11 Armchair World Records To Break
In a video uploaded on May 16th 2016 a YouTube channel called “Dude Perfect” broke 11 (yes 11) world records based around the sport of basketball. One of the more impressive records concerned shooting a basketball at a hoop while sitting over 50ft away from the hoop. You might not be able to do that from your armchair, although technically you could because of the whole sitting thing, but you might be able to do a few of these, so listen up because this article might be the only thing that gets you through quarantine.
1. Tallest Toilet Paper Tower in 30 seconds
If you are from the UK, then I apologise as this one is rather cruel (I am also from the UK so I understand your pain). But the aim of the game is to stack rolls of toilet paper on top of each other in the time given. That is it really… It’s a simple record held by a woman from Milan, Italy who managed to stack 28 rolls in 30 seconds. That is almost a second a roll. So if you are feeling handy with toilet paper and actually have enough to even attempt this record then I implore you to have a go. It might get you through the coming months of hardship.
2. Fastest time to arrange the alphabet from a can of alphabet soup
After all that stockpiling people across the world have been doing you would have thought that someone would have some alphabet soup. Well, if you are that special someone then I have a challenge for you. Tip out your soup and try and arrange the letters into the 26 letter long alphabet. The current record is 3 minutes 21 seconds which is a yawning crevasse of time if compared to the amount of time it takes a horde of angry stockpilers to clear the shelf of them (DISCLAIMER- do not stockpile). So why not beat little old Cody Jones of Dude Perfect, yes the famous YouTube channel with almost 50 million subscribers, and become an alphabet soup champion.
And if you really want you can pour the soup into a bowl and eat the whole thing after you have finished with the challenge so as not to waste precious food.
3. Farthest Distance to Blow a Pea
Maybe the above one was a little too specialist for you. Well for this one all you need is single pea. And yes once you have finished you can eat the pea.
This is the current world record holder above; his name is David Rush from the mighty USA. If you think you can beat his attempt of 12 metres 58 centimetres then you need a flat surface, maybe a kitchen table, and one giant breath. I have to say this one does look hard but since we are now (officially) in lockdown in the UK, you have plenty of time to practise.
4. Fastest time to assemble Mr Potato Head
While writing this I was rather surprised that firstly; this was even a record which went into the same book as records such as Usain Bolts 9.58 second 100 metre sprint and secondly; (being a writer) I was surprised that Mr Potato Head was two words and not one.
But moving onto the record now and this one is surely a winner. After a quick Google search, I have found that Mr Potato Head has 13 parts including the body and the base. Now, the Turkish born Samat Durmaz managed to complete this feat in 6.62 seconds. So, thanks to GCSE mathematics I worked out that a 6.61 second time (a world record breaking time) would need you to place each piece in its correct spot (this is required for the record to stand) every 0.5 seconds. Sadly, I could not find something of a similar length of time in normal life because Google kept bringing up strange maths problems. But do not be discouraged because I believe in you… Just think of Woody and the rest of the Toy Story gang who will will you on to victory. And even if you do not quite manage the piece every 0.5 seconds needed to break the record, it may be quite funny.
5. Most clap-pushups in one minute
The previous one might have been a little mocking but I really am looking out for your best interests and here is why. Why not look after your mental and physical health at the same time as breaking records and becoming jacked? It’s a win-win right? A no-brainer…
As this bloke above us is showing you, this is the type of pushup the judges are looking for. There must be no bending in the knees or waist- forcing you to keep a degree to core tightness and you must lower yourself to a 90-degree elbow angle during each rep. Of course this may require some training as pushups, let alone clap pushups, can be quite hard for people, but what you will get out of this is a toned chest, triceps and abs and a spot in the Guinness World Record book! Little side note- you will have to beat 77 to gain the title which is more than one a second so you better start practising now.
6. Fastest time to arrange a chess set
If you have a chess set in your house, which most people do, and you know where each piece goes (although even if you do not thanks to the age of information you can just look it up) then you can attempt and crush this record. All it takes is putting the various pieces in the right squares in a given time. Of course practise makes perfect here and you may want to give it a few practise goes before you attempt the BIG ONE. But 32.42 seconds is the time to beat and considering there are 32 pieces in every chess set (assuming you haven’t lost any pieces yet) that’s roughly a piece a second. Which, in my mind, gives you time to have a cup-a tea while you wait. That’s how much time you have to complete this. So why not take my word for it and give it a go- even if you do not manage the record you might learn a fun, new game in the process.
7. Longest TV watching session
This is the ultimate “stuck inside because of Coronavirus” record I have ever seen. As governments around the world slowly cut off our liberties in the name of public health, it would be easy to think that we are quickly running out of things to do. And we are. But one thing will always be free… TV. So plonk yourself down in front of the old gogglebox (for all you Channel 4 viewers the pun was intended) and prepare yourself for over 94 hours of awful soaps, the never ending BBC news updates and a healthy dose of sleep loss. All in the name of breaking records- some really inspirational stuff.
8. Most CDs balanced on one finger
I know, I know no one actually uses CDs anymore and that I should stop living in the 2000s, but if you want to land yourself into the record books and potential fame and glory which undoubtable awaits you, then follow these instructions. Simply grab as many CDs as you can as try and balance then on a single finger. As with a lot of these records some prior training will be needed so some forearm and finger strength exercises are needed. Also you might need to do some trial and error into which finger position works best for you as some may work better than others. I know it may seem like I am looking too deeply into a rather stupid record but if you want to beat the mammoth number put up by Silvio Sabba from Milan Italy then training will be necessary. And for future note the number he did pick up was 247 which really is quite impressive. So grab your old CD cases and ready your wrists because this record will take some breaking.
9. Most sticky notes stuck on the body in 5 minutes
Out of all the records I have looked at so far this is the one that has the most time allowed and so is probably the most accessible to your average joe. But do not be fooled- this record has stood since 20014 and is very much feared (I assume) in the world of record breakers. Tetsuro Dagawa is the holder of this world record and believe me when I say this but he was no average joe (quite literally)- he managed to get 674 sticky notes onto his body. So if you have a home office, or have a strange number of sticky notes lying around, then attempt this record and see how you do. You might surprise yourself.
10. Fastest time to place 24 cans in a fridge
It seems, at least in the UK, that, as evidenced by the empty shelves, everyone will have turned into a drunk by the end of the shutdown. But why not turn this normally negative, physically and mentally damaging ailment into your strength and grab 24 beers and sling those bad boys into a fridge as fast as you can.
This is the current record holder- Silvio Sabbo (who is really quite good at doing strange things) and he managed it in 5.78 seconds which is actually really fast. But if the standard English male prides himself in emptying the fridge of the same number of beers in that same time, then I am sure he can put them back in the fridge in a similar time as well. And as some additional motivation- the quicker you can get them into a fridge the quicker they are cool enough to enjoy.
11. Longest distance travelled balancing a billiard ball cue on one finger
I think literally everyone has done this at some point in their life, regardless of whether they have entered a working class pub or not. But… With that said the current record is 7 miles. Yes, miles. But given that you have nothing to do and, at least here in the UK, you are allowed one walk a day. This would count towards that walk and will definitely keep you entertained for miles and miles and miles and miles.
That brings us to the end of that list. If you enjoyed it then please tell us and also please tell if you actually attempted any of the records on this list and how you got on- We would love to hear from you.
Credit Willthewriter
