Are athletes really getting faster, better, stronger?

TED Talk by David Epstein

Interesting talk on how athletes bodies have changed over the past few decades and the influence of technological advances.

It's pretty amazing what the human body can do. Do you think over time (or maybe even now) we will see better and better martial artists and fighter's arise? I think, among both the MA community and the general public, the Golden Age of Eastern martial arts seems to be the late 1800s to mid 1900s. Figures such as Itosu, Kano, Funakoshi are revered as having god-like wisdom and physical ability. Are the martial artists of our era better than their predecessors?

Thanks for the video; very informative!!

I think that what's happened is that the training methodologies/ideologies have become so much improved across the board. Approaches on how to train and get much more from ones training; more refined.

The machines that one can be attached to is Frankenstein-like while ones training so that they can better understand the possibilities. We train, but if we're not training to improve, than there's no use to train at all, imho.

Are the martial artists of our era better than their predecessors?

Yes! We have to be! Change; the mother of evolution has to be embraced for it to begin. All instructors of the MA want to have their students and the like to improve, and become better MAists across the board. I do! I want my students, as well as the entire student body of Shindokan to improve and be much better than those of use who are reaching the end of their MA journey. To teach them to take what they've been given to higher platitudes.

If the answer to the quote above is no!! Then we shame their legacies, imho!!

I think that the Martial Artists of today are better than those of the past, like Itosu, Funakoshi, Kano, etc. People are getting bigger and faster and stronger than ever before. We also have evolved in learning methodologies and the like, so not only are athletes bigger and faster, they are smarter, and train smarter, too. And this is true with all sports and athletic endeavors.

I do believe that the top martial artists of today are better than in the past.

Let's look at an example of someone you might have heard of: Bruce Lee. Name ring a bell?

Today his teachings are the bible for MMA fighters. They all cross train. They all believe in multiple martial arts to complete their singular "style" ( or lack thereof) I watch old karate tournaments and compare to new tournaments and even in a period as short as 20 years one can notice changes.

Speed for one. Today's fighters are very fast. Like ridiculously fast. I'll even throw in a example of a amateur: This teenager is not a pro. He wins a lot...but I do not believe that he has ever left America for any fight ever.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=789886401030619&set=p.789886401030619&type=2&theater

That is pretty fast imo. How many people were that fast in the 70s?

Like I said...that is a young amateur. There are better, stronger perhaps even faster fighters all over youtube...at the amateur level too.