Eases the veil: – Drag it too far

This spring, a bunch of young hardhausers fought in tough competitions, challenging conditions and demanding surroundings – all to finally be the one who can raise their arms high in the air and call themselves “Norway’s toughest”.

Some are crossfit athletes. Other mountain climbers. Some are firefighters, while others have followed a different career path. What all the participants have in common is that they have a competitive instinct and a drive that is slightly out of the ordinary.

– Had to keep the relationship hidden

For Jesper Rogstad (22), taekwondo has been the big thing. He says that the interest came from the fact that he wanted to break bricks to impress others. However, it didn’t take long for him to discover that the sport was so much more than that.

– It became a sport for which I developed a love. There is a feeling of ownership over the whole thing – you are standing there alone, and have no one to lean on. If things go badly, you only have your own instincts to rely on. That makes you tough.

Norwegian champion – for the third time

Furthermore, he says that he has always had a great need to show others what he is made of. He likes to be in pain. At least a little. He thrives on the pain that can make him achieve something great.

Storm of complaints after profanity

No less than three times he won the Norwegian championship in the sport he loved so much. Then it stopped abruptly. He was caught in a vicious cycle where he felt it was sport or nothing.

– I took it too far, and lost all the joy of the sport. One must learn to prioritize safety and health first. I lost a lot of weight. Lost way too much weight at every competition and became obsessed with checking the weight. It ruined my quality of life, and I finally realized that it was the most important thing. Unfortunately, you have to sacrifice something to be the best … but you have to find a balance, he says and continues:

– But now it’s social media that matters. And I am open to participating in more programs. So maybe I’ll appear on the screens again?

Addressed the stepmother

He tells Se og Hør that since recording he has tried to take social media a little more seriously – and has resorted to surprising methods to understand how it all works.

– I had a very bad “game” on some, but thanks to my stepmother, Mathilde Ullum (31), who runs the podcast 730, I have finally understood the importance of it. Apart from trying to become more visible on the internet, I’ve also put on a lot of muscle, doing more strength training than endurance training – something I didn’t do before I entered “Norway’s Toughest”.

– The program is undoubtedly the funniest, scariest, best and worst thing I’ve done. “Norway’s toughest” was a physical – and not least emotional – roller coaster. One was tested in so many different ways. I notice that I have become a more caring and tougher guy – in addition to feeling more like Jesper, if that makes sense.

The father got cancer: – It has been tough

Bombproof for victory

Although he entered the competition with courage and the will to win, the victory went to Styrk Eriksen (20). To Se og Hør, Jesper tells that friends and family were bombproof that he was going to pull it all ashore, and were perhaps a little surprised when he didn’t go all the way to the top.

– Yes, it was 100% certain. They have seen how far I am willing to go to win. In addition to how versatile I am. But, my parents were very proud and they were actually more excited than me until the series came on TV. They have been supportive throughout – which is really nice.

Reveals details from behind the scenes

Although he is left with great experiences after taking part in the competition, the 22-year-old admits that not everything was quite as it should have been after his stay.

– No, the muscle cells died. All strength in both my forearms was gone during my stay. But the funniest part was probably after the cameras had gone off and the lights had been turned off in the evening, then we boys ran around on all fours and scared the other participants until late at night. There was a lot of stuff that happened off cam, which is a shame for the viewers, of course.

Reveals girlfriend

– Was there anything that surprised you along the way?

– How much I missed the ones I love here at home. Even though I was only gone for about 2 weeks, it did something to me. It was a very strange feeling to know that they were living their normal lives while I was there. Another thing was how good friends you became with each other – even though you were competitors. We still have a lot of contact in our snap group to this day. NRK really did a fantastic job of putting together a brilliant team. We are so different, yet very similar. For better or worse.

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