Strongman competition raises money for charity
Competition held to benefit leukemia and lymphoma charities
BY TOM CAIAZZA
Staff Writer

PHOTOSBYSCOTT FRIEDMAN Above: Keith Pierce, 18, Edison, pushes to complete his 18th bench press rep at the Strongman competition on June 17. Below: Jim Cooper (l), 18, Edison, is no match for Dan Tirado, 18, Edison in a tie breaker tug of war competition at the fundraiser.

EDISON - With rocks and kegs, Zach Even-Esh wants to build a better you - but first, a better world.

The owner, operator of Underground Strength Coach, a strength training facility on Talmadge Road, held a strongman competition on June 17 where high school weight trainers participated in feats of strength to raise money for leukemia and lymphoma charities.

People came with lawn chairs to watch the 10 weight lifters wow audiences with tire flips and other strength training exercises.

"It was packed," Even-Esh said of the event that yielded just over $600 for charity, "It was off the hook."

Even-Esh has spent much of his adult life in the strength training industry. After tearing his ACL, he decided it was time to start training others the proper way to strength train so others won't suffer the same injuries he had. Only he did not have a gym to train in, so he invented one of his.

"I refuse to let others go through what I did," Even-Esh said.

He began using all of the things around him to train athletes in his parent's basement. Charging $5 an hour, he would use heavy rocks and kegs filled with water to sculpt strength trainers into healthy, but physically impeccable people; without the use of special machines and complicated workouts.

Even-Esh's very down-to-earth approach to training has earned him recognition from the body building community, and he has trained athletes from wrestlers to football players, kickboxers and Ultimate Fighting Championship contestants.

He said his inspiration came from his own coach.

Alwyn Cosgrove, Even-Esh said, was his strength coach. He battled cancer and won twice, and it was as a homage to him that Even-Esh put together the event.

Cosgrove put together a program known as "Lift Strong," and donates all of the proceeds from his online strength training book to the leukemia and lymphoma charities.

Even-Esh was content, he said, with keeping his training methods underground, never needing a facility to train at. He was worried that if he opened a gym, it would be like selling out. It was Cosgrove who convinced him that if he wanted to be taken seriously in the strength training industry, he should open a facility and do things his way.

There are no machines in Even-Esh's gym and no memberships, either. He personally interviews all applicants to assess their level of motivation, and trainees get through the door only with a referral from another member. It is in this way that Even-Esh can protect his program's quality level.

"These guys get a build reminiscent of strongmen from the 1900s," Even-Esh said. "They are much more rugged and natural looking."

He said the training has paid off for most of the athletes who compete in adversarial sports like wrestling, football and the martial arts.

"Our athletes were kicking the c**p out of their opponents," Even-Esh said.

Even-Esh said that his training program is very selective. The last thing he wants in a potential trainee is a lack of motivation; he refuses to let anyone like that in the door.

"I never want to be around anyone that has a lack of motivation," Even-Esh said.

As for his charitable works, his first will not be his last. He hopes to have even more people involved next time.