At 16, Tom Stoltman felt lost, depressed, and consumed by sweets while hiding in baggy hoodies. Today, at 31, he stands as a three-time World's Strongest Man, a titan weighing 180kg – the equivalent of a large lion. His journey from a bullied, self-conscious teenager in Invergordon to the pinnacle of global strength sports is a powerful testament to resilience and self-acceptance.
The 'Crashing Point' and a Brother's Intervention
Diagnosed with autism as a child, Stoltman always felt different. "I was really shy," he recalls. "I got bullied in school for being different." A tall, skinny frame of 90kg at 6ft 8in made him feel awkward, especially on the football pitch where smaller players could push him off the ball. By his mid-teens, he had hit a low, swapping his passion for football for days spent on the Xbox and skipping meals for multiple bags of sweets.
His salvation came through his older brother, Luke, a bodybuilder. Luke dragged Tom to the gym and introduced him to free weights. "At the start I was just doing the 20kg bar and the next day I’d be so sore," Tom says. But within a week, a spark was lit. This intervention was compounded when Tom watched Luke compete in Scotland’s Strongest Man, lifting cars and atlas stones. "Watching your brother do that, you’re, like, oh, he’s like a Hulk." Tom was hooked.
Autism as a 'Cheat Code' to Greatness
Stoltman committed fully, joining a strongman gym and overhauling his diet, trading snacks for protein-rich meals to fuel his growing frame. He credits his autism with providing the unique focus needed to excel. "Autism became my cheat code," he explains, allowing him to lock into a strict routine and block out distractions utterly.
It took a decade of relentless training and eating to double his body weight to his current 180kg. His daily regimen is formidable: eight boiled eggs with cheese and mayonnaise on sourdough for breakfast, followed by two meals of spicy mince and rice before a 12.30pm training session. He eats five times a day to sustain his colossal strength.
Redefining Health and Strength
Now a full-time strongman who runs a gym with his brother, Stoltman takes a biohacker's approach to recovery, using an oxygen chamber, red-light therapy, sauna, and cold tub. He works with a nutritionist and sports doctor who monitors his health, noting his cholesterol is low despite a BMI that classifies him as obese. "A lot of people think strongmen are fat guys lifting one rep. But you can be fit at any shape or size," he asserts.
His feats of strength are staggering: he can run while holding a 200kg atlas stone, deadlift 350kg for 12 repetitions, and has even pulled two monster trucks. Yet his pride isn't merely in his physical power or 31-inch biceps, which he calls "artificial." It's in the mental toughness his body represents and the practical strength it grants, like recently helping a stranger push a broken-down car off the road.
In 2021, at the age of 27, Stoltman first claimed the World's Strongest Man title, defeating seasoned veterans. He has since won it twice more. The boy who once looked in the mirror and asked, "Why am I different?" now sees someone who harnessed that difference as a superpower. "I can look in the mirror and smile," he says. Tom Stoltman, co-founder of the Stoltman Strength Centre, is living proof that perceived weaknesses can be forged into world-beating strength.
