What will you do on the night of November 30 to December 1? Nothing, an evening, work… Rémi Girard will be hanging on a bar. From 11 a.m. until the next day at the same time. The “Hulk of the Woods”, as he is nicknamed at home in Haute-Saône, is tackling a very specific world record.
“I want to beat the number of pull-ups in twenty-four hours,” announces the 25-year-old young man, resident of Perrouse, a small town between Besançon and Vesoul. “For the moment, it is a Japanese who has the record with 8,940. »
“I reached 8,675 in twenty-four hours”
Nothing to scare this forestry worker at the National Forestry Office (ONF). Since the end of August, he has already trained six times over time. “The first time, I did one pull-up per minute. Then two the next time, up to six last weekend when I reached 8,675 in twenty-four hours. I felt good at the end, I had kept some. I know I can do it. My goal is to go up to 9,120. For this, I plan 8 pull-ups per minute for 5.5 hours then six per minute for the remaining 18.5 hours. »
The trained lumberjack is thoughtful. Over the years, he has learned to listen to his body better. Better than in 2023, when he was injured some time before tackling the record for pull-ups in sixty minutes (1,246). “I had tendinitis. I was going too fast. I noticed that it gets much better with longer sessions. »
Then his father’s partner told him about “a record in eight hours.” “. “I tried and it was going well so I pushed until one p.m. and finally twenty-four at the end of August,” continues Rémi Girard, who has always “liked to push [son] body to its limits. “It’s been like this since I was a kid. I was passionate about extreme sports. I remember I was going to run with a bag filled with 14 kg of clothes! I was a little unconscious…”
The Haut-Saônois had a dream, “to join the special forces”. His commitment to the army was almost complete when he backed out. “I had a click, I didn’t want to leave my family, my friends, my region…” So the “Hulk of the Woods” turned to lumberjacking, before also working in public works. And always continuing the sport in high doses.
“I don’t want to sculpt my body”
“I was doing a lot of push-ups. At 18, I was doing 1,700 an hour. I started doing pull-ups when I was 23. Like everyone else the first time, I was happy to get my chin over the bar. Then I continued. I don’t want to sculpt my body but I like to work on strength. »
All with a proportional mental effort because the time can be very long for twenty-four hours… “I can’t really describe what’s going on in my head but I think a lot about my friends, my family during that I do pull-ups. The first twelve hours are pretty easy and I chat and laugh with those who come to see me. It becomes complicated after 11 p.m. because the brain is used to deep sleep. And at 2, 3 a.m., I no longer think about anything. »
Training… in a 6m² shed
Rémi Girard doesn’t really have any distractions during his event since he trains… in a shed at the bottom of his garden. Around 6m², the structure was built by his father for the occasion. “At first, I trained in the hunting cabin but it wasn’t very practical. »
On November 30 and December 1, the possible future world record holder will be installed in the “Lyberty Gym” sports hall in the neighboring town of Rioz. “I think there will be people coming to see me because it attracts a lot of curious people,” laughs the young man, who will also be surrounded by his family. My sister massages my back and forearms and my mother-in-law brings me food. My energy drink, coffee, water, rice, beef in small pieces that I can eat. For a steak, I take forty minutes! »
Each time, he has to do it again between each pull. “Be careful, I don’t hang on the bar for twenty-four hours,” he laughs, talking about a possible another record in the event of a first success. “The twelve-hour one exists, it could be a project…”
