On !sumo@lemmy.world the January 15-day tourney just ended yesterday. As usual I made 4 "informative" posts on how to watch the tourney, and a couple other posts. This time 4 other people made posts, and there was a bit of chatter in comments.

btw if you're not familiar with sumo, this is actually the perfect time to watch the January tournament: all the daily summary videos are out (since the tourney just finished) but they haven’t been removed yet (because that happens after a week or so.) For example, look here: https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/tv/sumo/

[–] JohnnyEnzyme@piefed.social 2 points 3 days ago (1 children)

As someone who enjoys the technique side of MMA, I like to watch the occasional sumo match. Seeing smaller guys win through good tactics is cool, but I also like how the sport is (far as I know) a lot less wearing on the body and brain than stuff like MMA, boxing, American football, etc.

[–] Sergio@piefed.social 3 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (1 children)

In sumo you can only hit the head with an open palm (or you can hit the chin with a forearm, if you "slide it up") so ~~I think there are fewer concussions~~ [CORRECTION blows to the head are a problem, see below]. But you can do head charges, so that can be damaging. Also a LOT of sumotori have problems with knees or shoulders. Former pro sumotori live shorter lives than the average Japanese person, I think ~~it was 5-10 years fewer? ~~ [CORRECTION 15 years]

If you like technique analysis check out dondon's videos, unfortunately he takes them down fairly quickly: https://www.youtube.com/@dondonsumo2/videos

[–] JohnnyEnzyme@piefed.social 3 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Hmm. 5-10yrs fewer in a nation with long life expectancy is pretty impressive to me, really. The obvious one I used to assume was super bad news is the weight issue, with belly fat tending to be particularly terrible for nearby organs. But apparently with sumotori, it's surprisingly not commonly a major issue due to their training methods and cardiovascular health. IIRC the fat tends to float on top of a dense layer of muscle, unlike ye olde coach potato physique.

Btw, I would guess that head slaps in sumo aren't quite as bad as they might seem, due to them being somewhat of an incidental thing not meant so much to cause damage, but to disorganize an opponent for the purposes of bettering one's position. Compare that for example to the slap-fighting leagues, in which one person has to stand in position while the opponent gets to wind up and deliver the equivalent of a perfect, badass hook shot. I mean, holy shoot, you can be boxing and fighting MMA, struggling for many rounds to get off a shot like that, and yet in slap-fighting, it seems like that's more of an 'every shot,' thing. oO

But yeah, no real surprises about the knee issues. That sucks.

[–] Sergio@piefed.social 3 points 3 days ago (1 children)

well, I shouldn't have spouted off without looking it up

The negative health effects of the sumo lifestyle can become apparent later in life. Sumo wrestlers have a life expectancy of 65,[39] which is about 15 years shorter than that of the average Japanese male, as the diet and sport take a toll on the wrestler's body. Those having a higher body mass are at greater risk of death.[40][41] Many develop type 2 diabetes or high blood pressure, and they are prone to heart attacks due to the enormous amount of body mass and fat that they accumulate. The excessive intake of alcohol can lead to liver problems, and the stress on their joints due to their excess weight can cause arthritis.[39] The repeated blows to the head sumo wrestlers take can also cause long-term cognitive issues, similar to those seen in boxers.[42][43]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumo

[–] JohnnyEnzyme@piefed.social 2 points 3 days ago

Actually, yeah.. that does sound pretty realistic, just speaking as a layperson. I wonder if the number of groupies kinda makes up for all that, though? lol

Eh, see what you started, Blaze?! 😅