About Mike Bruce

Professional strongman and motivational speaker Mike Bruce is best know for his impeccable physique, which took years of intense training to develop. But the tattoos that adorn his hard upper body tell the story of his life from a trouble teen to an influential orator for today’s youth.

With a moderate amount of tattoos placed along his prodigious biceps and a single inked design between his chest and the base of his neck, Bruce has a unique and meaningful story for each piece of artwork.

“My first tattoo was tiger I had placed on my left arm when I was 17 years old. Back then I got the tattoo because I was lost and acting like a punk, not caring what anyone though of me or about my tattoo. I got the tiger because people had told me that I was fierce like a tiger – when actually I was insecure and masking who I really was.”

After a stint in the Marines and lessons learned from his step father, Mike Bruce became a caring man, and his next tattoos reflected his new sense of meaningful living.

“The Marines and especially my step father saved my life,” Bruce said. “I was an angry and destructive person when I was a teenager, but my step father taught me how to be a man.”

Bruce’s next tattoo was a bulldog to represent his time spent in the Marines. His mother’s and father’s initials are placed above and below the bulldog. The detailed cartoon rendition of a muscular, flat, wrinkled faced canine was drawn by Bruce himself.

“The Marine Corps took the punk out of me and the bulldog tattoo is dedicated to that part of my life”. My parents initials are there in dedication to them to remind me how blessed I am to have such a dedicated and wonderful family.”

Atop both his left and right biceps, Bruce has identical pieces of artwork which represent heart and power. Then in 2000, he had ‘Bruce’ tattooed on his left arm after his father suffered a stroke. The tattoo was a dedication to the man that saved my life from the road to destruction that I was on. I have so much respect for my father, because he saved my life and he taught me how to treat a woman by the way he treated my mother, Bruce stated.

His last tattoo was an original design to represent a new beginning for the strongman. We all do things that may be looked at as bad or we make mistakes, we are all human. However I believe that once the clock reaches 12 midnight then all that happened yesterday is over, it is gone and a new day is started. Hence a new beginning to start fresh.

As you can see, Bruce’s tattoos not only deduce his upper body, but the tell his life story and his transformation to where he is now.

Bruce spends a lot of time displaying his tattoos with his work as a strongman, running his private gym “The Machine Shop” and as a motivational speaker to the youth. This is where Bruce is becoming somewhat of a modern day ‘Pied Piper’ with his work with wayward youth. Bruce instructs the youth on staying in shape, proper eating habits, manners and discipline.

Therefore, Mike Bruce is definitely someone that should never be judged by his rugged look or by his cover. The book on Mike Bruce is filled with tattooed pages of stories about his life and his on going journey to help others.

Mike the Machine

Professional Strongman & Strength Training Coach

(a testimonial on Mike by his legendary mentor)

Most individuals in the strength world have heard the name Mike “The Machine” Bruce. No doubt because he trains like an animal after his prey, and he hoists heavy weights as if they have been lifted by a machine.

But it didn’t start there: at 5’10 inches tall and a ripped to shreds 210 lbs, his assaults on titles and records actually started in the ring where he won championships in wrestling, shoot fighting, and judo.

Today as a professional speaker and strongman he performs many old-time feats of strength. These feats are not tricks as Mike is not a magician, but rather a legitimate strongman.

Mike measures his success on his forward momentum as a man of God. He reveals that through his testimony and walk in life that we can move forward on a path of positivity and banish all the darkness that tries to cover our shining light.

-Grandmaster Dennis Rogers