What is strength?

[JoeRoccoCassara]

I know that your ability to bench press a heavy weight is different from your ability to punch really hard, but why?

 

Is it because a long steady weak muscle twitch providing the weight with a constant pressure allows you to lift more than a quick and powerful muscle twitch? Are punches different because they require a quick muscle twitch, that releases all the pressure quickly?

[ronthepon]

You muscles consist of a bunch of fibres that contract. In contracting, they consume energy.

 

For this, they use ATP. (I'm assuming you know about ATP. If not, think of it as energy 'money') Now, ATP for the first sharp twitch comes from the ATP stored in a dedicated muscle reserve called creatinine phosphate (I think.)

So for the first punch, all that matters is the makeup of your muscles. If they contract fast, you get a high velocity punch.

 

For bench pressing, your muscles have to find ATP from other sources. creatinine phosphate gets exhausted very fast, then your muscles begin to create ATP from glucose, using oxygen.

 

If your muscles don't find oxygen fast enough (which tends to happen eventually, if you pump fast) they consume glucose without oxygen, creating lactic acid in the process.

 

Lactic acid is the cramps and tiredness chemical. If your muscles begin to ache, you've probably got lactic acid.

 

 

Bottomline: Benchpressing needs oxygen management by your muscles (and rest of the body as well. That makes it different from a punch.

 

Slightly hazy, but you might be interested in how muscles contract.

[Racoon]

You can find a definition of strength anywhere..

 

Why, or How, Bench Press might correlate to Punching power??

 

It may or may not... It all depends on the individual who may be focusing their power for a punch..

 

 

Yes, the stronger your pectoralis and surrounding muscles, the stronger your punch.. potentially

 

As a practioner of Kung-fu though, I find the strength comes from the hips and shoulders more than the pecs..

 

But Yes, Pecs do have a significant role in punching power.

 

How much depends on your style or technique

[JoeRoccoCassara]

If you have enough ATP, or energy, will that result in enhanced motor performance?

 

Wait, what is motor performance?

[Galapagos]

I know that your ability to bench press a heavy weight is different from your ability to punch really hard, but why?

 

Is it because a long steady weak muscle twitch providing the weight with a constant pressure allows you to lift more than a quick and powerful muscle twitch? Are punches different because they require a quick muscle twitch, that releases all the pressure quickly?

 

When a good boxer or mixed martial arts fighter throws a punch, most of the strength is in the form and delivery. The way you shift your weight from the legs and rotate your body as to recruit the most centrifugal force/body weight determines the strength.

 

The weight involved in such manipulation of body/twisting force will be much greater than whatever you can dumbell press(bench w/ one arm) with one half of your upper body.

[Racoon]

Like Galapagos also stated..

Strength isn't sheer muscle contraction and ATP..

Even in Powerlifting, where the goal is sheer strength, there are techniques and 'cheating'.

 

Its a complex series of Bio-mechanics, form, and technique.

 

Punching/kicking strength and weight lifting strength are different.

 

You should more clearly define "Strength" in the aspect you wish to use it.

[Jet2]

can we simply say strength is tolerance?

[Pyrotex]

In all probability, we are faced with several definitions for "strength".

Here are some examples:

1) Ability to generate a sustained force upon another object.

2) Ability to perform work on another object; "work" = force * (distance object is moved)

3) Ability to transfer momentum to another object; "momentum" = object mass * object velocity

4) Ability to transfer impact to another object; "impact" = force * (time force is applied)

5) Ability to transfer punch to another object; "punch" = force/area * (time force is applied)

6) ...

[Racoon]

In all probability, we are faced with several definitions for "strength".

Here are some examples:

1) Ability to generate a sustained force upon another object.

2) Ability to perform work on another object; "work" = force * (distance object is moved)

3) Ability to transfer momentum to another object; "momentum" = object mass * object velocity

4) Ability to transfer impact to another object; "impact" = force * (time force is applied)

5) Ability to transfer punch to another object; "punch" = force/area * (time force is applied)

6) ...

 

 

True.

But everything all depends on Circumstance..

Strength is still Strength.

 

It just depends if you want to punch somebody out, or you use a forklift to move a pallet of rice.

 

Strength can be multiple definitions

[Pyrotex]

True....Strength can have multiple definitions

This is not merely true, but HIGHLY true.

 

I think what you are looking for is "strengthiness":

 

the perception of how strong you are (or might be) if you only tried, and worked out, and ate right, and the bag of rice had handles, and...

[BGally]

If you compare two people of different weights throwing punches, if they both throw them at the same speed the heavier person is going to be able to hit harder with more force. It wouldn't matter if that mass was fat or muscle, of course it is easier to generate a high speed with muscle.

 

The legs and back, the larger muscles of the body, are going to be generating the majority of the force in a proper punch. "It's all in the hips." - Chubbs

[Vox]

A newborn is soft and tender,

A crone, hard and stiff.

Plants and animals, in life, are supple and succulent;

In death, withered and dry.

So softness and tenderness are attributes of life,

And hardness and stiffness, attributes of death.

Just as a sapless tree will split and decay

So an inflexible force will meet defeat;

The hard and mighty lie beneath the ground

While the tender and weak dance on the breeze above.

 

Tao Te Ching

[Don Blazys]

Like the ability to throw a baseball 100+Mph or (even more difficult)

the ability to hit a baseball 550+Ft., the ability to deliver a truly devastating punch is,

to a great extent, a relatively rare "talent" that cannot be taught.

 

A few boxers (such as Jack Dempsey) did believe that the ability to

punch really hard could be cultivated to some extent by long

and hard hours of practice coupled with a single minded dedication

and devotion to the sport.

 

Most boxers, however, insist that "one punch knockout power" is a "gift"...

a "natural ability"... and something that a fighter is pretty much "born with".

 

I personally tend to agree with that, because if we consider a few athletes

from the 1950's and compare them to todays "giants", here's what we find...

 

Rocky Marciano was rather small for a heavyweight fighter.

He stood only 5' 10" tall and weighed about 180lbs.

Yet, he is, by most accounts, the hardest puncher ever.

 

His punch was scientifically measured to contain about

as much force as an armor piercing bullet!

 

He punched way harder than either Vitaly or Vladimir Klitchko,

even though both of them stand about 6' 8" and weigh around 250 lbs.

 

One of his opponents likened fighting Marciano to fighting an airplane propeller,

and virtually all of his opponents (including Joe Louis) agreed that he was

by far the hardest puncher that they ever faced.

 

Neither of the Klitchko brothers get that kind of praise from their opponents!

 

Mickey Mantle is another case in point.

He stood only about 5'11" and weighed about 195 lbs,

yet his tape measure home runs still hold the record.

 

Not even a juiced up on steroids Mark McGwire

(who stands 6' 5'' tall and weighes about 240 lbs)

could come close to matching Mickey Mantle's power!

 

But perhaps the most awesome demonstration of power was displayed by

a relatively unknown minor league lefty pitcher named Steve Dalkowski.

 

Though he stood only about 5' 10" tall and weighed a measely 170 lbs,

he could hurl a baseball consistently (sometimes 300+ pitches per game)

at about 110 mph!

 

By comparison, todays hardest thrower is probably Joel Zumaya

who stands 6' 3" tall , weighs about 210 lbs, and can only

chuck a baseball at 103 mph for 30 pitches or so before his arm gives out!

 

What makes Rocky Marciano, Mickey Mantle and Steve Dalkowski

all the more remarkable is that their power was absolutely "natural".

 

Unlike todays "pussified" athletes, they did not have the benefit of

modern day computer aided training techniques, biofeedback,

state of the art sports and exercise quipment,

scientifically formulated dietary "supplements",

and highly advanced sports medicine technology.

 

(Indeed, Mantle and Dalkowski were both alcoholics

who by modern day standards, trained very poorly.)

 

The one thing that they all seemed to have in common however,

was an innate ability to simultaneously relax and concentrate.

 

Don