For centuries, humans have been required to do heavy lifting whether for survival, work, or competitive performance. Different communities have developed sophisticated techniques for carrying heavy loads, each tailored to specific requirements and environments. Modern science is now exploring these traditional methods to enhance performance and reduce the risk of injury through smarter training techniques.
Let’s delve deeper into these load-carrying techniques and see what we can learn from the world’s best workers.
How the World’s Best Carrying Workers Do It
1. Bamboo Pole Technique in Rural Vietnam
Farmers in rural Vietnam have a name for unparalleled strength and long-term performance. They haul loads many times larger in weight than themselves, such as baskets full of grain and veg, over long routes—occasionally several miles at a stretch. Bamboo poles, a traditional farmer’s tool, act as a lever, distributing weight over one’s physique. Bamboo’s springiness helps one’s swing in harmony with each move, lessening work in raising weight by about 18%. Centuries of practice have helped them develop a knack for altering their gait and stance, contributing a big role in moving big loads.
The success in utilizing this technique comes from harmonizing motion. Balance in weight comes courtesy of the pole, and counterbalance for swinging motion comes courtesy of farmers’ strides. In minimizing effort, one cannot deny that it’s a consequence of unparalleled strengthening and years of practice too.
2. Sherpas and Forehead Strap Technique
The Himalayan Sherpas have a remarkable skill at moving extreme loads over rough, sloping country. Sherpas will move goods such as provisions, gear, and building materials up a 26,000-plus foot (8,000-plus meter) high peak. To move such bulky loads, Sherpas use a tump line: a brow strap distributing weight off the back. With such a technique, Sherpas can move over a body weight effectively, even over rough and sloping country.
Analysis of such a technique shows it reduces heart rate and intake of oxygen, conserving Sherpas’ energy and allowing them to move considerable weight over long distances. It’s a mix of strength and durability training, allowing them to survive in one of the planet’s most hostile environments.
3. African head-carrying techniques
In parts of East Africa, goods can be seen borne aloft in heads—often 70% of a female’s body weight. That’s wood and water, produce, and provisions. It’s an age-old custom, but it’s a utilitarian solution in parts with little access to modern conveyance and long, long walking in store for them.
Analysis of such a custom shows a definite walking technique for minimum work for muscles, even with a considerable burden. By putting a burden onto heads and distributing it for an even stance, shoulder, and back strain is avoided, and weight distribution over the whole body is maximized. Over many generations, such an efficient custom has developed, and an unparalleled skill at moving incredibly bulky loads over long distances is acquired.
4. Military Load-Carriage and Endurance
In military operations, troopers carry with them at all times incredibly heavy loads—up to 45 kg (99 1bs)—in terms of gear. That is armor, ammunition, and survival gear, not weaponry. Military testing has confirmed troopers trained with a combination of strength and cardiovascular training can carry such loads for a long period and not become fatigued, and are even less likely to become injured.
Adding in progressive training—slow, measured build-up, in a slow and measured pace, increased weight, or intensity of training—increases both strengthening and durability capabilities. That mixed training, combining cardiovascular conditioning and strengthening, has proven effective in fighting exhaustion and enhancing performance in long-duration operations, such as in rough country when a vehicle cannot gain access to an area. All such techniques are not only beneficial for soldiering but also serve as an example for enhancing our capabilities through training.
How to Train for Strength and Endurance: Lessons from the Experts
1. Progressive Overload Training
To effectively carry loads, it’s important to build your strength through specific training. Progressive overload, a slow, measured build-up in weight or burden placed on the body, is one proven mechanism for achieving that. Progressive overload allows your muscles to adapt and build over a period of time, becoming increasingly strong and capable of withstanding a burden.
Use increased:
The weight in a lift that you use.
The repetitions with that weight.
The duration under tension (the duration your muscles work in each exercise in a session).
The training works for both big, powerful lifting for strengthening and lighter loads with high repetitions for durability, and it works to build muscle and endurance for bearing loads.
2. Efficient Carrying Techniques
Strength training isn’t enough; training in proper technique in moving loads is important to minimize trauma and maximize efficiency:
Distribute weight evenly: Whether a loaded basket or a backpack, have your weight borne over your frame to avert strain. For a backpack, use shoulder straps to secure it in a fitting position and not press your back unnecessarily.
Use your core: Don’t use your back and your arms alone to carry a big burden. Engage your core and your legs, strong and capable of withstanding loads.
Optimize your gait: Check your bearing stance when walking or bearing a burden. An even, rhythmic gait puts less strain on your joints and your muscles, with less exhaustion in moving over a long distance.
3. Everyday Strength for Everyday Living
Strength training for bearing loads isn’t about hoisting in the gym alone; it’s about functional strength—the skill to undertake ordinary actions with ease and efficiency. Strength training regularly can boost your:
Posture: Lifting loads in a proper manner helps maintain proper stance and locomotion.
Endurance: Strength development will have enough stamina for long work, such as walking or lifting.
Avoiding injuries: Tougher joints and muscles act as a guard for wear and tear.
Being in shape for bearing loads in real life simply involves having real fitness, not necessarily hoisting in the gym, but developing your overall functional fitness.
Final Thoughts: Don’t Train Harsher, but Smarter
The planet’s most powerful workers—from farmers in Vietnam to Sherpas and army soldiers—do not rely purely on raw force for bearing loads. Instead, use biomechanics, efficiency, and training in endurance to make full use of your physique. By following them, one can develop one’s strength, boost one’s endurance, and avert one’s vulnerability to injuries.
Whether you’re moving a heavy box, hiking to a summit, or bagging a week’s worth of groceries, tips and techniques from these powerful workers can make you work smarter, not necessarily harder. So go for it—lift that weight.
