Is there a scientific reason there are no 230 lb-380 lb female gymnast?
I could cite the low hanging fruit reason why, but I entertain there might be something less obvious as why one never sees anything but slender or petite gymnast other than the fact the ”heavy/big” females just don’t care to do the balance beam, vault, uneven parallel bars, etc. Other than not having the desire, should a larger female want to do gymnastics are there scientific reasons that would stop her, moreover, any scientific reasons that would preclude her from performing at a world-class level if she had top ranked coaches?
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13 Answers
Maybe some big Russian athletes exist. I once saw a Canadian figure skater in the 90’s pick up her male partner over her head for 3 seconds. I lost her name, I would love to go on a date with her.
When I saw the similar questions above this one, I thought “this sounds like it was asked by @Hypocrisy_Central. Then I read down a bunch of similar questions, and sure enough, came across this one.
Cough
Tell you what, I’m 125 lbs and I bike ten miles a day, and I can’t do what this chick is doing.
Even if someone that big was flexible enough, imagine having to lift that much weight into a gymnastics move. That’s why football players that big are linesmen and not running backs or ends; it’s difficult to move that much weight.
OK, apparently no one clicked.
It’s a bigger-sized lady pole dancing on a British reality competition show.
@Seek
That was a lady that managed to do some pole dancing, despite her weight.
Had she weighed less, people would have regarded her performance as mediocre.
I am quite sure that you can reach that level in two days of training.
That lady in the pole video chose a bad outfit. I am about her size, so I am allowed to say those things :p
^^ Just wanted to add that I think that it is great that she does this pole dancing.
It seems to make her feel good and good about herself, so… power to her!
Gymnastics and dance require rapid changes in velocity (speed and direction).
More weight means more mass, and therefore more inertia, making rapid velocity changes harder. While that can be somewhat mitigated by strength, the square-cube law dictates that that can only go so far.
In fact, that is why many gymnasts are petite (under 5’6”) as somebody 10% taller with the same proportions will be 1.331 times as massive but only 1.21 times as strong; their strength/mass ratio will be ~10% lower.
Yes, they all take up the Shot Putt instead.
@Seek Tell you what, I’m 125 lbs and I bike ten miles a day, and I can’t do what this chick is doing.
I hafta say this, if you got training and committed yourself to applying it, I am sure you could minus the <ahem> jiggling pole and flesh wise.
@rojo Physics.
What physics are working against it and is it?
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