Eli5: How do apes like chimps and gorillas have extraordinary strength, and are well muscled all year round – while humans need to constantly train their whole life to have even a fraction of that strength?

Question

It’s not like these apes do any strenuous activity besides the occasional branch swinging (or breaking).

Whereas a bodybuilder regularly lifting 80+ kgs year round is still outmatched by these apes living a relatively relaxed lifestyle.

In: 8644

Answer 1

It’s due to us developing a much higher musculature for endurance, that was our initial method of hunting – find an animal, and follow it until it becomes too exhausted to continue and can easily be killed. It’s doubtful that other primates could travel even a small fraction of the distance we can, without giving up. However they have us beat in raw power in that regard, especially when it comes to jumping.

The upper bodies of other primates have a different musculature which enables their strength, around 1.5 times what we can achieve. This probably contributed or even led to the development of tools, as a way of compensating in nature; as they say, brains vs brawn.