When it comes to particular exercises, the muscleup occupies a space next to that of the burpee: most people steer clear of them entirely, while those who do find themselves completing either rep, tend to hate the process. Few people have ever completed a set of muscleups and loved the feeling, one that can only be described as an intense burn coursing through the arms. But when it comes to Brandon Tucker, a former Army Ranger from Columbus, Georgia, such is his mental toughness that the muscleup was exactly the kind of challenge he wanted to take on.
Tucker wanted to set a new record for the most bar muscleups completed in a 24-hour period. No stranger to staggering feats of endurance and physical activity, Tucker already holds an officially verified Guinness World Record for doing the most pull-ups in 24 hours, for which he did 7,715 reps in 2019 – a feat that is yet to be beaten. But as anyone who has frequented a gym knows, the muscleup is a very different beast to that of the pull-up.
Tucker served for seven years in the US Army as a Ranger before being forced to retire due to a stomach condition. Looking to set the muscleup record, he took on the challenge at the national Veterans Memorial and Museum in Columbus, Ohio. Unlike Belarusian athlete Maksim Trukhonovets, who set the world record for performing the most muscleups in a row without breaking, Tucker was able to rest between sets.
To nab the record, Tucker had to surpass 1,256 muscleups, which had previously been set by Alejandro Soler Tarf in October of 2021. Thanks to churning out a gruelling 1,300, Tucker managed to do just that. Though currently unofficial, it’s expected that the Guinness Book of World Records will soon review footage of the attempt and confirm it, with Tucker believing the real prize being that he was able to push himself past limits he thought previously impossible.
“It’s about growth, it’s not about the trophy,” he said in an interview with Columbus Dispatch. “You don’t stop because you hit the goal, just like you don’t stop when you get your Rangers tab. You keep getting better, pushing yourself mentally and physically to become a better person for the people around you.”
