Evolutionary Aspect of Weightlifting

[NewDude001]

Just a random question that's been bothering me for a while.

How hunter-gatherers get well muscled physiques? Did they have muscled physiques?

I try to evaluate everything against our evolution to see if it's worth doing/eating. I'm active and do sprints/ 1-2 runs because I am positive hunter gathers did their share of running and sprinting after animals. I also recently took up lifting because I finally convinced myself that girls like buff guys. Unfortunately I can't explain exactly why they do without assuming our ancestors had muscled physiques.

Let's assume they did. How? Did they lift really heavy logs? Drag stones? What the hell did they do to build muscle? I'm just afraid that weightlifting has some horrible side effect down the road because we weren't evolved to constantly be stressing our bodies into building more muscle.

I'm still going to lift cause I like the feeling of power, but if anyone has any thoughts as to the evolutionary part of it I'd like to hear them.

Here's an interesting read on the subject http://rationalhunter.typepad.com/rational_hunter/

 

[MuayThai]

If your young and aren't too skinny, any exercise will make you well musceled.
You wont get huge muscles but all the hormones will keep your muscels growing.

 

[mrRuckus]

nimals. I also recently took up lifting because I finally convinced myself that girls like buff guys. Unfortunately I can't explain exactly why they do without assuming our ancestors had muscled physiques.

We like skinny girls who weren't likely considered attractive in those days. The heathiest women were the ones who were fat and got to eat well. Why do we like skinny women now then? Probably society and media steering us to them. Even 40-50 years ago we didn't care much for skinny chicks. Men seemingly (u.s. men at least) were crazy about the full figured curvy women (marilyn monroe). I personally still don't like really skinny women. All my gfs have had wide curvy hips and C-cup+ breasts. Smaller women are creepy to me because it looks like they're going to shatter any second.

If the muscled men weren't the ones who always survived and got to eat a lot (meat for example)...i have no idea whether cavemen or whatever were bulky or not... then maybe they like a decently muscled man for the same reason as we like skinny women now. Or how about the muscled man differs from the norm so he's more attractive? Or other girls all like to ogle the strong guy so one particular girl is more drawn to him even if she isn't particularly fond of muscles herself? Buff guys probably have more confidence too. They're probably more active and exciting to be around in general.

just some ideas...

 

[Warboss Alex]

I'm just afraid that weightlifting has some horrible side effect down the road

yes, there's a dangerous possibility that you might get bigger and stronger.

the body won't let you carry any more muscle that it should (naturally). you'll find once you get up to 230+ (or more/less depending on height and genetics) then if you miss a meal you'll feel yourself shrinking because you're already pushing the boundaries of musculature and making your body feel uncomfortable. strength gains will be hard to come by and size gains even more so. it's just like, the leaner you get, the harder it is to stay lean because the body doesn't like being lean either.

go and enjoy your workouts and don't worry about it. only squat below parallel otherwise you won't be able to walk 'down the road'.

 

[Potbelly]

I think it is dumb people think things that aren't "meant for us" through nature such as weightlifting are bad.

I don't see people biatching about driving cars or watching TV!!!

 

[il_duce]

A large part of our male ancestors' physiques were developed from the act of hunting. From sprinting after an animal in pursuit of it, and then carrying the meat from the carcass back to camp. However, early humans weren't built like your typical modern bodybuilder (which in fact is a very unnatural physique to have). Most women are not attracted to bodybuilders because they are not porportionate. Early male humans were probably built like boxers or sprinters: lean and muscular, but not very bulky in any way. Of course, there were probably a few that were bulkier or more frail than others, but I'm talking about the average early human here.

So if you're going for the "natural" look, there is nothing wrong with weightlifting. The more you do it, the better for your overall health. But there is really no need to eat a **** ton of food and "get huge", because women are more attracted to the "cut" look anyway. Being a male, you are naturally going to have a decent amount of muscle on your frame, as long as you have a low enough BF% to show it.

No wonder it is so hard for a lot of skinny guys to gain weight. Because eating 6 meals a day and 3 protein shakes IS NOT NATURAL. So your body ****s and pisses most of it out. If you're going for a look that is much more porportionate for your frame, you can eat 3 square meals a day while lifting and still gain enough muscle to get the ladies' attention.

 

[siph]

look up gender exageration youll find a weightlifter as the male example

what females find attractive and vice versa often has a lot to do with social aspects. that is evolution, just something that is very difficult to quantify

 

[Skilla_Staz]

A. Their physiques were from their activities and diet.
B. Girls like muscles because muscles mean strength. It's natural for any female animal to flock towards the strong male because the strong male can defend them.
C. Our ancestors probably didn't like fat women because women probably weren't fat back in the day. It was very difficult to become obese given the diet and exercise that they had. 40-50 years ago we still liked thinner women, but there wasn't as much stress placed on being skinny. If you notice, womens dressed in the past had that thing that FORCED their midsection in tighter to make themselves look skinnier. Also, most men will agree, a woman whos got a fit physique is more appealing than a woman who is as skinny as a pole. I like meat on my women, how about you? Curves are good.

 

[[S]alvatore]

yes, there's a dangerous possibility that you might get bigger and stronger.

I love you Alex

 

[NewDude001]

Yeah, a lot of it is starting to come together for me. I also came across this while I was searching http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=709484

VERY thought provoking, a must read

Now I just need to read all of his stuff and figure out how to apply it to my daily life.

 

[reyalp]

Yeah, a lot of it is starting to come together for me. I also came across this while I was searching http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=709484

VERY thought provoking, a must read

Now I just need to read all of his stuff and figure out how to apply it to my daily life.

Interesting. I'll see if I can dig up any pubmed research corroborating his information.

 

[reyalp]

Yeah, a lot of it is starting to come together for me. I also came across this while I was searching http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=709484

VERY thought provoking, a must read

Now I just need to read all of his stuff and figure out how to apply it to my daily life.

Man, I'm already learning a lot about HGH.

I'm sure this is old news to a lot of you, and some of it isn't exactly new to me, but here's some interesting things I've stumbled across:
HGH is produced the most while you are sleeping.
Daytime HGH levels aren't much to write home about.
Exercise temporarily increases blood HGH levels.
Low blood glucose levels (ie, exercise-induced glucose consumption) result in an increase in HGH levels.
The more deep sleep you get, the more HGH you are likely to produce.

 

[Brian20o2]

My guess on what the old age hunter would look like would be around 10-14% bf. And a weight proportionate to their height, probably about:
5'6"--150
5'8"--170
5'10"-190
6'0"--200
6'2"--210
This way they are strong and fit but not too big to be fast. And probably had some fat because getting below about 9% could be bad if there was a bad winter or very little food.

Of course all of this is based on my guesses and logic so who knows if Im right or not.