Splitting like a girl

[gyrfalcon]

So a couple weeks ago, I'm reading a blog at The Atlantic magazine's Web site by a fellow named James Fallows whose writing I like, and he links to an article he wrote for the magazine some years ago called "Throwing Like a Girl" about the mechanics of pitching a baseball, and particularly something called the "kinetic chain."

I loved the article and was intrigued by the fact that a lot of what he said there also applies to swinging a maul, so I sent him an email about it. He ended up posting the email on his blog, here: http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2010/12/splitting-like-a-girl/67738/

The pointy heads at The Atlantic seemed to like it and have it up as one of their "Best of the Web" for today.

It's definitely worth reading his old article about pitching a baseball, here:

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1996/08/throwing-like-a-girl/6152/

 

[ISeeDeadBTUs]

Apparently splitting like a Gurl includes

Wearing sandals
Not looking where you want the maul to go
Swinging left-handed
And shaving your legs first

 

[JustWood]

FINE BY ME MMMMMMMMMM HMMMMMMMMMMMM!!

 

[smokinj]

FINE BY ME MMMMMMMMMM HMMMMMMMMMMMM!!

+1 nothing wrong with that swing!

 

[basswidow]

+2

I didn't even notice the sandals, the swing, etc....

I did notice it's not a Fiskars!

 

[scoooter]

I'm confused, swinging a maul with your right hand at the bottom is swinging it left handed?

 

[ISeeDeadBTUs]

I'm confused, swinging a maul with your right hand at the bottom is swinging it left handed?

Please tell me you're kidding . . . .

 

[VTHC]

Funny! I read Fallows' blog post (before knowing you emailed him) and was wondering if it was anyone from this forum! I too am a Fallows fan, also enjoy Andrew Sullivan (one of my daily reads). The Atlantic as a whole is a good read.
Been teaching the wife good splitting form, but she prefers the hydraulic splitter (smart woman!)...

 

[scoooter]

I'm confused, swinging a maul with your right hand at the bottom is swinging it left handed?

Please tell me you're kidding . . . .

Yes....

 

[gyrfalcon]

I'm confused, swinging a maul with your right hand at the bottom is swinging it left handed?

Dunno. I'm actually a rightie, but when I was teaching myself how to use the maul, that seemed the most natural way to do it. Now that all my reflexes have gotten down with that way of doing it, changing around seems nearly impossible-- and certainly dangerous (even though I don't wear hottie shorts and "f-me" sandals when I'm doing it.)

 

[oldspark]

She is chokeing the handle pretty good, not much of a swing.

 

[scoooter]

I'm confused, swinging a maul with your right hand at the bottom is swinging it left handed?

(even though I don't wear hottie shorts and "f-me" sandals when I'm doing it.)

HAHAHAHA but you aren't denying the shirt?

Sorry that was too easy

 

[gyrfalcon]

Funny! I read Fallows' blog post (before knowing you emailed him) and was wondering if it was anyone from this forum! I too am a Fallows fan, also enjoy Andrew Sullivan (one of my daily reads). The Atlantic as a whole is a good read.
Been teaching the wife good splitting form, but she prefers the hydraulic splitter (smart woman!)...

If I had a hydraulic, I'd sure use it. But then I'd blow up fat as a pig instead of burning up calories and building muscle splitting by hand. Nothing like pure necessity to get you out there and working hard.

Been reading Fallows for many a year now, and I'm delighted to have been able to give him something he finds interesting instead of it all going the other way.

 

[gyrfalcon]

I'm confused, swinging a maul with your right hand at the bottom is swinging it left handed?

(even though I don't wear hottie shorts and "f-me" sandals when I'm doing it.)

HAHAHAHA but you aren't denying the shirt?

Sorry that was too easy

You got it. Not denying the shirt at all-- at least in warm weather. You got it, you should flaunt it, is my opinion. ;-)

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Some day I'd like to meet you gyrfalcon. But before anyone gets the wrong idea from that, it is just that I admire her grit. Well, no doubt she is a fine lady too.

 

[savageactor7]

Nice!

 

[Jags]

Great association of the original article and its implications to your real world of hand splitting. And also a great post to his blog that may challenge others to do the same in their world. Good job.

 

[gyrfalcon]

Some day I'd like to meet you gyrfalcon. But before anyone gets the wrong idea from that, it is just that I admire her grit. Well, no doubt she is a fine lady too.

Take the ornery wife on a Vermont vacation sometime and we'll toss back a few and laugh a whole lot. Seriously. It would be great fun, and I'd love to meet both of you.

 

[woodchip]

That would be the perfect wife for me.............

Just one question, does she eat roadkill too ;-)

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Some day I'd like to meet you gyrfalcon. But before anyone gets the wrong idea from that, it is just that I admire her grit. Well, no doubt she is a fine lady too.

Take the ornery wife on a Vermont vacation sometime and we'll toss back a few and laugh a whole lot. Seriously. It would be great fun, and I'd love to meet both of you.

Well, ornery wife and I are considering another trip out your way and who knows, it just might happen! Of course some of this will also depend upon the timing of Woodstock's party. They tend to like having it right when we are picking peaches. Thanks for the invite.

 

[RoseRedHoofbeats]

I think there's something to the idea that women's upper arm strength is different enough that throwing "like a girl" is what works best for their particular muscle pattern. I can't throw nearly as hard, accurately, or as fast doing it the "right" way as I can when I do it like a "girl". My brother and I just recently got into an argument about this and tested my theory out. I can nail a bullseye at twenty paces with a tennis ball throwing like a girl -the way that feels the most comfortable to me.

I have no idea if I split like a girl or not- I split how my dad showed me. Brace your legs, bend your knees a bit, let the weight of the axe do the work.

~Rose

 

[gyrfalcon]

I think there's something to the idea that women's upper arm strength is different enough that throwing "like a girl" is what works best for their particular muscle pattern. I can't throw nearly as hard, accurately, or as fast doing it the "right" way as I can when I do it like a "girl". My brother and I just recently got into an argument about this and tested my theory out. I can nail a bullseye at twenty paces with a tennis ball throwing like a girl -the way that feels the most comfortable to me.

I have no idea if I split like a girl or not- I split how my dad showed me. Brace your legs, bend your knees a bit, let the weight of the axe do the work.

~Rose

I'm kinda inclined to agree with you on this, but what we don't know is how hard and accurately you'd be able to throw if you'd started out from the beginning throwing like a guy. At this point, your muscles have grown and strengthened, as have your tendons and all that other good stuff, to throw the "wrong" way. Also your reflexes are finetuned at this point to do it that way, and changing them over is really, really hard.

But I do think there's more to it than Fallows' et al easy dismissal of the whole question as nothing more than muscle strength. As you say, that difference in muscle had some effects that go beyond just the amount of pure power that's available at any given moment.

 

[RoseRedHoofbeats]

Oh, I have no doubt that it's more kinetically sound to throw the way described, and that you get more power and energy that way, and that my muscles are patterned to throw this way. Just that throwing like a girl doesn't always mean you sacrifice speed or accuracy or strength. I'm not real sure it makes a difference when I'm tossing the keys to my husband from the porch, not pitching a World Series game, if you catch my drift.

~Rose

 

[gyrfalcon]

I'm not real sure it makes a difference when I'm tossing the keys to my husband from the porch, not pitching a World Series game, if you catch my drift.

~Rose

I do indeed!

 

[Gunks]

[quote author="RoseRedHoofbeats" date="1292299361" let the weight of the axe do the work.

[/quote]

Yes, Rose, you split like a girl by letting the weight of the axe do the work. If you split like a guy you'll be using brute strength instead .