By any measurement, Antony Cosentino (MExSc., BSc., MESSA) should be a household name in Western Australia. Pound for pound he is probably the strongest man in not only WA but also Australia. What is certain is that he has recently won the Australian Strongman title for the u/80 kg weight division, held in Brisbane.
In doing so he is only 1 of 20 in the world to qualify for entry into the prestigious Arnold Strongman Classic in Ohio (USA) in February 2013 and the Melbourne Formula 1 in March 2013. The Arnold Classic is the second largest sporting collaboration behind the Olympic Games and expects over 185,000 attendees over the weekend alone, while the F1 is the pinnacle of motor sports.
In doing so he is only 1 of 20 in the world to qualify for entry into the prestigious Arnold Strongman Classic in Ohio (USA) in February 2013 and the Melbourne Formula 1 in March 2013. The Arnold Classic is the second largest sporting collaboration behind the Olympic Games and expects over 185,000 attendees over the weekend alone, while the F1 is the pinnacle of motor sports.
Looking at Antony, you could be mistaken for believing his body to be in peak physical condition. He is certainly strong, however 6 years spent as a State League baseball catcher, as well as the extreme training necessary for Strongman, has taken its toll on Antony’s body.
When he first came to see me (Rob Colling) it was on recommendation from StrengthClub’s head coach
(& Olympic Polevaulter) James Miller. It was with much trepidation. Firstly he had been to other practitioners without satisfaction and he was sick of people telling him that the only way to sort his problems out was to rest completely. Also when he finally arrived, he turned up with, what was essentially a shopping list of complaints.
The first thing I realised about Antony was that “Rest” was not an option. He was heavily in training for the Australian Strongman Title and he was going to continue to train regardless of what any physio or doctor was going to tell him. Finding something to work on was not an issue; finding what to work on first to give us the biggest result was the challenge.
The one thing I have learnt from over 15 years experience as a Sports Physiotherapist is that no-one gets to a point of success alone. In order to be successful an athlete must have a team of like-minded people surrounding them. The first thing I did was enlist the help of one of Perth’s premier sports doctors and a good sports masseur. Needless to say Antony was introduced to true performance-based Sports Physiotherapy.
“I’m a natural and drug free athlete, there is only so much that I can do on my own and that my body can take before it irreparably breaks down, I am happy to punish my body but I definitely rely on Rob (Colling – Activate Physiotherapist) to keep me in a condition that lets me get the most out of my body at every session and competition” (Quote from Antony Cosentino)
Together we embarked upon a journey of eliminating pain, minimising tightness, maximising strength and enabling performance. Twice a week for the 10 weeks leading up to the Australian Champs, Ant would attend physio sessions. When compared to Olympic athletes, Ant trained as hard and in most cases harder… and most Olympic athletes would attend physio 3-4x a week leading up to the Games. As an example, one athlete under my care in Great Britain prior to the 2004 Athens Games would train in the morning for 3 hrs, get a 2 hr massage whilst she ate lunch, sleep for 2 hours, get 1 hour of physio, then
train for 2 hours again in the afternoon, then home for dinner and bed…every day. Keeping this in mind, and given Antony’s workload his twice weekly physio sessions just the bare minimum.
With Ant on the right track, his shopping list of complaints had diminished considerably. Better than this, he was able to train throughout. Infact, with the help of physiotherapy, he never once missed a session . At the comp he posted PB’s despite tearing his hand carrying 150kg in each hand. He even called me (Rob Colling) at the end of day 1 and asked how he could glue his hand together as there was another 4 events to complete on day 2.
One week after returning from his National victory, Antony, with a 25kg weight disadvantage, competed in the U105kg State Championships as a show of support for his sport. Little did he know that he was actually carrying a small tear in his Achilles Tendon (calf), a 2 cm tear in his Infraspinatus Tendon (shoulder) and a suspected torn labrum in his hip. Suffice to say, Antony continues with his regular Physiotherapy sessions in the lead up to representing Australia on the International stage.
Activate Physiotherapy wishes Antony the best of luck at his upcoming events and urges those who are interested to support /sponsor this self-funded athlete and his valiant endeavours to contact Activate directly.
By Rob Colling
BSc (Physio), PGDip (Sp.Physio), MSc (Sp.Physio), MCSP, APAM
Sports Physiotherapist
http://www.activatephysio.com.au/_blog/Activate_Physio_Blog/post/Physio_The_Strongman/
When he first came to see me (Rob Colling) it was on recommendation from StrengthClub’s head coach
(& Olympic Polevaulter) James Miller. It was with much trepidation. Firstly he had been to other practitioners without satisfaction and he was sick of people telling him that the only way to sort his problems out was to rest completely. Also when he finally arrived, he turned up with, what was essentially a shopping list of complaints.
The first thing I realised about Antony was that “Rest” was not an option. He was heavily in training for the Australian Strongman Title and he was going to continue to train regardless of what any physio or doctor was going to tell him. Finding something to work on was not an issue; finding what to work on first to give us the biggest result was the challenge.
The one thing I have learnt from over 15 years experience as a Sports Physiotherapist is that no-one gets to a point of success alone. In order to be successful an athlete must have a team of like-minded people surrounding them. The first thing I did was enlist the help of one of Perth’s premier sports doctors and a good sports masseur. Needless to say Antony was introduced to true performance-based Sports Physiotherapy.
“I’m a natural and drug free athlete, there is only so much that I can do on my own and that my body can take before it irreparably breaks down, I am happy to punish my body but I definitely rely on Rob (Colling – Activate Physiotherapist) to keep me in a condition that lets me get the most out of my body at every session and competition” (Quote from Antony Cosentino)
Together we embarked upon a journey of eliminating pain, minimising tightness, maximising strength and enabling performance. Twice a week for the 10 weeks leading up to the Australian Champs, Ant would attend physio sessions. When compared to Olympic athletes, Ant trained as hard and in most cases harder… and most Olympic athletes would attend physio 3-4x a week leading up to the Games. As an example, one athlete under my care in Great Britain prior to the 2004 Athens Games would train in the morning for 3 hrs, get a 2 hr massage whilst she ate lunch, sleep for 2 hours, get 1 hour of physio, then
train for 2 hours again in the afternoon, then home for dinner and bed…every day. Keeping this in mind, and given Antony’s workload his twice weekly physio sessions just the bare minimum.
With Ant on the right track, his shopping list of complaints had diminished considerably. Better than this, he was able to train throughout. Infact, with the help of physiotherapy, he never once missed a session . At the comp he posted PB’s despite tearing his hand carrying 150kg in each hand. He even called me (Rob Colling) at the end of day 1 and asked how he could glue his hand together as there was another 4 events to complete on day 2.
One week after returning from his National victory, Antony, with a 25kg weight disadvantage, competed in the U105kg State Championships as a show of support for his sport. Little did he know that he was actually carrying a small tear in his Achilles Tendon (calf), a 2 cm tear in his Infraspinatus Tendon (shoulder) and a suspected torn labrum in his hip. Suffice to say, Antony continues with his regular Physiotherapy sessions in the lead up to representing Australia on the International stage.
Activate Physiotherapy wishes Antony the best of luck at his upcoming events and urges those who are interested to support /sponsor this self-funded athlete and his valiant endeavours to contact Activate directly.
By Rob Colling
BSc (Physio), PGDip (Sp.Physio), MSc (Sp.Physio), MCSP, APAM
Sports Physiotherapist
http://www.activatephysio.com.au/_blog/Activate_Physio_Blog/post/Physio_The_Strongman/
