Nicolas Harper set three goals to start the year; one was to break a world record. This month, he achieved just that, feeding off the support from those around him.
CUMBERLAND COUNTY, Pa. — A man from Cumberland County hopes to inspire others to accomplish the improbable after shattering a Guinness World Record.
Nicolas Harper set the record for the most clap push-ups in one hour with 1,235, breaking the previous record of 1,164, earlier this month at the West Shore Branch YMCA.
For Nicolas, breaking a world record was one of three goals he set for himself this year. It was a way for him to test his personal will and the limits he can reach.
“I became addicted to that feeling when you push yourself past your limits. Your brain is bargaining with you, and it’s trying to convince you, ‘Okay, one more minute, one more mile, 10 more reps,’ whatever it is, and then you can stop, but you don’t, and you push past that,” said Nicolas. “After I’m done with that, that feeling is incredible, and I chase that.”
It was no easy feat that took months of training and fueled by no lack of confidence. Nicolas trained with his brother, Timothy, with regular two-a-day workouts that consisted of 20 sets of 50 push-ups split by a three-mile bike session.
“It was the one that I saw that I was like, ‘I know I can beat this,’” said Nicolas. “I did the math in my head, I was like, ‘Okay, I can do 20 per minute for 60 minutes.’ And I tested it, and I did it my first try, but then I ended up trying again and failed, and then tried again and failed. So, it took probably six times of doing it before I felt comfortable to set a date.”
“I do my best to keep up with his workouts whenever we go to the gym and stuff, but he’s just on another level,” said Timothy.
That support though is exactly what fed into getting him cross the push-up finish line.
“I guess there is sort of like a ‘Rocky’ moment when your arms are so full of blood, [and] your muscles are so tight. And there’s a couple moments in the video too where it looks like I can’t do another one. And that actually started happening at like the 800 threat,” said Nicolas. “The way that my girlfriend and the way that my daughter see me is so important to me that failing is not an option in that moment, so I was not going to allow that to happen.”
It was a feeling of accomplishment shared by Nick and his family, all of whom were in attendance, including Timothy, who was in charge of tracking the push-up count.
“I was really proud and also a little relieved to have it over with and stuff,” said Timothy. “It made me a little bit emotional having it all done and having all of our family around there. That was pretty cool.”
“That felt incredible, because it had been weeks of nerves, anxiety about whether or not I was going to fail on that specific day,” said Nicolas. “Just the blood, sweat and tears of the training, it had all accumulated to that, and to pull it off felt amazing. I went to bed happy that night, for sure.”
And it was no coincidence that Nicolas made sure to use the West Shore Branch YMCA as the host site for the incredible feat. The Cumberland County native holds the YMCA close to his heart and has been a staple of his fitness journey.
“This place is different than any other gym because it’s actually a part of the community. Kids grow up coming here for daycare. The younger people are in the gym working out, older people in the gym working out. It’s just everybody coming together here, and they have everything that you could possibly want for fitness and a healthy lifestyle,” said Nicolas. “I just think that it’s an amazing place, and I wanted to do whatever I could to get eyeballs on it or to help them in any way I can and give back, because they were there for me.”
“The YMCA is all about community. Just seeing how Nick inspired his own goals, his drive, that’s really what the YMCA strives to do in our community too,” said Jason Snyder, the executive director of the West Shore YMCA. “We’re here for every walk of life. If they’re setting a Guinness record or they’re just trying to meet somebody new or get active or learn to swim. The YMCA can be so many different things for so many different people, and the fact that he chose us is pretty cool.”
It’s a sentiment that, with the help of his record-breaking achievement, Nicolas hopes extends to others in his community.
“It’s that with hard work and determination that anybody really can do whatever it is they set their mind to. I think that’s the most important thing,” said Nicolas. “I want other people to feel that way too, just having something to aim at. A difficult goal is so important.”
All while knowing he’ll be ready for the challenge should it emerge again.
“This is mine for life now,” said Nicolas. “If they break it, I’m coming after it again.”
