SideWinderSyd t1_ixty5hx wrote on November 26, 2022 at 9:12 AM

Reply to comment by AnotherWarGamer in ELI5: How are archers “efficient” in combat? by Environmental_Point3

What does deformed mean here? I thought bones were pretty rigid and arrow shooters would only gain more muscle? I could imagine the muscle being unequal when comparing both halves of the body.

FencingCatBoots t1_ixtysv3 wrote on November 26, 2022 at 9:22 AM

Your bones are constantly being broken down and built up! For an archer, that’s a lot of force on the skeleton in a very asymmetric way, meaning there’s tell tale differences in their bones.

https://kriii.com/english-bowmen/

SideWinderSyd t1_ixtzc1m wrote on November 26, 2022 at 9:30 AM

Thanks so much for the link - TIL!

And I just realised the modern equivalent would be people carrying shoulder bags or single strap bags. There's a difference in their gait, muscle structure and bones too.

FencingCatBoots t1_iy32sw0 wrote on November 28, 2022 at 11:12 AM

That’s a really good analogy that I’ll have to steal! Like a 65kg shoulder bag on only one shoulder for a few hours every day

SideWinderSyd t1_iy42873 wrote on November 28, 2022 at 4:27 PM

Thanks! And yeah, please do share it around! I've seen so many students office workers whose gait have been affected by heavy schoolbags (also because single strap looks cool).