Relax, it’s not what you think. Researchers out of Loughborough University in the United Kingdom conducted research on strongman Eddie Hall — and were shocked by what they found.

The scientific paper hit the ‘net on Aug. 15, 2024 and is titled, “Muscle and tendon morphology of a world strongman and deadlift champion,” by Balshaw et al. (1)

In their discussion of the research, the academics were astonished by what they observed in the thousand-pound puller. Particularly, his uncommonly large “guy rope” muscles.

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Eddie Hall’s Extra-Large Guy Ropes

Let’s go over anatomy. Guy rope muscles refer to three muscles that wrap around the pelvis and groin area; the sartorius, gracilis and semitendinosus.

“[The guy rope muscles] had the largest differences (+120 to +202%) relative to a group of untrained men,” said the university in a report on their case study.

The researchers examined how Hall, who set a 500-kilogram (1,102-pound) deadlift world record in 2016 and won the 2017 World’s Strongest Man contest, differs from an average man physiologically.

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The authors noted that Hall’s lower-body muscularity — built through years of high-intensity strength training and strongman competition — approach “the upper limit of human variation.”

In plain English, Hall is a peak human as far as strength and muscle are concerned, boasting quadriceps at double the size of an average adult male.

Eddie Hall: History Maker

Regarding the world’s best deadlifters, Hall broke the 500-kilogram barrier in ’16, ann achievement considered a landmark in strength sports history.

Strongmen are permitted to use just about anything short of an actual forklift to haul weights. For the 500-kilogram pull, Hall donned a deadlift suit and used figure-eight straps. The barbell was of standard length and loaded with regulation-size weight plates.

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Study author professor Jonathan Folland concluded the conversation by remarking on the hypertrophy of Hall’s guy ropes: “This indicates that these stabilizing muscles may be more important for heavy lifting and carrying than we previously thought.”

If you want to out-deadlift Hall, we wish you luck. If you want to improve your deadlift, this case study indicates you’ll should beef up more than just your lower back. For a big pull, mind the small details.

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References

Balshaw, T. G., Massey, G. J., Miller, R., McDermott, E. J., Maden-Wilkinson, T. M., & Folland, J. P. (2024). Muscle and tendon morphology of a world strongman and deadlift champion. Journal of applied physiology (Bethesda, Md. : 1985), 10.1152/japplphysiol.00342.2024. Advance online publication.

Featured Image: @eddiehallwsm / Instagram

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