{"id":6151,"date":"2026-01-09T05:53:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-09T05:53:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151"},"modified":"2026-01-09T05:53:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-09T05:53:10","slug":"the-worlds-strongest-brothers-bodybuilding-saved-my-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151","title":{"rendered":"The world\u2019s strongest brothers: \u2018Bodybuilding saved my life\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

My early memories of Tom are of this little blond kid, very happy, always running around and totally obsessed with sport. He was either playing football, tennis or golf. There\u2019s a ten-year age gap between us. I\u2019m the oldest of five; Tom is the second youngest. Harry, the youngest, works with us on the business side of things and there are our two sisters: Nikki, who used to be a nurse and is now a landscape gardener, and Jodie, who runs a gravestone business.<\/p>\n

I wasn\u2019t around much during Tom\u2019s childhood because of the age difference. I was out, mostly busy doing my own thing, and by 18 I was away working on the oil rigs. That took me out of the family dynamic, pretty much. So I\u2019m not sure how much Tom did look up to me growing up, simply because I wasn\u2019t there. But I do know that when I started training at the gym \u2014 getting a bigger chest, bigger arms, a six-pack, all of that \u2014 it must have had some influence on him because eventually he followed in my footsteps.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Together we\u2019re now the strongest brothers who ever lived. That\u2019s official, by the way \u2014 our unique selling point. Between us we\u2019ve won three World\u2019s Strongest Man and two Europe\u2019s Strongest Man competitions. Who\u2019s stronger? Tom! He\u2019s 6ft 8in, a massive human being. I\u2019m only 6ft 3in. He holds the world record for lifting the heaviest atlas stone at 286kg. <\/p>\n

Bodybuilding saved my life, really. Every time I came back from the rigs I realised I was not in a good place \u2014 I was depressed, struggling with my mental health. Growing up I\u2019d been self-conscious and shy, but when I went to the gym it helped bring me out of my shell. My grandfather had been a very strong man, someone who could throw up railway sleepers onto his shoulders while doing the gardening. I took my inspiration from him. Then, when Mum passed away from cancer in 2016, aged 56, I just thought, \u201cWhat am I doing with my life?\u201d That\u2019s when I decided to leave the rigs and give the strongman stuff a shot. Tom and I took part in a competition in Dubai in 2019 and took second and third place. That started me thinking that there might be something here for the two of us to do together. <\/p>\n

Tom is autistic. He struggled at school. I remember Mum telling me one time that I should take him to the gym when he was a teenager \u2014 he needed something to help him. Bodybuilding gave him his confidence and so we went on this journey together.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Tom and Luke Stoltman handling weight of world with aplomb<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

We\u2019re the Stoltman Brothers now. We have a gym in our home town of Invergordon, a clothing line, a YouTube channel and we travel the world taking part in strongman competitions. Does that make me a canny businessman? Some might say it\u2019s egotistical mania!<\/p>\n

Bodybuilding was our way of reconnecting as adults. Our drive is very evenly matched. We can both be pretty erratic but we\u2019re a good team. I\u2019ve more ability to have conversations with people because Tom struggles somewhat due to the autism. And it\u2019s harder for him to show emotion, while I\u2019ll cry at a nice sunset. But we spend all our time together, every day: eating, training, competing. We don\u2019t need to say much, we just support ourselves in silence and by being present in each other\u2019s lives. It\u2019s a very big family we have \u2014 nieces and nephews everywhere and we\u2019re close to our siblings \u2014 then there\u2019s Tom\u2019s wife, my partner, my son from my first marriage and our dad, who is very proud. It\u2019s really nice that we\u2019ve all stayed in the same area. We support one another.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve had injuries, sure, but not serious ones. I\u2019ve had a couple of torn biceps, which were pretty nasty, but they were non-surgical and the recovery was only six to eight weeks. Strength training is one of the best forms of life longevity: we follow a very strict protocol. <\/p>\n

In the latest World\u2019s Strongest Man competition, which was shown over Christmas, Tom came second to a South African newcomer called Rayno Nel, losing to him by half a point. But they went out partying afterwards and soon were the best of friends. I came ninth. At 41 I\u2019m coming to the end of my career but Tom has years ahead of him. He\u2019s still incredibly strong.<\/p>\n

Tom<\/h2>\n

I was diagnosed with autism at five years old, so school for me was difficult. I had to find my own path through it, and that was football. I played all the time but when I reached 16 or 17 most of my friends left for college or university, or jobs. I didn\u2019t know what to do with myself, so I just locked myself in my room playing Xbox, up to eight hours a day. My room was always my safe space.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n

The brothers at home c\u20051995<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

I knew that Luke had found bodybuilding really helpful for his mental health and one day my parents encouraged me to go with him. I was maybe 16. I kept my hood up and couldn\u2019t make eye contact with anyone. There were loads of men at the gym, loads of mirrors, people staring at you. I hated it. And working out hurt, it made your muscles so sore. But I kept going back and I liked it when my body started changing. I took my hood down and got a bit more confident.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Scots star Tom Stoltman is the world\u2019s strongest man \u2014 again<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

Luke guided me in the right direction and soon we were both winning competitions. In 90 per cent of the competitions we\u2019ve entered we are competing against one another. We both want to beat each other of course, and he used to win everything before I started beating him, but we always hug afterwards. Basically we\u2019re like Superman and the Hulk coming together, and it\u2019s important to us that we\u2019re doing it for Scotland.<\/p>\n

We spend every day together, training. Breakfast is eight boiled eggs with some sourdough and cheese, then at 10am it\u2019s 400g mince, 400g rice and some garlic flavouring, and then I have the same thing again at 12 o\u2019clock before going to the gym. That\u2019s a lot before midday. In the evenings I\u2019ll eat anything my wife, Sinead, makes. She has always been incredibly supportive throughout my career.<\/p>\n

Becoming this successful has definitely brought me out of my shell, but sometimes I get overwhelmed and have to take a step back. Luke is always there for me. We\u2019re a business now and we\u2019re always looking what to do next. There\u2019s even a film being made of our lives. Every year our targets get a little bit bigger but we remind ourselves that this is a marathon, not a sprint. All I\u2019ve known in my life is to lift weights and be strong, but I know I\u2019ve got to sit down with Luke and think, OK, what\u2019s the future? It\u2019s exciting.
Luke and Tom run an online coaching academy at <\/b>stoltmanacademy.com<\/b><\/a> and sell merchandise through <\/b>stoltmanbrothers.com<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

Strange habits <\/h2>\n

Luke on Tom<\/b>
Whenever we go to a new place, he goes to the toilet straight away. It\u2019s almost like he\u2019s marking his territory<\/p>\n

Tom on Luke<\/b>
The noises he makes in the cold tub sound like a wild animal. It\u2019s very disturbing<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

My early memories of Tom are of this little blond kid, very happy, always running around and totally obsessed with sport. He was either playing football, tennis or golf. There\u2019s a ten-year age gap between us. I\u2019m the oldest of five; Tom is the second youngest. Harry, the youngest, works with us on the business […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":281,"featured_media":6152,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-6151","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-news"},"yoast_head":"\nThe world\u2019s strongest brothers: \u2018Bodybuilding saved my life\u2019 - World Bodybuilding News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The world\u2019s strongest brothers: \u2018Bodybuilding saved my life\u2019 - World Bodybuilding News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"My early memories of Tom are of this little blond kid, very happy, always running around and totally obsessed with sport. He was either playing football, tennis or golf. There\u2019s a ten-year age gap between us. I\u2019m the oldest of five; Tom is the second youngest. Harry, the youngest, works with us on the business […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"World Bodybuilding News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-01-09T05:53:10+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.thetimes.com\/imageserver\/image\/%2F28093109-d492-48c2-b592-9eb0c6b8e2d4.jpg?crop=1725%2C1633%2C212%2C1091\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Nick Duerden\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Nick Duerden\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=6151#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=6151\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Nick Duerden\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d712ed39bfd27b6795736d97643d110c\"},\"headline\":\"The world\u2019s strongest brothers: \u2018Bodybuilding saved my life\u2019\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-01-09T05:53:10+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=6151\"},\"wordCount\":1301,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=6151#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/2Fd9b00b1f-6e78-4494-b51c-78dbd2660322.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=6151#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=6151\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=6151\",\"name\":\"The world\u2019s strongest brothers: \u2018Bodybuilding saved my life\u2019 - World Bodybuilding News\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=6151#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=6151#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/2Fd9b00b1f-6e78-4494-b51c-78dbd2660322.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-01-09T05:53:10+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d712ed39bfd27b6795736d97643d110c\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=6151#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=6151\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=6151#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/2Fd9b00b1f-6e78-4494-b51c-78dbd2660322.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/2Fd9b00b1f-6e78-4494-b51c-78dbd2660322.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":675},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=6151#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The world\u2019s strongest brothers: \u2018Bodybuilding saved my life\u2019\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"World Bodybuilding News\",\"description\":\"Data, Rankings, Results.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d712ed39bfd27b6795736d97643d110c\",\"name\":\"Nick Duerden\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/?s=96&d=initials&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/?s=96&d=initials&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/?s=96&d=initials&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Nick Duerden\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?author=281\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The world\u2019s strongest brothers: \u2018Bodybuilding saved my life\u2019 - World Bodybuilding News","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The world\u2019s strongest brothers: \u2018Bodybuilding saved my life\u2019 - World Bodybuilding News","og_description":"My early memories of Tom are of this little blond kid, very happy, always running around and totally obsessed with sport. He was either playing football, tennis or golf. There\u2019s a ten-year age gap between us. I\u2019m the oldest of five; Tom is the second youngest. Harry, the youngest, works with us on the business […]","og_url":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151","og_site_name":"World Bodybuilding News","article_published_time":"2026-01-09T05:53:10+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/www.thetimes.com\/imageserver\/image\/%2F28093109-d492-48c2-b592-9eb0c6b8e2d4.jpg?crop=1725%2C1633%2C212%2C1091","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"Nick Duerden","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Nick Duerden","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151"},"author":{"name":"Nick Duerden","@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d712ed39bfd27b6795736d97643d110c"},"headline":"The world\u2019s strongest brothers: \u2018Bodybuilding saved my life\u2019","datePublished":"2026-01-09T05:53:10+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151"},"wordCount":1301,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/2Fd9b00b1f-6e78-4494-b51c-78dbd2660322.jpg","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151","url":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151","name":"The world\u2019s strongest brothers: \u2018Bodybuilding saved my life\u2019 - World Bodybuilding News","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/2Fd9b00b1f-6e78-4494-b51c-78dbd2660322.jpg","datePublished":"2026-01-09T05:53:10+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d712ed39bfd27b6795736d97643d110c"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/2Fd9b00b1f-6e78-4494-b51c-78dbd2660322.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/2Fd9b00b1f-6e78-4494-b51c-78dbd2660322.jpg","width":1200,"height":675},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=6151#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The world\u2019s strongest brothers: \u2018Bodybuilding saved my life\u2019"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/","name":"World Bodybuilding News","description":"Data, Rankings, Results.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d712ed39bfd27b6795736d97643d110c","name":"Nick Duerden","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=initials&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=initials&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=initials&r=g","caption":"Nick Duerden"},"url":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?author=281"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6151","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/281"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6151"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6151\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6152"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6151"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6151"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6151"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}