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Home › Dad of the Month

Brad Johnson

By Renee Roberson

Each month, iParenting.com spotlights a father who inspires and moves us, who embodies the qualities that we all admire in a person, a man and a father. Above all, the Dad of the Month is dedicated to his children. Rich or poor, famous or not, he shines as an example of what fathering is all about.

Tulsa, Okla., native Brad Johnson has earned the title most dads only dream of. After spending more than 14 months on Discovery Channel's culture competition series, Last One Standing, Johnson truly knows what it's like to be a "superhero dad," and he can't wait to share his experiences with his two young daughters as they grow older.

Johnson's journey began about a year and a half ago when the American Strongman Federation (ASC) contacted him regarding an audition for a new series Discovery Channel was developing. Johnson, 29, has worked as a personal trainer for years and is one of the top lightweight strongmen in America (meaning he's a little less than 240 pounds of pure muscle).

Johnson traveled to New York for a grueling three-day audition where "they literally ran us to the ground," he says, remembering. He was offered a spot on the show afterwards.

A Once-in-a-lifetime Experience

Johnson jokes that his wife, Heather, wasn't exactly thrilled when she found out how much travel was required to participate in the series, but she fully supported his decision to go in the end.

"She said that it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience and that she'd support me in whatever I decided to do," Johnson says. Their daughter, Jasmine, was just an infant when he auditioned. Johnson ultimately took the challenge, which meant a yearlong production cycle traveling the world and living among remote indigenous cultures to prepare for intense tribal-sport competitions. His journeys took him to 12 locations around the world, with stops in places such as Mongolia, India, Mexico and Peru.

Prior to Last One Standing, Johnson had never traveled outside of the country or carried a cell phone, passport or credit card. He had competed all over the United States in ASC competitions, but never had the opportunity to see what other countries, such as Brazil or Africa, were really like.

A total of six men competed in the series, including three from the United Kingdom and three from the United States, ranging in age from 20 to 29. Johnson was the only married contestant who was also a dad.

"I learned really quickly that my whole outlook was different from everyone else's," Johnson says.

In one of the trailers for the series, you can see a segment where Johnson says to the camera, "How am I going to provide for my family if something happens to me?" The clip presents Johnson as not only a competitor on the show, but a man with a family who could be severely impacted by his actions at any time.

Trying to Find the Best of Both Worlds

Johnson's travel schedule was grueling, even for a man used to professional competitions. For two months, he'd be on location, and then fly back to Tulsa for about a week and half. Just as his young daughter would start to get used to seeing him again, he'd be off to the next location.

"I felt really bad being a new father, running around the world experiencing life as a tribal member," Johnson says. "That really starts to toy with your emotions after a while."

The schedule was particularly hard on his wife, who suffered a miscarriage while he was filming. Johnson is happy to report now that the newest addition to their family, daughter Amethyst, was born at the beginning of October, right around the time an episode of Last One Standing aired, showing Johnson stick fighting with the Zulu tribe in Africa.

Hard to Be Invincible at Times

One "superhero" quality Johnson didn't have while competing in the series was the power to be invincible. Prior to the show, he had never broken a bone in his body or had any major injuries. During the course of the series, he broke two fingers, dislocated his shoulder and hyper-extended a knee and elbow. It was also hard to adjust to the different dietary restrictions contestants faced in each country.

"Right off the first three shows I dropped 12 to 15 pounds," Johnson says. He would come home, train, eat, gain a little weight back and go back and start the whole cycle all over again. "Honestly, the hardest thing to adapt to was the lack of food. Well, that and pretty much 14 months of diarrhea," he says, joking.

While filming, Johnson says he couldn't figure out at first why he was so moody and irritable, then realized it was because of the restrictions on his diet. He was used to eating 5,000 to 6,000 calories in the United States while competing and training.

"Protein is a luxury in many other countries," Johnson says. "There was a roach infestation in Brazil. We had to pick up our food and blow it off and eat it or we would starve. A lot of places we went didn't even have fruit or vegetables. We ate rice and curry in India and fried bread and goat and sheep milk in Mongolia. A lot of places we survived off of potatoes."

It Really Does "Take a Village"

Competing in Last One Standing helped Johnson put his life in perspective and realize what values he wants to instill in his daughters as they grow up.

"It really does take a village to raise a child," Johnson says. "That's one thing I'm really trying to stick to, having a lot of really cool people to surround my children. It's a beautiful thing to realize, 'hey, I'm spoiled.'"

Johnson now says he believes that when a child turns 18, their parents should give them a little money and let them travel to a third world country. "The more they can get exposed to other cultures the better off they'll be in their life," he says. "It's sick when you realize how some people live day by day in other countries. Most kids think where the live is the center of the universe. The more freedom you give your kids, the faster they can grow up."



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