Instagram is the perfect outlet for strongmen, powerlifters, and other athletes to show off their incredible lifts to fans around the globe. Think about it—a 30-second video of an eye-popping bench PR or a bar-bending deadlift world record is all you need to become a viral fitness star. So as 2018 comes to a close, we’re running down a list of the best super-human feats of strength, crazy acts of balance, and a few inspiring moments that we saw this year. Watching humans lift incredibly heavy weight is what we’re all about, after all, and this list has the best of the best.
Week after week, Larry Wheels performs insane lift after insane lift—and even we’re having a hard time keeping up with him. And he’s doing all of this at just 23 years old. In this video, the bespectacled behemoth powers through 500 pounds on the bench for an astonishing 11 reps. Most big-time lifters would be lucky to hit 11 reps as a career total; for Wheels, it’s just another Instagram post.
Georgian weightlifter—and the gold medalist in the 105+ kilogram class at the 2016 Summer Olympics—Lasha Talakhadze completed a 582-pound clean and jerk this past September.
This crazy SOB really made a name for himself by performing ridiculous stunts in his shed. In this video, he decided to crank out some reps on the bench press while pounding a beer bong.
Stefi Cohen Does 12 Bodyweight Goblet Squats With 125 Pounds
DPT, powerlifter, all-around badass: Stefi Cohen has the strength and explosiveness to make her an elite lifter, along with the fundamental knowledge of the sport to tie them all together for the complete package. If you need to see for yourself, check out the video above, where this 123-pounder pulls off 12 goblet squats with 125-pound dumbbells. That’s right, just a hair over her bodyweight. Chances are, not too many people can pull this off.
This up-and-coming powerlifter is just 20 years old (20 years old!), but he’s already throwing around all-world weight, including a 901-pound squat. You could say he’s—*ahem*—built like a Hause.
Game of Thrones star Hafthor “Thor” Björnsson continues to lift more than the rest of us could even dream of, and he quite literally raised the bar with an incredible 980-pound squat.
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“The Balance Guru” Lives Up to His Moniker With Some Seriously Nerve-Wracking Balancing Stunts.
Horn’s total-body strength and flexibility is unreal, and he doesn’t plan on slowing down any time soon. His stunts are increasingly stressful to watch, but we can’t look away, either.
Jon Call’s Strength And Flexibility Make Him One-of-a-kind
When just one squat variation wasn’t enough, Jon Call (a.k.a. Jujimufu) went for three at once. This is just a peek at the crazy stunts he puts on his Instagram nearly every week.
College Football Player Squats More Than Triple His Weight
Rondale Moore is a freshman wide receiver for Purdue University, and in the offseason, he posted this incredible squat personal record of 600 pounds. The hard work clearly paid off, as he dominated on the turf during his first season.
Watch How Easily Andrey Malanichev Squats Over 1000 Pounds
Malanichev is still lifting big things, and the most recent video has him squatting more than 1000 pounds—1058-pounds, to be exact—at a pretty blistering speed.
Chad Johnson Blasts 100-Pound Dumbbell Presses, Jokingly Calls Out Phil Heath on 2018 Mr. Olympia Title
Johnson may have been known for his lighting-fast footwork on the field, but, in retirement, he’s not lacking in the strength category—and has clearly taken an interest in pumping iron.
Santonastasso was born missing both legs, one arm, and all but one finger. His journey to becoming an adaptive athlete hasn’t been easy, but he’s always found a way to make it work.
Lawrence is a legit powerlifter and has one the most impressive powerlifting Instagram pages. She’s only 21 years old, and with a squat like this, it’s scary to imagine where else she could go.
Cailer Woolam Deadlifts Over Four Times His Bodyweight
Cailer Woolam broke his own world record for the heaviest deadlift at 100kg (220-pounds), with a 948-pound pull at the WRPF World Championships in Moscow, Russia.
Martins Licis Deadlifted 803 Pounds to Win the Arnold Classic Europe Strongman
The 28-year-old American-born powerhouse took home first place in the Arnold Classic Europe Pro Strongman competition with an impressive deadlift showing at 803 pounds for a set of eight.
The former World’s Strongest Man may have been sidelined for a portion of 2018 due to a foot injury, but he did manage to pull this wacky squat this year.
The four-time World’s Strongest Man takes everything to the max. This applies when he’s deadlifting, lifting stones, and pulling heavy-duty trucks around as well.
James Harrison Casually Crushes a Heavy Single-leg Press
The future NFL Hall-of-Famer may have retired earlier this year, but his commitment to the gym clearly hasn’t waned at all. Here he presses what appears to be 540 pounds of weight with one leg.
