Extreme Abilities: Amazing Human Feats and the Simple Science Behind Them
Chapter 1 MASTERS of MUSCLE Every seat in the auditorium is filled More people line the walls and hundreds of others have been turned away at the door But despite the crowd the space is quiet It’s May 27 1895 The audience in Boston Massachusetts is frozen with anticipation All eyes are on the man on the stage Louis Cyr born in Quebec Canada is already famous for his strength but now he’s going to prove without a doubt he’s the strongest man of all Louis picks 18 men out of the audience the biggest ones he can find The men are weighed They step together onto a platform resting on wooden supports Louis bends He slips under the platform He rests the top of his back against it His goal to lift all 1,967 kilograms 4,336 pounds Yesterday’s newspaper declared in huge letters CYR PROMISES A BIG SENSATION TOMORROW MORNING AT 10 50 But can Louis do it He heaves His muscles strain His legs push His face turns red The platform starts to tremble The platform starts to lift Finally it clears the supports The audience erupts in cheers
Pump it Lifting 18 men was just one of Louis Cyr’s incredible feats As a teen he lifted a large horse off the ground A decade later he resisted the pull of four horses two hitched to each of his arms Some people have called him the Strongest Man Who Ever Lived even though lots of other old-time strongmen were also impressing audiences around the world With stage names like the French Hercules and the Cannonball King they were tons of fun to watch Today people continue to astound us with seemingly superhuman strength Follow the World’s Strongest Man contest which has been running for more than 40 years and you’ll see men hauling two refrigerators at once flipping huge poles throwing heavy kegs over a wall lifting boulders and more And check out Canadian Kevin Fast In 2013 he managed to hike 11 people up on his shoulders the platform on which they were standing swaying like a raft at sea The total weight 777 9 kilograms 1,715 pounds Not Louis’s record but still mighty impressive Women have also racked up some jaw dropping achievements In the 1940s a time when few women lifted weights Abbye Pudgy Stockton had no pudge on her she was all muscle Living in Los Angeles California and known as the Queen of Muscle Beach she could lift her husband above her head Then there’s Varya Akulova Born in Ukraine in 1992 Varya could carry her 8 Chapter 1
father on her back by age seven and was already winning weightlifting events She’s been called the Strongest Girl in the World while Richard Sandrak also born in 1992 in Ukraine has been dubbed the World’s Strongest Boy Richard could lift three times his own body weight when he was still a kid FAST FACT Plant Power Trees don’t have muscles but they can still hold up their limbs That’s because they grow muscle-like wood cells that help them bear the weight The fibers in the cells on the top of the branch lie in a way that enables them to pull up the branch The fibers in the cells on the bottom of the branch lie in a different way pushing the branch skyward Together these cells keep the bough from drooping TEENAGER LIFTS CAR In 2013 American sisters Haylee and Hannah Smith aged 14 and 16 lifted a tractor off their father after it flipped over and trapped him In 2015 19-year-old Charlotte Heffelmire also from the States lifted a truck after a jack collapsed pinning her father under it How did these regular folks under extreme pressure develop a temporary strength they never knew they had First the stories are often exaggerated When someone claims to have lifted a vehicle they probably lifted only one corner Three tires remained on the ground greatly reducing the weight Think of your living room couch All by yourself you probably can’t pick up the whole thing But try lifting only one corner and you might find success Second in scary situations epinephrine also known as adrenaline rushes into our blood This hormone helps us react to fight or flight situations when we have to decide whether to fight something such as a bear or run away Our hearts beat faster and we breathe faster More oxygen goes to our brains making us more alert Additional nutrients flood into our bloodstreams Although our muscles don’t suddenly get as strong as a superhero’s fight or flight effects can take the abilities we’ve got and give them a slightly more powerful push MASTERS of MUSCLE 9
