Mission statement

OUR AIM IS TO DEVELOP THE SPORT OF STRONGMAN BY PROVIDING A LEGITIMATE & ACCREDITED ROUTE FOR STRONGMAN COACHING EDUCATION AND A SPACE FOR CHILDREN TO DEVELOP THEIR FUNCTIONAL STRENGTH.

Our Programmes

One of our Level 1 Coaching Courses in action

Level 1 Fundamentals of Coaching Strongman Qualification

The UK’s original Strongman coaching course.

The sport of Strongman is incredibly varied. This course serves as an introduction to the fundamental
events and how best to coach beginners towards executing them in a safe and structured manner.

Educate.Strong's tutors have decades of training, competition and coaching experience across strength sports. Paul Smith is a successful Strongman. He and Dr Chris Fitzgerald have coached many noteworthy athletes and are vastly experienced "coaching the coaches" particularly through charity Mind Body Connect (Charity No. 1173834) and the MOD.

The fundamentals course covers six core events:

Log press

Axle press

Deadlift

Farmers walk

Yoke

Atlas Stones

There will be opportunities for you to coach and learn practical, hands on, real world skills that can be used to improve your coaching services with your own clients.

This is an Active IQ accredited course so you can gain an industry wide recognised qualification to go on your CV. We're very excited to be able to offer this resource to the community. As this is a level 1 qualification there are no previous qualifications required to sign up, we just require participants to have experience with strength training and to feel confident within the gym environment.

Lunch is included with the course fee for each day and there is an opportunity to go for dinner together on the Saturday evening to talk shop and socialise.

We have two upcoming L1 Coaching Courses:

Bionik Strength HQ in Oldham on the 17/18th October 2026 from 9:00-17:00 each day.

The Unit in Colchester on the 20/21st March 2027 from 9:00-17:00 each day

The price is £500 with a £100 deposit to sign up and the balance being due in October for our Bionik course and March for our Unit course. The courses are limited to 10 participants to make sure everyone has lots of hands on help and contact time with Paul and Chris. Discounts are available for armed forces personnel. Please email us for more information on that.

After signing up we will send you the course guide and E-learning materials via email so you know exactly what is going on logistics wise and what you need to complete.

Level 1 Strongman Refereeing Certification

The first step to becoming a trusted official in the sport.

Strongman competitions rely on clear decisions, consistent judging and a cool head - though not all of them live up to this standard.

This course introduces you to the essentials of refereeing, giving you the tools to manage events confidently and uphold the standards athletes deserve.

Your tutors, Paul Smith and Dr Chris Fitzgerald, bring a rare blend of competitive experience, technical knowledge and years spent supporting athletes and organisers across strength sports. Their backgrounds mean you’ll get practical, no-nonsense guidance shaped by real competitions, not theory.

The certification includes the following units:

The ethos of a referee

Core refereeing skills

Responsibilities & expectations

Event rules

Live practical drills

You’ll get hands-on experience making calls, handling equipment and applying rules under pressure - the practical grounding every strongman referee needs.

Our next refereeing course is at AL Fitness in Atherstone, Nuneaton on the 25th October 2026. The price is £250 with £100 deposit required to sign up and the balance being due in mid-October.

No previous refereeing experience is required, just a good understanding of Strongman events.

This course is endorsed by both WHEA.GB and Armed Forces Strongman.

StrongKidz

Strength training has proven physical, psychological and social benefits. StrongKidz is a weekly strength training programme designed specifically for children to develop their physicality and mental resilience. We even have a kids size log! This class is based in Sheffield England. Spaces are very limited. Drop us an email if you think you may have a StrongKid at home!

Meet the Team

TOGETHER WE ARE STRONGER

Tutor

StrongKidz Coach

Dr Chris Fitzgerald

With a PhD in Health and related research Chris is a published author with 12 Years experience working with the charity Mind Body Connect using exercise to empower marginalised groups. He is a Worlds Natural Strongest man athlete with multiple national titles and decades of experience coaching and competing across strength sports. As co-founder of our StrongKidz programme, Chris is passionate about the transformative power of strength training.

Tutor

Paul Smith

Paul is 3x UK's Strongest Man champion, 1x Junior UK and World champion, 4x England's Strongest Man and a Worlds Strongest Man athlete. He is a founding member of charity Mind Body Connect and a pioneer of their empowerment through movement approach. Paul has coached a UK's Strongest Woman champion who was also a runner-up at the Arnold Strongwoman Classic, Ireland's Strongest Man, Scotland's Strongest Man 105kg, a Natural Worlds Strongest Man champion and several Natural Worlds Strongest Man/Woman podium finishers.

StrongKidz Coach

Laura Hollywood

Laura is the owner of Mud & Muscle who specialises in developing the fitness and strength of women over 30. She is Britain's Strongest and Europe's Strongest u73 Woman and has multiple podiums at international level. Laura is co-founder of our StrongKidz programme and is a an excellent role model and mentor for children at the beginning of their strength journey.

StrongKidz Coach

Victoria Wilson

Vicky is a former captain of Sheffield Steel Roller Derby and the strength and conditioning coach for Sheffield Steel Juniors. She has competed in powerlifting, weightlifting and strongwoman and now specialises in bringing newcomers into the gym environment and creating small group classes/communities.