Winter is coming and along with it (hopefully!) (finally!) the new season of Game of Thrones.
If you just can’t wait until then, you’ll enjoy hearing a bit more about Hafthor Bjornsson, known as The Mountain on the HBO mega-hit.
Bjornsson, currently The World’s Strongest Man offered Parade readers some insights into one of the most famous scenes in TV history, the fight to the finish in “The Mountain vs. The Viper” on GOT. He also shared tips on getting in shape for the New Year.
So, how do you pronounce his name? “Like Thor the God,” Bjornsson said, “and then add the word half.”
On reaching a goal: “Being the strongest man in the world is exciting for me. I’ve been working toward that goal for 10 years. I was in third place and then in second place. Standing there being the strongest was a good moment for myself, for my family, for my friends and everyone around me.”
Man vs. Glue: Bjornsson said, “I am super strong and can lift close to 1,000 pounds. It seems fun, and yes, crazy that Krazy Glue can hold 1,000 pounds. I’m not afraid of challenges.” The challenge in question being an event that took place this week in NYC where Bjornsson partnered with Krazy Glue and attempted to lift wacky things suggested by online fans. According to the event page, Bjornsson was challenged to lift things ranging from a 70-gallon fish tank filled with electric eels to a motorcycle. The catch? Each item weighed up to half a ton and was suspended from a barbell using only Krazy Glue.
One of the items he attempted to lift at the Man Vs. Glue event on Wednesday was more than 750 pounds of canned food. Following the event, the canned food was donated to local New York City charity City Harvest, the city’s largest food rescue organization.
On *that* scene: In case you’re not a GOT fan, you missed one of the most eye-popping scenes in television history. Bjornsson said, “Back in 2012, I was an athlete. Game of Thrones was my first big role and to be a part of that is definitely life-changing. It doesn’t matter who you are, it will change your life forever. That one scene changed my life. It doesn’t take more than that. That fight scene was filmed in Dubrovnik, Croatia.
“I remember when the scene aired on television my phone died. I thought that was weird, because my battery was fully charged. It turns out that I was getting new notifications every single second and that probably lasted for days and weeks and my online followers went sky-high, it changed my life. People talked about it for days weeks after.
“It is a good experience to be part of something like that. It’s also intimidating because you don’t want to under-perform. There were so many people there. On that small scene there might be 500 people on the set. I may be filming a small scene that’s 5 seconds long, and all those people have to be there. It’s very intimidating for a man like myself. I’m a little bit new in the acting, still learning still trying to make myself better.”
A typical day in the life of the world’s strongest man: If you’ve ever wondered what The Mountain eats in a typical day, the answer is a lot. Bjornsson said he wakes up at about 7 or 8 a.m. then eats six eggs and a lot of bacon before catching up on email. He eats a second meal about 2 1/2 hours after the first and eats about every 2 1/2 hours all day. “I eat a lot of food. A lot of food. A lot of my day is spent preparing meals and eating them. I’m married. I have a wife and she helps me with a lot of things. I’m happy to have her. I used to train around 2 p.m. Me and my wife train together. After that I get back home, I eat again. I do hot and cold therapy to help my body to recover so I can train more. Then I look at my emails, try to finish up. I might do things around the house, and then my day is over.”
On New Year’s Resolutions: Bjornsson is quick to credit his team for helping him achieve his goals and most often credits his wife. He said if you’re own New Year’s resolution involves a fitness goal, you should start very slowly. “Do some exercise. One step at a time. Don’t rush. It’s always OK to find help. Don’t be ashamed if you need help. I have help from so many people. My wife helps me with my diet all the time. I have a nutritionist. Health is very important to be able to reach your goals. Having people around you who support you is the most important thing of all. And just saying—I want to work out more. I want to get strong, is the biggest first step there is.”
Man vs. Glue event details:
In advance of the event, Bjornsson said, “I encourage people to come out or watch it live at Center415 located at 415 5th Avenue between 37th and 38th streets at 6:15 p.m. Eastern Time. I challenge everyone to come and see this happen.”
Check out updates to the event on Krazy Glue’s Facebook page.
Rachel Weingarten is a beauty, smarter shopping and lifestyle expert, beauty historian and the award-winning author of three non-fiction books including Ancient Prayer. In early 2018 Rachel launched Beauty Counter Culture and also The Evolved Foodie. Get social with her on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
