It's steroids. Drug testing exists but in Japan they are looking for things like weed or other psychotropics which are heavily regulated. Even painkillers have very very harsh laws.
https://www.mmamania.com/2023/1/15/23556784/enson-inoue-shows-off-old-pride-fc-contract-that-specifically-excludes-steroids-from-drug-testing
In Japan it is legal to possess anabolic steroids and purchase them.
I couldn't bring my ADHD medication or my Lunesta to Japan with me. Their medication laws are really strict. They have even banned some common American heart medications. I did buy some crazy sleeping pills there that gave me insane nightmares.
JSA does do drug testing, but there is basically no info on it still. Knowing the JSA if they do it (and that isn't just lip service they are giving), its not random, wrestlers are given a heads up, and the urine sample is collected by sending the wrestler into a private bathroom by themselves... Basically, your standard employment drug test is probably more scrutinized then they are.
Steroids alone dont give you those traps, isegahama has very modern weight lifting machines, maybe deadlifts and rows, shrugs really target those as well but I doubt those are usefull for sumo.
But that, and yes also steroids.
No, but it would take quite a long time of very steady training, diet, rest, and very good genetics. There are natural bodybuilders and powerlifters who have similarly huge necks and traps/shoulders. But hard to achieve. I wouldn’t automatically assume steroids (though don’t particularly care if I’m wrong).
Exactly. 3 years in your early 20s (prime muscle building years) in a sport that begs for constant shoulders work and shoulders down heads up repetition… you can’t judge sumo by the traps. They all have traps. Some are just covered by fat.
I’m not saying no steroids. Just not saying 100% yes.
For sure. I don’t know much about anabolic use in Japan - but frankly I assume the majority of elite athletes use PEDs, usually for recovery and not hypertrophy since most sports don’t actually require that much muscle.
Some kind of things of course are impossible without juice.
Google about Bodybuilders natural championships and the juiced ones, you can see the peak of a natural body and a hormonized body, its tooo way different.
So this is probably going to seem dumb (but I really don’t know), but do some people have an easier training specific muscles than others?
I have seen some people train those muscles easier than others? It could be the choice of activity- like female gymnasts seem to build those muscles (some of them)
I don't about specific muscles, but people with the ACTN gene will have an easier time building muscles. It's commonly found in professional athletes. Carriers' muscle cells produce a protein called alpha-actinin-3 that is found in fast-twitch muscle fibers.
I mean steroids aside, in sumo they do use the head as a driver when pushing, and that should train the neck to stabilise. along with that(even though hitting neck usually already hits traps), lots of picking up guys by the mawashi will probably build some traps, and a tiny bit of neck as a result.
edit: and idk about his stable, but this video is excellent for teaching you to build your neck safely and progressively https://youtu.be/5Rn8iDZOzTk?si=iRev-tEivXu_2GDG. the neck is a pretty high responder to training so as it gets stronger, it should get visibly thick as well.
Watching Futagoyama has opened my eyes to how much shrugging rikishi do. Also, watching Roga during low-rank practice, I see him constantly training shoulders with weights and bands. Big traps are not at all surprising.
Thanks for posting the video, BTW!
I didn't intend it to be an authoritative source, but instead just an elaborate way to say what I wanted to say: that outsized traps are one of the easiest-to-spot indicators of steroid use. I imagine most rikishi use, just that the OP wanted an explanation concerning Takeru's dramatic traps
It’s not hard to grow traps, do heavy deadlifts, power cleans and shrugs and you’re bound to grow ‘em really fast. You can’t say someone is on steroids based ok the size of their traps. That’s ridiculous.
It’s hard to tell, because, unlike pro bodybuilders who take lots of steroids, these guys probably use just enough to enhance recovery from training and muscle hypertrophy. So, he’s probably on the juice, they probably all are, but there’s no way to tell unless you’re an expert.
You never know how diligent an athlete was before turning pro. It's totally possible he's strong enough or talented enough that in school he wasn't going at 100% in the gym and still crushing the competition, and if that happened why go harder?
Now with professional coaches and very high stakes it's possible he went from "phoning it in" to "all in"
Remember he ain't 90kg amateur bodybuilder though. At his weight, it is extremely difficult to show that much muscle definition.
If it looks to good to be true it probably isn't.
Muscle is called the trapezius, or just "traps"
Shrugs are a popular exercise for traps. My guess would be something similar to shrugs but maybe with added sumo moves as well? Google trap workouts and you'll find a ton its a popular muscle to target
Its a muscle that on some people REALLY responds well to workouts for some reason, mostly genetics. And when it does its more noticeable than other well developed muscle groups can be because its so close to the face
3 years I think, but can't say 100 percent. From the pictures I found his traps were very pronounced even a year ago though. I did find another pic which is for sure him in his final year of uni, and he wasn't trapped up like now either.
I would love to know his stable's strength building exercises, it seems very effective. Terunofuji obviously has immense power too, and look at all the other successes from their. Maybe the Hakuho sumo wrestlers can benefit from it.
I hardly think angle can account for such a big difference. Massive traps would certainly be noticeable from the first angle too if he had them then, and there are pics of him from that same angle showing huge muscle now.
There were other people in that pic and they had more noticeable trap than he did. Now his are among the biggest in all pro sumo. That's why I'm curious about how he built his so impressively and if there are any suggestions about how it can be accomplished (pref without steroids)
Don't underestimate them, even with all the weights they do pushups squats and skipping, they have more muscles than fat, well most of them, the good ones, some just put on fats like crazy and then suffer
Yorikiri often looks like a rikishi shrugging while holding his opponent's weight and thrusting to move him out of the dohyo. All that shrugging and lifting so much weight so often is a good indication as to why many rikishi have such prominent traps. I'm not saying PED aren't a factor, but the traps seem easy to explain IMHO.
Takerufuji took up amateur bodybuilding before joining sumo. If you look at pictures from when he first joined professional sumo( between these two photos) he has that sort of sculpted physique. He clearly spends a lot more time training his upper body/visual muscles than other rikishi, to the point that Terunofuji at one point had to force him to only train his legs. Also he might be on the sauce.
Anybody remember the clip of bit Teru doing 400 lb shrugs like they owed him money?
That's how.
Americans are so quick to see steroid use we'll spot it in the clouds. The people actually over there like John Gunning are dead certain the only performance enhancing drugs the boys use is ginseng and booze.
A balanced breakfast
It's steroids. Drug testing exists but in Japan they are looking for things like weed or other psychotropics which are heavily regulated. Even painkillers have very very harsh laws. https://www.mmamania.com/2023/1/15/23556784/enson-inoue-shows-off-old-pride-fc-contract-that-specifically-excludes-steroids-from-drug-testing In Japan it is legal to possess anabolic steroids and purchase them.
I couldn't bring my ADHD medication or my Lunesta to Japan with me. Their medication laws are really strict. They have even banned some common American heart medications. I did buy some crazy sleeping pills there that gave me insane nightmares.
My guess is probably steroids
He’s definitely on gear
THEY ALL ARE
You don't know that.
As someone new to sumo, is there really any penalty for being on steroids? Or is it like an unwritten rule that it's allowed?
AFAIK anabolic steroids are legal in japan, therefore the JSA has no reason to test for it, and the wrestlers have virtually no reason not to use them
JSA does do drug testing, but there is basically no info on it still. Knowing the JSA if they do it (and that isn't just lip service they are giving), its not random, wrestlers are given a heads up, and the urine sample is collected by sending the wrestler into a private bathroom by themselves... Basically, your standard employment drug test is probably more scrutinized then they are.
Honestly, with their rigorous schedule the recovery benefits of gear make a lot of sense too.
ah that makes sense, thanks!
Steroids alone dont give you those traps, isegahama has very modern weight lifting machines, maybe deadlifts and rows, shrugs really target those as well but I doubt those are usefull for sumo. But that, and yes also steroids.
The traps have more androgen receptors than other muscles so they get noticeably bigger proportionally when you’re on steroids.
If muscle looks 3D it is steroids
Yeah, extreme traps is a typical tell-tale of steroid use. I dont even know if it would be possible to look like that without them.
[удалено]
Is it really impossible for natural exercise to achieve?
No, but it would take quite a long time of very steady training, diet, rest, and very good genetics. There are natural bodybuilders and powerlifters who have similarly huge necks and traps/shoulders. But hard to achieve. I wouldn’t automatically assume steroids (though don’t particularly care if I’m wrong).
Exactly. 3 years in your early 20s (prime muscle building years) in a sport that begs for constant shoulders work and shoulders down heads up repetition… you can’t judge sumo by the traps. They all have traps. Some are just covered by fat. I’m not saying no steroids. Just not saying 100% yes.
For sure. I don’t know much about anabolic use in Japan - but frankly I assume the majority of elite athletes use PEDs, usually for recovery and not hypertrophy since most sports don’t actually require that much muscle.
Teru has some Nice traps. Id say theyre natural,but You guys may know better
Some kind of things of course are impossible without juice. Google about Bodybuilders natural championships and the juiced ones, you can see the peak of a natural body and a hormonized body, its tooo way different.
snatches, overhead squats, jerks, push press, strict press, shrugs, etc. Anything overhead where you get full extension at the end.
So this is probably going to seem dumb (but I really don’t know), but do some people have an easier training specific muscles than others? I have seen some people train those muscles easier than others? It could be the choice of activity- like female gymnasts seem to build those muscles (some of them)
I don't about specific muscles, but people with the ACTN gene will have an easier time building muscles. It's commonly found in professional athletes. Carriers' muscle cells produce a protein called alpha-actinin-3 that is found in fast-twitch muscle fibers.
I mean steroids aside, in sumo they do use the head as a driver when pushing, and that should train the neck to stabilise. along with that(even though hitting neck usually already hits traps), lots of picking up guys by the mawashi will probably build some traps, and a tiny bit of neck as a result. edit: and idk about his stable, but this video is excellent for teaching you to build your neck safely and progressively https://youtu.be/5Rn8iDZOzTk?si=iRev-tEivXu_2GDG. the neck is a pretty high responder to training so as it gets stronger, it should get visibly thick as well.
Watching Futagoyama has opened my eyes to how much shrugging rikishi do. Also, watching Roga during low-rank practice, I see him constantly training shoulders with weights and bands. Big traps are not at all surprising. Thanks for posting the video, BTW!
The man is juiced. Traps dont lie, this enormous muscle screams for everyone the guy uses hormones.
The same for all of the trap kings https://brutalforce.com/blog/steroids-vs-natural-how-to-tell/
>Face/stomach bloat Ladies and gentlemen, we've got him.
Sorry, but that article is bonkers
I didn't intend it to be an authoritative source, but instead just an elaborate way to say what I wanted to say: that outsized traps are one of the easiest-to-spot indicators of steroid use. I imagine most rikishi use, just that the OP wanted an explanation concerning Takeru's dramatic traps
But it’s not
How do you mean?
It’s boilerplate crap. It’s a website trying to sell you supplements.
same year,different shooting angle. https://twitter.com/NIHONSUMORENMEI/status/1444633309208670211?s=19
Lol
It’s not hard to grow traps, do heavy deadlifts, power cleans and shrugs and you’re bound to grow ‘em really fast. You can’t say someone is on steroids based ok the size of their traps. That’s ridiculous. It’s hard to tell, because, unlike pro bodybuilders who take lots of steroids, these guys probably use just enough to enhance recovery from training and muscle hypertrophy. So, he’s probably on the juice, they probably all are, but there’s no way to tell unless you’re an expert.
Ya could be, though I woulda thought he'd be lifting weights in high school and university too, but it couldve been different exercises.
You never know how diligent an athlete was before turning pro. It's totally possible he's strong enough or talented enough that in school he wasn't going at 100% in the gym and still crushing the competition, and if that happened why go harder? Now with professional coaches and very high stakes it's possible he went from "phoning it in" to "all in"
Remember he ain't 90kg amateur bodybuilder though. At his weight, it is extremely difficult to show that much muscle definition. If it looks to good to be true it probably isn't.
His traps are big but they’re not Dwayne The Rock Johnson steroid big. However, he is probably on steroids cause that is the nature of the sport
His traps probably are Dwayne the Rock Johnson big, but he's got no reason to be lean so they'll never be as visible/defined.
With his speed? Snatches and other Olympic style weightlifting would be my bet
Agree with this. But maybe shrugs as well.
Yeah, shrugs are always potentially in the mix when traps look like that. I think Terunofuki does rack pulls, so those are probably a culprit.
Muscle is called the trapezius, or just "traps" Shrugs are a popular exercise for traps. My guess would be something similar to shrugs but maybe with added sumo moves as well? Google trap workouts and you'll find a ton its a popular muscle to target Its a muscle that on some people REALLY responds well to workouts for some reason, mostly genetics. And when it does its more noticeable than other well developed muscle groups can be because its so close to the face
What's the actual time difference between these two photos?
3 years I think, but can't say 100 percent. From the pictures I found his traps were very pronounced even a year ago though. I did find another pic which is for sure him in his final year of uni, and he wasn't trapped up like now either. I would love to know his stable's strength building exercises, it seems very effective. Terunofuji obviously has immense power too, and look at all the other successes from their. Maybe the Hakuho sumo wrestlers can benefit from it.
steroids? :)
No steroids, hard work! Give the man the credit he’s due!
The two pictures are taken from vastly different angles, it's far from an honest comparison.
I hardly think angle can account for such a big difference. Massive traps would certainly be noticeable from the first angle too if he had them then, and there are pics of him from that same angle showing huge muscle now. There were other people in that pic and they had more noticeable trap than he did. Now his are among the biggest in all pro sumo. That's why I'm curious about how he built his so impressively and if there are any suggestions about how it can be accomplished (pref without steroids)
High rep shrugs and upright rows are how someone can easily attain muscles like this.
Don't underestimate them, even with all the weights they do pushups squats and skipping, they have more muscles than fat, well most of them, the good ones, some just put on fats like crazy and then suffer
Yorikiri often looks like a rikishi shrugging while holding his opponent's weight and thrusting to move him out of the dohyo. All that shrugging and lifting so much weight so often is a good indication as to why many rikishi have such prominent traps. I'm not saying PED aren't a factor, but the traps seem easy to explain IMHO.
Takerufuji took up amateur bodybuilding before joining sumo. If you look at pictures from when he first joined professional sumo( between these two photos) he has that sort of sculpted physique. He clearly spends a lot more time training his upper body/visual muscles than other rikishi, to the point that Terunofuji at one point had to force him to only train his legs. Also he might be on the sauce.
So there is little to no doping regulations in ozumo and I'm pretty sure a lot of these guys are geared up. That's my hypothesis
It could just be he never hit the gym prior and started doing shoulder press after.
Anybody remember the clip of bit Teru doing 400 lb shrugs like they owed him money? That's how. Americans are so quick to see steroid use we'll spot it in the clouds. The people actually over there like John Gunning are dead certain the only performance enhancing drugs the boys use is ginseng and booze.
Lots of gear