Re: (Sumo) Akebono; Rikishi benching and squats

[jz8d-smmn@asahi-net.or.jp (Doreen Simmons)]

At 12:04 99.2.5 +0100, shiroikuma@email.cz wrote:
 
>Amateur rikishi actually, since they usually stem from power disciplines - 
>lifting, boxing, wrestling - are well built on top. But they do not stand a 
>chance even when put against a low ranking deshi in any heya. This seems to 
>be because the key in sumo is lower body strength. Upper body strength 
>(excluding grip strength) is not necessary and is usually not developed. 
>Most rikishi therefore are surprisingly weak in arms, chest, and shoulder 
>areas.

Developing upper body strength is counter-productive. A top-heavy man fails
in sumo. I personally knew one youngster in makushita who went at his own
expense every afternoon to a gym in Kinshicho, one station east of Ryogoku.
As his chest, shoulders and upper arms got bigger, his sumo got worse and
worse - until finally one of his seniors (the present Dewanoumi) advised
him to return to the traditional sumo exercises, which had been developed
over the centuries to produce the sumo body. He did, and not too long after
made juryo and stayed there for some time. (Never got any higher, though.)

Also to my personal knowledge, Kirishima trained exceptionally hard with
weights, and developed great strength in the upper body.  He built a little
training room on the roof of Izutsu-beya. The walls were corrugated blue
plastic, and every evening when I looked out from my balcony I would see
the light on and a shadow pumping metal inside - until a taller building
was put up and obscured my view. Inspired by Kyokushuzan, too, many young
rikishi in Oshima-beya did a lot with barbells and single-handed weights.
But it's important to distinguish between weight training to develop
strength - which many modern sumoists do -  and weight training to develop
bulging muscles - which spoils their sumo. Therefore this talk of how many
(or how few) pounds they can bench has no bearing on sumo.  That said, the
slimmer men in particular, such as Takanohana senior, Masurao, Kyokudozan,
Kirishima, and Terao,  have the strength to pull off utchari and
tsuridashi, often on much larger opponents whose weight would come in the
range you are mentioning.
 
But this requires mainly timing and good back and leg muscles, rather than
the brute strength needed for bench pressing.

Doreen in sumoland

  In sumoland, we sing
            Beethoven's Ninth In February