Black and brown bears can lie around, literally, for months during their hibernation and then emerge with the same muscle mass they had when they were in peak shape entering hibernation.įalling temperatures or a change in food availability can trigger the release of blood compounds that strengthen and enhance the muscles in bears and some migratory birds without a single hour in the gym.Īnd tragic for you if you do get into a battle with an adult chimp. The barnacle goose becomes fitter (stronger heart, bigger flight muscles) as the time for migration approaches even though the geese are not exercising. The birds are then put in wind tunnels where, without any physical preparation, they fly nonstop for 10 hours.

Even more surprising, the geese’s fitness, as measured by heart rate and temperature, were the same when they began their migration with no prior exercise and when they ended their migration over the Himalayas.Īccording to an experiment was conducted in which caged songbirds with no exercise are subjected to daylight changes that signal an approaching migration season. The baffling question is why can animals lounge around, never exercising, and then transition immediately from this sedentary state to performing incredible feats of strength and endurance?Īccording to a researcher found that the bar-headed goose did nothing to prepare for its nearly 2,000-mile migration from Mongolia to India. Most of a human’s muscles are slow twitch, which contract more slowly but have greater endurance. This gives us our fine motor skills, able to sew, pluck guitar strings, perform delicate surgery.Ĭhimps have fewer motor neurons that control larger masses of muscle, which gives them massive strength, but don’t ask a chimp to stitch up your appendix incision.Īlso, most of the chimp’s muscles are fast-twitch fibers that contract quickly and with great power. The key to that strength is the composition of muscle fiber and how those muscles are controlled.Ĭompared to chimpanzees, humans have more muscle neurons, each of which serve fewer muscles. What would happen if you entered the ring with the chimp? You, meanwhile, are 200 pounds of well-toned muscle, eating a healthy diet, exercising daily. Let’s say there’s a 100-pound chimpanzee that has been lounging around for a few years, eating Twinkies (banana flavored), and getting zero exercise.

Chimpanzee weight heavy