The World's Greatest Athlete?

Bill Glasheen · Post by **Bill Glasheen** » Thu Jun 26, 2008 2:17 am

Gene DeMambro wrote:
The current President Bush is physically fit for his age. An avid runner, he is so healthy to at one point have a resting heart rate in the low fifties. On the advice of his physician, he has switched to biking for excercise. His knees were starting to make running impossible. Not quite sure about the bench pressing thing, though.

President Bush does 5 reps of 185 lbs.

Depending on the ratio of fast twitch to slow twitch muscle fibers, that gives him a theoretical single-rep max somewhere in-between 200 and 225 (higher if more fast twitch, lower if more slow twitch). One source I have puts it at 208, whereas another at 213.

- Bill

Reference: Indiana University School of Medicine

Valkenar · Post by **Valkenar** » Thu Jun 26, 2008 11:54 am

Gene DeMambro wrote:Still pick Bill Russell or Wilt Chamberlain any day.

Why, out of curiosity? They may very well have been better players, but do you think they run faster, jump higher, etc?

Gene DeMambro · Post by **Gene DeMambro** » Thu Jun 26, 2008 8:32 pm

Purely my opinion, Bill. When I look at the athletes on the list, they have a difficult time comparing to Bill Russell's accomplishments in the atheltic arena. Quite simply, he was the greatest "winner" in the history of organized sports. He had raw athletic ability that allowed him to excel in not only basketball, but in track and field as well.

As for Wilt Chamberlain, prehaps he was not as good an athlete as Bill Russell, but he was the second bst center in basketball, after Russell, played pro volleyball, and retired from basketball with several records.

Again, just my opinion.

Cheers,
Gene

Bill Glasheen · Post by **Bill Glasheen** » Thu Jun 26, 2008 10:23 pm

Gene DeMambro wrote:
Purely my opinion, Bill.

You mean Justin.

- The Real Bill

Gene DeMambro · Post by **Gene DeMambro** » Thu Jun 26, 2008 10:44 pm

Ooops, my bad

Justin: Same answer

Stryke · Post by **Stryke** » Fri Jun 27, 2008 6:06 am

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duMScxR7LJ8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YK6CGtVi ... re=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yh9T3WSHaFw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwurwxWT ... re=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MG1WHiQn ... re=related

How are you guys really judging athleticisim ?

Stryke · Post by **Stryke** » Fri Jun 27, 2008 6:12 am

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4m-_2fEp62s

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5AaDBE8 ... re=related

reckon they are as athletic as a baseball player ?

Stryke · Post by **Stryke** » Fri Jun 27, 2008 6:17 am

Maybe powers your thing

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYNJITf9 ... re=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBynINo4Luo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9sPllx4G8M

Stryke · Post by **Stryke** » Fri Jun 27, 2008 6:20 am

Or speed ?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dh_-TesHd0A

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rTeKJUe ... re=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5s8DgXR ... re=related

TSDguy · Post by **TSDguy** » Fri Jun 27, 2008 11:55 am

Stryke wrote: How are you guys really judging athleticisim ?

There is a list of qualities at the beginning of the article. I listed them in my tennis post. That list is why I don't think a baseball player belongs on there.

Bill Glasheen · Post by **Bill Glasheen** » Fri Jun 27, 2008 3:36 pm

Good points.

I like agility as an athletic quality. Love the Scott Sonnen exercises. Believe it or not, I'm trying them with my class - on the wooden floors.

They hate me!

Gymnastics? Cool stuff. My first ever batch of people whom I brought up to Thompson's Island for a shodan test (circa 1983) included a former gymnast. Talk about someone who was easy to train... Great genes, and great prep for martial arts.

The problem with world class ability with a lot of the agility stuff is that it represents a small proportion of the population who are... SMALL. Certain body types can do all that agility and GymKata stuff. But forget about Justin's Lebron James or Shaq. Ain't gonna happen.

But I can help them improve!

As for speed... One more heretic (TSDGuy) makes me want to remind the heretics out there about the Red Sox' own Jacoby Ellsbury. Sorry I couldn't find the video, but it showed him stealing home on a wild pitch - from second base. He's already set the rookie record for most number of stolen bases in a season, and the season is only half over.

From last season...

The crown jewel of the Red Sox minor league system -- playing in his third game in the majors since being called up Saturday -- hasn't run the 40-yard dash since college, when he covered the distance in 4.2 seconds. But you don't need a stopwatch to see the havoc Ellsbury creates on the basepaths

Here's the thing though. You can't set records stealing bases if you can't first get on base. And you can't get on base if you can't hit a Major League fastball, curveball, sinker, splitter, and change-up. And none of the prima donna track-and-field sprinters can do that.

Baseball is all about speed and power, unless you're a knuckleballer like Tim Wakefield. Then it's all about precision, endurance, longevity, and... creating chaos. Hitting a knuckleball has been described as being like trying to hit a butterfly. Being one of the only Major League pitchers who can use mathematical chaos to frustrate the finest athletes in the world is its own talent.

Tim Wakefield Slo-Mo Video

- Bill

TSDguy · Post by **TSDguy** » Fri Jun 27, 2008 6:19 pm

And baseball players can't play tennis professionally.