[Baldy]

I just found this online and it shattered some of my perceptions about what an athletes body should look like.
Wasn't sure quite where to put it, but this seems like a somewhat appropriate place.













There are more links but I cba to paste them all.
find them at the bottom of this page

Obviously some of these physiques wouldnt work for climbing, but I was surprised at the level these people are capable of operating at despite not living up to the lightweight streamlined bodies I imagine them to have.

[boulderingbacon]

looking at men in trunks. whatever next

[Iesu]

how come Inge de bruijn gets front AND back shots? 

[SA Chris]

Cos she's so hot right now.

[Jaspersharpe]

I'm willing to bet that Darrell Russell doesn't actually play Football. He may well play American Football as one of the steroid built lumps whose job is to run into each other though. Bloody yanks.

 

[SA Chris]

By Football you mean "Sakkar".To them American Football = Football. Two nations divivded by a common language.

[Stubbs]

6 foot 5 and 23 and a bit stone would make a pretty effective wall!

And I love how small they've made Tanya Lipinski!

[Jaspersharpe]

By Football you mean "Sakkar".To them American Football = Football. Two nations divivded by a common language.

I know what they call it but it doesn't make it right.

It's funny how the yanks are only really interested in girls' sports.

[SA Chris]

And I love how small they've made Tanya Lipinski!

Maybe she's just standing further away?

[Ru]

Obviously some of these physiques wouldnt work for climbing, but I was surprised at the level these people are capable of operating at despite not living up to the lightweight streamlined bodies I imagine them to have.

Well they're obviously mostly fairly muscular, do you mean they're carrying more bodyfat than you'd expect? By the look of them they're mostly, I'd guess at 10-15% bodyfat, something like that. Considering the minimum for healthy operating is about 5% in males they're all about 5-10% over. I'm not sure how much weight you'd lose by dropping that fat, but probably not that much and most of them are in sports where weight doesn't matter that much. There are advantages to carrying some bodyfat - you can burn it.

Having said that it's unclear (from the photos, I've not read the article) how they've selected the athletes. I notice Chris Bloch and Vadim Vinokur represent climbing. If they'd picked Patxi or Ramonet the physiques would look much more muscular and ripped. If they'd picked Ondra...

[Eddies]

.... they would have had to set a long exposure and had him run around!

[galpinos]

When were those taken? They look a little dated.

I don't know whether opinion has changed over time, but actual weight has a large impact in quite a few sports, especially endurance sports. The % body fat stats for elite/Olympic athletes quoted in Matt Fitzgerald's "Racing Weight" make for interesting reading:

Cross Country Skier: M 5% F 11%
Cyclist: M 6-11% F12-16%
Rower: M <8% F12-16%
Runner: M 7.3% F 12.4%
Swimmer: M 10-12% F19-21%
Triathlete: M 6-10% F12-16%

He also has average heights and weights as well.

You're right Ru, Paxti's no chubber:

[erm, sam]

Nah, he is just sucking it in.

[SA Chris]

I didn't know sucking in could make a bicep stand out like that. Must try it.

[Stubbs]

When were those taken? They look a little dated.

Vadim Vinokur is 35 now, so I don't reckon they're that old

http://www.digitalrock.de/pstambl.php?VVI93M+MEN

[mark s]

I've always thought it strange when people refer to a 9 stone climber as a 'beast'.some of those are what are known as beast's

[magpie]

Midget figure skater.

[SA Chris]

Well it says she's 5ft 1 and the skier to her left is 5ft 9, so somethings a bit screwy.