Functional muscle

[Gregor]

See https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6602363/Cameroons-muscle-bound-miners-Photos-incredible-sculpted-physique-workers.html

[Pray_4_War]

They look great except that they are obviously skipping leg day.

[robcguns]

Doesn’t muscle bound mean big muscle?They are lean and in great shape no doubt but prob weigh 140 so muscle bound is a bit misleading.

[Hypertrophy]

They look like your average black playground gymnastic type in any US big city. And yes- musclebound means muscles so big your range of motion is severely restricted. The headline is pure BS

[oldtimer1]

Bodybuilding isn't functional training. Muscle work in unison and not isolated as in bodybuilding training. What athlete looks like a bodybuilder?  Do we really need to do four different bicep exercises in an arm workout to improve athletic function?  I think it was Bill Starr who pioneered strength coaching in football that all that is needed is something like the power clean and jerk, squat and bench to get 90% benefit to make a better football player from weights. Anything else was just minutiae extra.

[IroNat]

In developed countries they use machines for dredging.

[Mr Anabolic]

Very functional!   The NFL should draft them.

[Humble Narcissist]

Bodybuilding isn't functional training. Muscle work in unison and not isolated as in bodybuilding training. What athlete looks like a bodybuilder?  Do we really need to do four different bicep exercises in an arm workout to improve athletic function?  I think it was Bill Starr who pioneered strength coaching in football that all that is needed is something like the power clean and jerk, squat and bench to get 90% benefit to make a better football player from weights. Anything else was just minutiae extra.

In the 80's and 90's Muscle & Fitness ran an article every year about the best weight training programs in the NFL.  The worst teams always had the "best" programs and the teams that used weight training programs as an afterthought won Super Bowls.

[Primemuscle]

Their lung capacity must be great. The term musclebound is an incorrect description. Muscular is more apropos. The Daily Mail has a reputation for exaggeration. The photographer did an excellent job of capturing these men at their work.

You'd think those little boats would sink under all that weight. One bucketful too many of wet sand and down it goes.

[ratherbebig]

"taking strides to the bottom at least a 100 times in each shift."

proof of high rep training being good

[Tennisballz]

Training for looks is never functional.  If there is a sport or activity you want to be good at, I think you should just practice it over an over again.  I'm no exercise science expert but I remember playing soccer for a competitive mens team about 5 years ago and I wanted to really improve my sprints.  I was squatting a lot and didn't really feel like it was helping much so I stopped squatting or really doing any leg work at all in the gym for a while and just went out and did sprints and hill sprints a few times per week.  I got more out of doing sprints in a month than I ever got out of working my legs in the gym and my top end speed improved quite a bit.  We all want to look better though, so training for looks is good, just no need to go overboard with it.

[Primemuscle]

Speed skaters, soccer players and some cyclist seem to have very solid, muscular legs.

[oldtimer1]

Training for looks is never functional.  If there is a sport or activity you want to be good at, I think you should just practice it over an over again.  I'm no exercise science expert but I remember playing soccer for a competitive mens team about 5 years ago and I wanted to really improve my sprints.  I was squatting a lot and didn't really feel like it was helping much so I stopped squatting or really doing any leg work at all in the gym for a while and just went out and did sprints and hill sprints a few times per week.  I got more out of doing sprints in a month than I ever got out of working my legs in the gym and my top end speed improved quite a bit.  We all want to look better though, so training for looks is good, just no need to go overboard with it.

Squats will improve sprinting speed. Maybe not power squats. How many huge squat guys can't sprint or jump worth a damn. Never met an olympic lifter that didn't have a great vertical leap and short sprint speed. Ben Johnson three main lifts were the power clean, squats and bench. He might have included a few extras but they were never given serious consideration by his coach.