His status as a category B rookie is probably the deal breaker tbh.
We didn’t have that option with Thorne.
Welcome Welcome Conrad Williams!! - 2022 Cat B Rookie List
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His status as a category B rookie is probably the deal breaker tbh.
We didn’t have that option with Thorne.
No doubt that works heavy in Conrad's favour. Not sure Thorne gets a look in even if we could though.
When you look at the Hill boys, not much difference.
Stephen was 69kg and Brad 71kg.
Isaac Smith didn’t get drafted till he was 21years of age.
Conrad is of similar height, but Smith weighs 82kg.
By 21 I’d be surprised if he’s not close to 80.
Isaac is the best winger in the AFL, Hills the best for Freo.
So I don’t see weight being a problem.
I'd say it's unlikely he gets to 80kg before he's 24, if he ever does.
Out of interest, how many kgs has Henry put on since he was drafted? He's looking a good size for his frame now but is still light by AFL standards I'd guess.
Taylor
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- #31
If he is comfortable losing the abdominal definition to gain size I think he will be alright, I don't know if Henry is able to do that. I don't have enough data yet but my gut feel, pun intended, is that guys who have greater than expected abdominal muscle mass for their big six pack with skinny arms might be overly interested in how they look over function.
Are you getting confused with the difference between 20 year olds and 40 year olds and the subsequent capacity to shred fat and where it disappears from?
Also there are individual differences in the ability to put on muscle and where it gets visibly expanded, that and more than meets the eye as far as strength goes. I'd also say that generally, a stronger core is more useful than bicep size for Aussie Rules.
Taylor
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- #33
No, I'm suggesting that young men who spend a lot of time building their abs for the ladies might have a harder time gaining weight generally because they have dialed in their food intake to prioritise their abdominal definition and find the extra intake akin to putting on weight like an anorexic does.
I'm suggesting that body dyspmorphia can present in such ways for young men.
In varying degrees, ranging from those who build mass in their abs to couple with a low BF% for great visuals outside of that which would be a natural byproduct of developing more functional muscle/muscles groups all the way to those who don't body build at all consciously but regulate their six pack via a very low BF% from their very restricted diet.
It's a pretty slanted take. It's almost a requirement for AFL footballers to have a focus on diet and along with the level of exercise they do low body fat percentages become the norm. Abs are more a product of that and the amount of core/abdominal exercises you do (as well as physiological differences), but it's perfectly possible to gain general strength and size and have visible abdominal muscles.
Exhibit A: Charlie Dixon & Chad Cornes
Taylor
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- #35
It's a pretty slanted take. It's almost a requirement for AFL footballers to have a focus on diet and along with the level of exercise they do low body fat percentages become the norm. Abs are more a product of that and the amount of core/abdominal exercises you do (as well as physiological differences), but it's perfectly possible to gain general strength and size and have visible abdominal muscles.
My "take" is that there are plenty of young men who prioritise the look over the function and those young men are going to have a hard time developing size elsewhere because of that mental fixation, or outright vanity, around their abdominal definition.
That if a player is elite in their skinfolds but their abdominal muscle size is out of proportion for their arm strength it could be indicative of a player who is vain - which isn't a problem by itself, but it could mean they have trouble later gaining size because they have a complex about ingesting enough calories.
It's why I have said previously that it's easier to turn a chubby player into a brick outhouse than a skinny beanpole into one.
It seemed to me you're saying you have to choose to have either abs or strength. Is that not the case?
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I don't always agree with your hypotheses Taylor, but I sure am intrigued by them.
Well it's a theory. Not sure it's supportable by any evidence in any way. But it is a theory.
Yes. Good point.
It could be anything.
Visible abs are bad.
There's a problem with Henry.
Henry's exercising too much.
Henry's not exercising enough.
Henry has "dysmorphia".
Or maybe despite having a suite of exercise & physiology professionals, nutritionists and medical staff monitoring him, Henry's got his diet and exercise routine wrong.
Taylor
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- #44
I think it's pretty clear. I'm suggesting that the vanity of some young men gets in their own way.
And your comment on having access to professional coaches and advice, that's why no players skip out on their rehab or show up to training in poor condition. It's all driven from inside their own heads and some of them put a lot more value in their beach muscles.
Again with the vague untestable notion of "some young men" paired with emotive categorisations like "beach muscles" or invisible motivators like (excessive) "vanity"?
Really though, you are talking about Liam Henry, right? ...and your evidence is... abs?
Taylor
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- #47
I'm loosely suggesting that a player like Henry who might be having trouble gaining size could have brought a value on a particular aesthetic with him into his professional career which hampers development outside of that area.
This isn't an unknown thing speaking outside of Henry, plenty of young men spend their bodybuilding effort on bulking their abs for the plump chiseled look - very much aware of maintaining a low BF%. Obsessively concerned with the calories going in with the focus to keep the six pack with which they invest so much of their self, but projected, perception towards the opposite sex.
Henry's body has changed since he was drafted, bulging abs, so a sleeker more efficient distribution of weight. You'll notice a lot of our senior bodies don't have that deep abdominal distinction you get from bulk core focus work, they are doing pilates.
My hypothesis is that there will be athletes who take longer to adjust to the realities of gaining size and strength because they come into the system with a preconception of what is required to maintain how they currently enjoy looking and their S&C coach is going to direct them to overdo it on the calories.
Yes. A lot of storytelling. No evidence.
A lot of people don't have washboard abs, because they're one of the hardest muscle groups to get that sort of definition. There are physiological differences that will impact the comparative difficulty to get them. Leaner and younger folk can have a better tendency for that. eg Older more plump types will need to watch their dietary intake a lot more closely.
However the process of getting them won't harm definition or strength in others areas as a rule. If anything, it shows a willingness to work hard on core strength.
Abs can be one of the least of the vanity muscles groups as they don't get shown off as much as arms, shoulders etc.
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Henry looks like he's put on a significant amount of muscle to me. Considering how slight he was when he came into the system he's probably had the biggest change in body shape of all our draftees over the last few years. I don't see any evidence that he's avoiding bulking up.
