 47 cm,
thigh - 68 cm,
waist - 85 cm.

Hackenschmidt came up with an effective exercise that maximized the use of the front of the thigh, known as the hack squat. Georg Gakkenschmidt performed this exercise with a barbell and had very beautiful quads, and then they came up with a simulator with the same effect. The hack squat and the hack quads machine are used by bodybuilders around the world.

After winning and setting a world record by Yuri Vlasov, at the London tournament in July 1961, Georg Gakkenschmidt presented him with a medal, and there he presented Vlasov with his photo with a dedication (Y. Vlasov Justice of Power. Lenizdat 1989)

Write a review on "Gackenschmidt, Georg"

Notes (edit)

Excerpt from Gackenschmidt, Georg

- Allez, mon ami, [Go, my friend,] - Princess Marya said. Prince Andrew went to his wife again, and sat down in the next room, waiting. Some woman left her room with a frightened face and was embarrassed when she saw Prince Andrew. He covered his face with his hands and sat there for several minutes. Pathetic, helplessly animal moans were heard from outside the door. Prince Andrew got up, went to the door and wanted to open it. Someone was holding the door.
- You can't, you can't! - said a frightened voice from there. - He began to walk around the room. The screams stopped, and a few more seconds passed. Suddenly a terrible cry - not her cry, she could not scream like that - rang out in the next room. Prince Andrew ran to the door; the cry fell silent, the cry of a child was heard.
“Why did they bring the child there? thought for the first second Prince Andrew. Child? What? ... Why is there a child? Or was it a baby born? " When he suddenly understood all the joyful meaning of this cry, tears strangled him, and he, leaning with both hands on the windowsill, sobbing, wept like children cry. The door opened. The doctor, with his shirt sleeves rolled up, no frock coat, pale and with a trembling jaw, left the room. Prince Andrew turned to him, but the doctor looked at him in confusion and, without saying a word, walked by. The woman ran out and, seeing Prince Andrey, hesitated on the threshold. He entered his wife's room. She lay dead in the same position in which he had seen her five minutes ago, and the same expression, in spite of the fixed eyes and the pallor of her cheeks, was on this lovely, childish face with a sponge covered with black hair.
"I love you all and have never done anything wrong to anyone, and what have you done to me?" spoke her lovely, pitiful, dead face. In the corner of the room something small, red grunt and squeaked in Marya Bogdanovna's shaking white hands.

Two hours later, Prince Andrei entered his father's study with quiet steps. The old man already knew everything. He stood at the very door, and as soon as it opened, the old man silently, with his old, stiff hands, like a vice, clasped his son's neck and sobbed like a child.

Three days later, the funeral service for the little princess was performed, and, saying goodbye to her, Prince Andrei ascended the steps of the coffin. And in the coffin was the same face, albeit with closed eyes. "Oh, what have you done to me?" it kept saying, and Prince Andrey felt that something had come off in his soul, that he was to blame for his guilt, which he could not correct and forget. He couldn't cry. The old man also entered and kissed her wax pen, lying calmly and high on the other, and her face said to him: "Oh, what and why did you do this to me?" And the old man turned away angrily when he saw this face.

Five days later, the young Prince Nikolai Andreich was baptized. Mother held the diapers with her chin, while the priest smeared the wrinkled red palms and steps of the boy with a goose feather.
The godfather grandfather, afraid to drop, shuddering, carried the baby around the crumpled tin font and handed it over to the godmother, Princess Marya. Prince Andrew, dying with fear that the child would not be drowned, was sitting in another room, waiting for the end of the sacrament. He glanced happily at the child when his nanny carried him out, and nodded his head approvingly when the nanny informed him that the wax with hairs thrown into the font had not drowned, but swam through the font.

Rostov's participation in Dolokhov's duel with Bezukhov was hushed up by the efforts of the old count, and Rostov, instead of being demoted, as he expected, was appointed an adjutant to the Moscow governor-general. As a result, he could not go to the village with the whole family, but remained with his new position all summer in Moscow. Dolokhov recovered, and Rostov became especially friends with him at this time of his recovery. Dolokhov was sick with his mother, who passionately and tenderly loved him. The old woman Marya Ivanovna, who fell in love with Rostov for his friendship with Fedya, often told him about her son.
- Yes, count, he is too noble and pure in soul, - she used to say, - for our present, corrupted world. No one likes virtue, it hurts everyone's eyes. Well, tell me, Count, is that fair, honestly on the part of Bezukhov? And Fedya, by his nobility, loved him, and now he never says anything bad about him. In St. Petersburg, these pranks with the quarter there were joking, didn't they do it together? Well, nothing to Bezukhov, but Fedya endured everything on his shoulders! After all, what did he endure! Suppose they returned, but how could they not return? I think there weren't many brave men and sons of the fatherland like him. Well now - this duel! Do these people have a feeling, honor! Knowing that he The only son, challenge to a duel and shoot so straight! It is good that God has mercy on us. And what for? Well, who in our time has no intrigue? Well, if he's so jealous? I understand, because before he could make you feel, and that year after all lasted. And so, he challenged him to a duel, believing that Fedya would not fight, because he owed him. What baseness! That's disgusting! I know you understand Fedya, my dear count, that's why I love you with my soul, believe me. His rare understand. This is such a tall, heavenly soul!

Muscle strength and beautiful figure- how can this be combined and how can this be achieved? For those who are engaged in bodybuilding today, the size of the musculature has come to the fore. Times change and fashion changes, training methods change. It's no secret that today's professionals use steroids and pump up impressive facades. And if a person does not want to sit down for chemistry, then how can he develop muscle strength and build a beautiful body?

And I decided to turn to a forgotten experience. At the end of the 19th and the beginning of the twentieth century, there were quite a few strong and famous people who amazed their contemporaries not with the beauty of their bodies, but with the phenomenal strength of their muscles.

One of these athletes is Georg Gackenschmidt. I will not retell his biography, there is a lot of information about this on the Internet. I was interested in the methodology for developing strength, which was developed by Georg. The first question that may arise is, "Is this technique really that effective?" I will not talk about the power records set by the famous athlete Gakkeshmidt - they are truly amazing. Let's take a look at what nineteen-year-old Georg could do.

He squeezed 145 pounds off his shoulder with his right hand 12 times. 145 pounds is 65.77 kilograms. Georg's height is 176 cm. It turns out that he squeezed (!) With one hand almost his weight 12 times. And this is nineteen years old after five years of training (and really for two years). Who is capable of this today? Phenomenal muscle strength!

I very carefully read the book by Gackenschmidt "The Path to Strength and Health" and concluded for myself that the proposed method certainly has a healthy core. There is a system that is considered outdated today, there are recommendations for nutrition and recovery, there are guarantees that the results achieved reflect the real strength of the muscles, and not the achievements of chemistry and pharmacology.

I do not urge you to blindly copy the techniques described by Georg, but this is material for thought. Strength and muscle begins in the head, i.e. knowledge first, and then muscle strength. In any case, the decision is up to you.

In the meantime, let's look at the system of developing strength and muscles with the help of exercises with weights from Georg Gakkenschmidt - "Russian Lion".

1.Pulling the bar with two hands while standing on the wrestling bridge. The exercise is performed on the floor with a firm support (hard pillow) under your head. Initial weight 12-20 kg. In the first lessons, repeat the exercise 3 times with a weekly addition of 1 time, and so on up to 10 repetitions, then increase the weight by 2 kg and start again with 3 repetitions.

2. Get on your knees, tilt your head forward and rest your hands on the floor. Hanging a 4 kg kettlebell on the back of your head on a wide belt, raise and lower your head. Perform the exercise until the neck muscles are tired (but not until exhaustion). Raising your head, exhale, and lowering it, inhale.

3. Hands with dumbbells along the body. Raise and lower your shoulders. Raising the shoulders - exhale, lowering - inhale. The initial weight of the dumbbells is 4 kg. Start with 10 reps, weekly increase by one movement and so on up to 20 times, then increase the weight by half and start again with 10 reps.

4. This exercise differs from the previous one in that the arms are bent at the elbows, and the shoulders make circular movements back and forth.

5. Dumbbells in lowered hands. Bend your elbows alternately. Breathing is arbitrary. The initial weight of the dumbbells is 2 kg. Start with 5 repetitions, add one repetition weekly, and so on - up to 20 times. Then the weight of the dumbbells is increased by 0.5 kg and again start with 5 repetitions.

6. Lift the barbell with both hands to your chest. Without deviating the body, squeeze the bar up - exhale, then lower it to the chest - inhale. Repeat the exercise 5 times with the grip to you and 5 times reverse grip... The initial weight of the bar is 20 kg. Add one repetition weekly, and so on until 10. Then increase the weight by 2 kg.

7. Push the bar with one hand. Raise the barbell with one or both hands to your shoulder. After a small squat, straighten your legs with a one-time push of the bar up. Having clearly fixed the bar at the top, lower it to your shoulder. Movements should be quick and energetic. Initial weight 10-16 kg. Repeat the exercise 5 times with each hand, adding 1 repetition every two weeks, and so on up to 10. Ole what to increase the weight by kg.

8. The exercise is performed without weights. Bend and unbend your arms while lying on the floor. The torso and legs should be in line. Bending your arms - inhale, unbending - exhale. Start with 10 reps, with one weekly addition.

9. Lying on your back. Hold the barbell with both hands on your chest. Squeeze it up - exhale, then slowly lower it - inhale. The initial weight of the bar is 12-20 kg. Start with 5 reps, adding 1 movement each week, and so on until 10. Then the weight increases by 2 kg, and again - with 5 reps. Alternate the top grip with the bottom grip.

10. Barbell in lowered hands with a grip from above. With straight arms, lift the bar up - exhale, then slowly lower it to the starting position - inhale. The initial weight of the bar is 4-8 kg. Do 5 reps with one weekly repetition, and so on until 10, after which the weight increases by 2 kg.

11. Lying on your back. With your straight arms, grab the barbell behind your head and lift it up to an upright position - exhale. Then slowly lower the barbell to your chest - inhale. The initial weight of the bar is 4-8 kg. Perform 5 reps with a weekly repetition of one, and so on until 10, after which the weight increases by 2 kg.

12. Lying on your back, arms with dumbbells to the sides. Connect straight arms in front of you - exhale, then return to the starting position - inhale. Initial weight - 4 kg. Do 5 reps with one weekly repetition, and so on until 10, after which the weight increases by 2 kg.

13. The bar is on the floor near the feet. Bend over, grab the bar with both hands with a shoulder-width grip on top and, straightening your torso, lift it to your chest. Then lower it to the floor, the weight of the bar is 12 kg. The exercise is performed 5 times, followed by a weekly addition one time and so on up to 20, after which the weight of the bar increases by 2 kg.

14. Lift the bar up with both hands. Tilt your torso forward, trying not to bend your arms - exhale, then return to the starting position - inhale. The weight of the bar is from 4 to 8 kg. The exercise is performed 5 times, followed by a weekly addition one time and so on up to 20, after which the weight of the bars increases by 2-3 kg.

15. Lying on your back, arms along your torso, attach two-kilogram dumbbells to your legs. Raise your straight legs to a right angle - exhale, then slowly lower to the starting position - inhale. Repeat the exercise 5 to 10 times. Increase the weight by 1 kg.

16. Lying on your back, fix your legs under a fixed support. Sit - exhale, then slowly return to the starting position - inhale. The first time, do the exercise without weights, and then hold a 2 kg dumbbell behind your head. The number of repetitions is from 5 to 10. Then add 50% to the weight of the dumbbell.

17. Tie a cord to the middle of a thick stick, to the free end of which attach a 2 kg weight. Stand on 2 chairs and start slowly winding the cord around the stick, then in the opposite motion, unfold the cord to the floor. Exercise until the muscles of the forearm are fatigued.

18. Connect your hands behind your back at the sacrum and hold the barbell, turned your palms away from you. Rise on your toes and gently, as low as possible, sit down - inhale. Then return to the starting position - exhale. The weight of the bar is 4-8 kg. Repeat 5 to 20 times, then increase the weight by 2 kg (Gakkenschmidt performed this exercise with a five-pound kettlebell).

19. Squat on the entire foot, holding a barbell weighing 8-16 kg on your shoulders behind your head. Repeat the exercise 3 times with weekly additions once and so on up to 10 times, with a subsequent increase in the barbell weight by 2 kg.

20. Lying on your back, raise your legs and place the barbell on the soles. Keeping balance, bend and unbend your legs. Initial weight 8-12 kg. Repeat the exercise 3 to 10 times with a subsequent increase in the weight of the bar by 2 kg.

The weight of the weights is indicated approximately and depends on the initial strength of the practitioner. You need to train 3 times a week.

That's all there is to developing strength with weights. As you can see, the exercises are quite simple and can be practiced even at home. Muscle strength is most likely your desire and hard, regular work.

Georg Gakkenschmidt is a famous German Baltic in the 20th century, who developed the muscles of the body to such quality characteristics, thanks to which he was able to set the first world record, including in the history of Russian sports. He squeezed a weight with one hand, weighing 116 kg. In 1911, George's book was published, which describes the very system that promotes healthy physical development and longevity. Gackenschmidt believed that 20 minutes of daily exercise supported the body to resist disease.

Childhood

According to the new chronology, the Russian lion, as the public later called him, was born in 1877 in Dorpat, the modern name of this Estonian city is Tartu. In the family of a German and an Estonian, he was the eldest child, was brought up together with younger brother and sister.

The parents had an average physique, but the maternal grandfather, whom, by the way, Georg had never seen, was different in height and strength. In his biography, Gakkenschmidt recalled that the mother spoke of the similarity of her eldest son with his father, only the latter was even higher.

Being the strongest among his peers, the boy was considered the leader of the children's army. In addition, from an early age, Georg Gakkenschmidt was fond of physical exercise. He understood that having a distinctive appearance, he is in many ways superior to his comrades, so he needed sports to maintain strength.

Enthusiasm

At the age of ten, the guy went to study at Derpt educational institution, meanwhile called a real school. Georg liked the item immediately physical education, especially gymnastics, and in 1891 he became a prize-winner of competitions held among students of the school. This victory was immediately published by local newspapers.

Hackenschmidt wrote that at that time he was best player in the towns, he could jump 1.9 meters long and 1.4 in height, with his right hand 16 times, and with his left hand 21 times squeeze a 13 kilogram dumbbell. And run a distance of 180 meters in 26 seconds. That is, Georg Gakkenschmidt, whose biography is filled with victories and recognitions, already in his youth had the prerequisites to become a champion.

Revel and the first sports membership

After graduating from a seven-year school, in 1895 the young man moved to Revel (modern Talin), where he came as an apprentice to a machine-building plant to obtain a profession. Georg intended to work as an engineer, while simultaneously taking care of his physical health.

However, joining the ranks of the members of the athletic and cycling club, the guy became seriously interested in sports, and even received several prizes in cycling races. In the cold season, Georg paid attention to heavy workouts and wrestling. If in the first hobby the young man had success, then in hand-to-hand fights he was inferior to his comrades.

First defeat

In the fall of 1896, Gakka met Georg Lurich, at that time already a professional wrestler. In the sports club with a newly arrived athlete, everyone could test their strength in hand-to-hand combat. Naturally, the outcome was the defeat of the Revel fighters. Georg Gackenschmidt, whose training was focused on lifting weights, also entered into a competition with his namesake.

In his autobiography, the Russian Lion mentioned this fight and shared his feelings with the reader, they say, Lurich could easily put a technically unprepared opponent, although in terms of power characteristics he was not inferior to him. Publicly, at the Officers' Meeting, Georg Lurich immediately put Georg down in the first fight, and in the second it took him 17 minutes for Hackenschmidt's shoulder blades to touch the floor.

The offended pride of the novice athlete contributed to increased hand-to-hand training, as a result of which the wrestler soon killed all the members of his sports club.

Influential acquaintance

Somewhere in 1897, a guy got a hand injury at a machine-building plant. “This made me seek medical advice,” writes Georg Gackenschmidt. "The Path to Strength and Health" - a book later published by an athlete, contains a whole chapter dedicated to the St. Petersburg doctor Kraevsky, the very person to whom the young man turned with pain in his hand.

Vladislav Frantsevich Kraevsky was a supporter and founder of a similar sports club in St. Petersburg. The fifty-six-year-old doctor, when he first saw the preparation of Georg during the examination of a sore limb, immediately predicted a professional future for the athlete, and offered to move to him in St. Petersburg. Learning that Vladislav Frantsevich trained Lurich and that Georg had the prerequisites to become the strongest fighter, he, without thinking twice, set off in 1989 towards his dream. How Dr. Kraevsky presented Gakku to the rest of the athletes in St. Petersburg, was described by the historian Olaf Langsepp. "Georg Gakkenschmidt" - a book about the life of an athlete - contains an excerpt that tells about embossed body, no fat, 45cm biceps and an incredibly wide back. None of the athletes of the Petersburg club could boast of such muscles.

Regime according to the Kraevsky system

After moving to St. Petersburg, the guy settled with his friend and mentor Vladislav Frantsevich, who, in turn, lived alone in a huge house on Mikhailovskaya Square. The gym was equipped with strength machines, dumbbells and barbells.

One of the rooms was decorated with portraits of famous athletes, and the wrestlers who came to St. Petersburg made sure to visit the hospitable home of the famous doctor. Moreover, each of them was weighed, measured and examined. Perhaps such an extensive study different people with physical development served as the creation of Kraevsky's training system. The accumulation of athletes in one house and public weighing contributed to the development of the desire of each of the athletes present to become better than others.

Georg Gackenschmidt, whose photo is a role model of how healthy people should look and never touched tobacco and alcohol. He drank exclusively milk. Georg trained with Vladislav Frantsevich after taking bathing procedures. They, without wiping, lifted weights together until they completely dried out. The main rule for a healthy person, established by Kraevsky, is an eight-hour sleep.

Achievements

In 1989, Gakka pushed a 110 kg barbell with one right hand, and 151 kg while lying on his back with two hands. In the spring of the same year, Georg Gakkenschmidt won the title of "Champion of Russia" in weight lifting. With outstretched arms above his head, he held a weight of 114 kg, which is 1 kg less than the world record set by the Frenchman Bonn. Then, at the competitions in St. Petersburg, he won the French wrestler Pavel Pons in 45 minutes, and in 11 minutes he laid Yankovsky on the shoulder blades.

The preparation of the athlete for the European Championship begins. To get used to the audience, Kraevsky directs Georg, as a wrestler and athlete, to perform at the Riga Circus. After training, a team of athletes from St. Petersburg, led by a doctor, is sent to the European Championship in Vienna. The result of the competition was the title and the gold medal for G. Gakkenschmidt.

1899 Georg won the Finnish championship by defeating 20 opponents. In the same year he won the Russian championship.

Physical and mental trauma

Injury is essential in every sport. During weight lifting training, the guy injured a tendon in his right shoulder. This failure was accompanied by years of pain. But, despite the injury, Georg Gackenschmidt went to the championship in Paris at this time. He undoubtedly won two fights, one in 18 seconds, the second in 4 minutes. Then, in one of the preparatory workouts at Gakka's right hand weakens. Georg survived two more fights, and then decided to withdraw from the championship.

The French doctor warned the young man: "We need peace for 12 months." Georg treated his arm for six months, and in the spring of 1900 he began to exercise again. In the summer, the wrestler won two titles: "Champion of St. Petersburg" and "Champion of Moscow". More than one victory was taken in the history of the athlete, including at the World Championships in Vienna.

In 1901, Dr. Kraevsky died, and this was a huge shock for all athletes who trained according to the method of Vladislav Frantsevich.

After the traumas, the guy took a short break in the fight and left for Germany. And already in 1902 he became the world record holder, lifting 187 pounds behind his back with bent knees. Later, with his legs tied, he jumped over the table 100 times.

Georg Gackenschmidt: books

In 1908, the book "How to Live" was published, a year later "The Path to Strength". After retiring, the man became interested in philosophy. In 1936 he saw the light of the book "Man and the Cosmic Antagonism of Mind and Spirit", the author of which was professional sportsman... Among the listed literature from the pen of George came out the books: "Three types of memory and forgetfulness", "Consciousness and character".

In 1950, Gackenschmidt changed his citizenship, becoming a citizen of England. After 18 years, being of sound mind, he died at the age of 91.

Opening the first jiu-jitsu hall in the capital of England, Yoko Tani said: There is a man in England who, in his strength and skill, surpassed all Japanese wrestlers! His name was Georg Gackenschmidt. The wrestler from 1889 to 1908 won more than 3000 bouts on the wrestling mat.

Georg Gackenschmidt was a calm, balanced person. I have never felt anger or hatred towards the enemy. Gakkenschmidt fought confidently and calmly, never lost. Those who listened to him admired him, Georg's voice was soft, he spoke calmly. It was felt ... he is a strong and strong-willed man.

Georg Gackenschmidt - the beginning of the journey

The full name of the "Russian Lion" is Georg Karl Julius Gackenschmidt. Born in Estonia, the city of Dopat (Tartu) on August 2, 1878. He inherited good physical characteristics. Being very young, Georg was stronger than many of his peers. Since childhood, he was fond of books about strong men and physical exercises. At the age of 10, he had no equal in strength, among the boys, then he decided, sport, his vocation. As Gackenschmidt later recalled: - I knew sport would bring me fame and recognition. At 18 or so, Gackenschmidt weighed 91 kg, could squeeze 115.7 kg with one hand, thus breaking the record of Evgeny Sandov (Eugene Sandow). Publications flashed in the press, Gackenschmidt does pullover with a weight of 164 kg. Georg paid attention to cycling, loved swimming, running and walking. He worked as an apprentice at the Revvel machine-building factory (Talinn).

Athletics and acquaintance with Kraevsky

Georg trained at the athletic and cycling club. Hurting in training hand, he was shown to doctor Kraevsky who had arrived from St. Petersburg. When Kraevsky has saw an athlete, he was struck by his musculature. He invited young Hercules to Petersburg to train in his athletic club. Dr.Kraevsky himself was a unique personality, he usedgreat authorityfrom strongmen and wrestlers. Coming to St. Petersburg, each athlete considered it his duty to pay a visit to Kraevsky. The atmosphere in his house on Mikhailovskaya Square was friendly, they drank tea and exchanged latest news in the world of sports. In his gym, from morning to evening, there were training sessions, training with various equipment to build up strength. For the then Russia, all this was the case not familiar and new.

Having met Dr. Kraevsky, professor and millionaire, the life of the "Russian Lion" took a completely different turn. TWhen he was not yet a Russian lion, he was just "Gakk". Dr. Krajewski, a great lover of athletics and wrestling, took on training "Gakka". Gackenschmidt recalled: - the doctor treated me like a son, I never heard no word from him ". 1898, a protege of Kraevsky, wins in Vienna European championship in Greco-Roman wrestling. Coming onto the platform, the audience greeted Georg with thunderous applause and enthusiastic exclamations from the audience. He was well built the musculature of the "Russian Lion" was very effective... Gakk sets a new world record by lifting 300kg in deadlift. Anthropometric data of Hackenschmidt: Height 174 cm. Breast volume was 122 cm. Neck - 49. Shoulder - 47-49 (data in different sources do not differ much). Forearms - 38. Hips - 68. Weight 92 kg.