Advertisement

Former U.S. Marine, 62, Sets Guinness World Record for Planking Longer Than 8 Hours

This 62-year-old has record-breaking abs.

Earlier this month, former U.S. Marine George Hood set the new record for holding the longest plank of all time, shattering previous impressive attempts with 8 hours, 15 minutes and 15 seconds on Feb. 15, Guinness World Records announced.

According to Guinness, Illinois native Hood completed an estimated 2,100 hours of planking to train for the stunt, which the athlete commissioned in order to win back his record from Chinese policeman Mao Weidong, who broke it in 2016.

“Anybody can do what I do,” Hood told CNN. “Everybody has to start somewhere.”

He continued: “Every tree that’s planted has roots. Once that tree is planted and those roots start to grow, whether it be 30 seconds or a minute or five minutes or an hour [of planking], you start repeating the process and taking care of your tree, it will grow and you will improve and you will actually get better.”

For women, the benchmark for the longest plank was set by Canadian Dana Glowacka in May 2019, according to Guinness, with an unshakable time of 4 hours, 19 minutes and 55 seconds.

RELATED: World’s Oldest Yoga Teacher Dies at 101: ‘She Is Now Dancing Her Way to the Next Planet’

Detailing his incredible workout routine, Hood told CNN that he practiced “four to five hours a day in the plank pose” — and does an additional 2,000 sit-ups, 700 push-ups 500 leg squats and 300 arm curls a day.

Holding the horizontal position for so long can result in visceral reactions from the body, though Hood said he used loud rock music to keep him in the zone, plus some helpful coaching.

“The burning will set in those elbows, the skin will break and they will bleed,” said Hood. “When that happens, [my coach] talks me through it and I take lots of water and eventually they go numb.”

He added: “When the numbness sets in, I’m generally pretty good. It’s just a matter of being tired and wanting to stop.”

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories

RELATED: Nurse Denied Guinness World Record Because She Didn’t Wear a Skirt During London Marathon

Hood, who is also a retired supervisory special agent for the Drug Enforcement Administration, said he wanted to pull off the fitness feat in order to raise awareness for mental health. He hosted the planking event at 515 Fitness, a workout center that puts mental health first.

“When you’re in a combat situation, and even in law enforcement with the agents that I used to work with,” explained Hood, “we get involved in shootings. Some people don’t handle it well because they’re burdened with other issues that are running in the background, whether it be marital issues, kid issues or financial problems.”

He continued: “Sometimes those things can push people over the edge and they don’t know how to flush it out, how to talk about it. But when they walk through the door at 515 Fitness, there’s hope because there’s licensed clinicians there and trainers that will help them get well.”

After he received his certificate, Hood assured that he’s done defending his planking record — but he mentioned, according to Guinness, that he still may try his hand at the push-ups record.