Spanakopita chef, fitness fanatic and trainer, outreach director—and now, world Guinness record holder. Sarasota native and multihyphenate Jonathan Simos, 35, hung from a bar for just over a minute yesterday with 300 lbs. strapped to his waist. The feat, timed and recorded at Prime Strength Gym, earned him a new world record, and Sarasota is now officially home of the man who can boast that he holds the title for "heaviest weight lifted while hanging suspended in the dead hang position for one minute."

If you’re wondering about the curious category, it’s one of many. Annually published since 1955, the Guinness Book of World Records holds more than 53,000 world records and highlights a creative dataset, like "most Rubik’s cubes solved on a skateboard," "most back-wheel bike bunny hops on a bar in one minute," and ​​"most blindfolded backward standing somersaults in one minute."

Simos is now among other elite Sarasota Guinness World Record holders, like "oldest football player" (Mike Lynch was 68 when he played for the Bradenton Gladiators); highest eight-person tight rope pyramid sans safety net (that was, unsurprisingly, the Wallendas); and "most people to row 100 meters on a Concept2 rowing machine in a one-hour relay" (Sarasota Crew used 164 rowers to break the previous record of 115 people).

This is Simos' first Guinness record title, but not his first winning physical challenge. He recently earned the Florida state record for the circus dumbbell press in his weight class, and he was awarded first place in the Hercules Hold at the 2020 Roman Tampa Bay Classic Strongman Competition. At 173 lbs., he could only compete in the lowest weight class, which was 198 pounds. Standing 5 feet, 11 inches tall, he usually weighs 175 lbs. to 185 lbs. “depending on how good the food is around me at the time,” he says.

The hybrid athlete does cross-training, power lifting, running and more. “I switch it up. I’ll take classes, power lift on my own and take long runs,” he says. “I go for both endurance and strength.” He does a five-mile run every week, and the most he’s ever bench pressed is 365 lbs. for a few repetitions. Currently, he says, he can bench press roughly 315 lbs.

Why hang so tough? It’s all part of Simos' mantra, which is all about setting records for yourself as you journey toward doing better and trying harder. He helps others do just that at Madabolic Gym near downtown Sarasota, where he trains clients. Somehow he fits that in between running Greek Triangles, his farmer’s market stand (his original spanakopita recipe comes from his Greek father) and working in business outreach for Music Compound.

Future records on his radar include the highest number of monkey bars traveled in one minute and a farmer’s competition that requires holding 50 pounds in either hand and carrying it the furthest distance over 24 hours.

The bigger end game for the serial entrepreneur however is to focus on his online brand, Neuxist to teach people how to work out using functional training, which strengthens the body in a way that translates to everyday activities outside the gym, like squatting down to pick something up, carrying a heavy suitcase, or climbing a ladder to trim a tree. "It means having a strong cardiovascular base while lifting weights and doing exercises that help people move better," he says.

What he loves about fitness is how it’s symbolic of life. “Pushing myself physically was an escape for me and I channel it all into my workouts,” he says. “I hit a plateau and then break that with consistency and hard work but that can happen for anyone.”

He also focuses on efficiency, smashing the old excuse about not having enough time to work out. “There's so many misconceptions. Most people don't realize they can train efficiently and effectively with just 45 minutes to one hour, three times a week.”

“People have self-imposed limits and I want to inspire them and teach that they’re capable of more than they think,” Simos says.