Fitness fanatic Lynton Dell is muscling in on the strongman scene with an unusual attraction at his gym.
The 26-year-old former soldier has won over an army of fans with a "dungeon" room at his fitness centre, the Warehouse Gym, in Leicester.
The 4,000 sq ft area recreates some of the Herculean tasks seen on the televised competition The World's Strongest Man, such as lifting vehicles and flipping huge tyres.
Lynton, a veteran of three active tours of Afghanistan, opened the dungeon at the gym, in Parker Drive, off Blackbird Road, Leicester, in August.
"The response has been amazing," he said. "I have 1,000 members and many are having a go in the room – which is affectionately known as the world of pain.
"What has surprised and pleased me is the number of women who are having a go.
"It's not a place just for giant men with bulging biceps, it's for everyone.
"I'd always loved the strongman stuff and was fascinated by just how much a person could push their body, so I researched where I could get some of the specialised equipment, such as the car dead lift, and got on with stocking an area of the gym with it."
Lynton, of the West End, Leicester, opened the gym a year ago and has already won a national award – the best newcomer title in the National Fitness Awards 2012.
"It was the realisation of a long-held dream when I opened my own gym," he said.
"From my late teens, when I started going to the gym and taking a particular interest in keeping fit, I wanted to run my own place.
"I joined the Army straight from school and loved it and keeping fit was a big part of my life. I had the vision from the start and had been saving as much money as I could while I was away on tours in Afghanistan with the Army.
"I've used all my savings – £35,000 – to open this gym, and hit the credit card hard to make the dream a reality."
Lynton, who is 6ft 1in and 17 stone, still keeps in shape and is often to be found in the strongman dungeon himself.
He said: "I love it in there and so it seems do lots of other people. It's something different and always a challenge to see if you can beat your last effort."
Lynton warned that lifting very heavy weights can be extremely dangerous unless properly supervised by a trained professional.
Strongman Jay Pateman, who holds the Great Britain Powerlifting Federation bench press record after pushing up 235kg, is a member. The 33-year-old, of Knighton, Leicester, said: "The dungeon is a great place for me to train. Lynton has done a brilliant job in recreating the strongman tasks. It is both challenging and fun.
"After watching the guys in the World's Strongest Man on TV, the other week you can appreciate just how hard the tasks are."
