Arm Muscle Mass and Boxing

That picture is real by the way!

This is going to be more of a question to my readers, then it will be an article. You might remember, but I have written a few articles which dissect a boxer, and their attributes (punches,skill, heart, training etc), but there is still one more thing I was pondering. Muscle mass: what's the perfect balance to maximize attributes.

Muscle mass weights a lot. Sure muscles are useful for maximizing the force and momentum, but there are some things that muscles mass can lower in value.

1) The concept of more weight requires more energy. If a fighter decides to bulk up (just to look better, not for a functional reason), does it make sense? In other words, they are making their arms heavier in weight. Thus, they would automatically require more energy to throw a punch as well as to keep them up for defense. So how does it make sense?

2) Muscle size along with mass, decreases flexibility, and in boxing it's one of the attributes thatis crucial for better defense. Muscle does not allow for much stressing if it is built up to the point of cramping ligaments. Right?

I know that this is somewhat of a naive question, but I honestly could not find a good reason for that. I can see that 99 percent of fighters try to flex and show off their muscles, but what is the main idea behind that (besides cosmetic of course)?

When a punch is thrown, a fighter should use the momentum of his/her body to make it harder, not the ram itself. I also understand the idea behind stabilizer muscles, but they are not really needed in the arms. Stabilizer back and neck muscles are necessary, but arms don't have that function in jeopardy.

Thanks

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