Arto Bryggare analyzes the fitness coach’s Cooper and strength training results.
Matias Petäistö is a fitness coach. Atte Kajova / AOP
Cooper 3,950 meters. Squat 150, deadlift 220, and bench press 130 kilos.
That’s what a well-known fitness trainer boasted on TV Matias Petäistö on their social media channels.
Later, the former soldier specified to Iltalehti that currently the 12-minute Cooper test takes 3,500–3,600 meters.
– I don’t think that’s a good advertising gimmick at all, I think it’s amazing. If he wants to convey that he’s a tough guy, then it’s quite a joke, says Iltalehti’s athletics expert Arto Bryggare.
– If the message is that you will be tough when you come to coaching, then that is also quite a joke, the expert adds.
For example, bragging about a bench press result of 130 kilograms is unnecessary in Bryggare’s opinion.
– The result is not amazing, rather a junior result. 250 kilos from the bench is a tough result. However, I don’t want to underestimate the man, because those are not bad results. But not sane either. Good fitness class.
Here’s the truth
Arto Bryggare, Olympic and World Championship medalist in sprint hurdles, works as Iltalehti’s athletics expert. PASI LEISMA
Born in November 1990, Petäistö competed in juniors mainly in middle distance running. The man’s records are 2:00.16 (from 2008) in 800 meters, 4:07.61 in 1,500 meters (2008) and 9:08,38 in 3,000 meters (2006).
The record of 3,000 meters run at the age of 16 suggests that the Cooper test record of 3,950 meters announced by Petäistö could have been created.
– As a junior, he weighed roughly half of what he weighs now, so of course the situation has been completely different. When you’ve run such times when you’re young, you have a natural ability to absorb oxygen, commented Bryggare.
The expert has never met Petäistö, so the assessment of the man’s current condition is based on the available photo and video material.
– When there is a lot of muscle, and if it is a fast guy, it is a very big challenge to run more than 3,000 meters in Cooper – it would require a huge heart and aerobic fitness. It’s probably a rather slow type, so 3,500 meters is a very realistic-sounding result.
So you consider Petäistö’s announcement about the 3,500-3,600 meter Cooper result possible?
– Yes. The claim is supported by the junior results, that is, there is an oxygen uptake capacity. He presumably has some muscle memory from running that is still useful. 3,500 meters is the result of a good fitness for a 35-year-old man, Bryggare answers.