February 6, 2026
Heavy loads, heavier comments
How to carry more than your own bodyweight (2025)
Farmers use springy bamboo, lifters preach technique, and commenters scream 'my back'
TLDR: Vietnamese farmers use timed steps and springy bamboo poles to make hauling huge loads easier, sparking praise for smart training and serious caution about injury. Commenters split between inspiration and “hard pass,” debating gym reps vs. grueling jobs and swapping global stories of epic everyday carrying.
The internet is both awed and alarmed after a piece on Vietnamese farm workers carrying more than their bodyweight with springy bamboo poles. The science-y bit: when they time their steps so the load bounces with their stride, it can cut effort by about 18%. The community bit: chaos. One brave soul confessed, “carried double my bodyweight once—my back never recovered,” while another hit the brakes with a deadpan, “No, I don’t think I will.”
That set off a gym-vs-reality showdown. Some cheered the history lesson (ancient weightlifting to today’s record-smashing Georgian lifter Lasha Talakhadze) and the reminder that slow, smart strength training beats ego lifting. Others asked the uncomfortable question: if lifting is so healthy, why do many construction workers’ bodies look wrecked by 50? Cue threads about technique, rest, and the difference between structured training and grinding labor. Meanwhile, globetrotters chimed in: shout-outs to Slovak mountain carriers and Indian villages where kids hauled 30–40 kg bundles and women balanced towers of water pots, plus bamboo shoulder bars everywhere.
Meme energy was high—“Bamboo is nature’s suspension,” “I’ll clean and jerk… my garage,” and “OSHA just left the chat.” Inspiration met caution tape, and the comments carried the day.
Key Points
- •Vietnamese farm workers use springy bamboo poles to carry loads exceeding bodyweight, timing load oscillations with their gait to cut per-step effort by about 18%.
- •Weightlifting has a 4,000-year history across ancient Egypt, Greece, and China, and became a permanent Olympic sport at the 1920 Antwerp Games.
- •Lasha Talakhadze set three world records in 2021 at Tashkent, including a 267 kg clean and jerk—over twice his bodyweight—which he still holds.
- •Strength training improves health and mobility in older adults, is linked to lower mortality from cancer and heart disease, and may benefit mental health.
- •Experts advise progressive, technique-focused training, building core and stabilizer strength, training muscle activation, and using multiple sets with 2–5 minute rests for strength-power gains.