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The following statement was prepared for the Texas House committee hearing for HB 4042, dealing with the issue of congenital males competing in the women’s division in Texas high school sports. The bill, which would have prohibited the practice, is officially dead, having not been brought to a vote by the chairman.
My name is Mark Rippetoe. I am author of Starting Strength: Basic Barbell Training, the best-selling book on barbell strength training in the history of publishing, and Practical Programming for Strength Training, likewise the best-selling book on strength training programming, both in their 3rd editions. I have trained women for strength for 42 years, and I am regarded as an expert on the subject of training for both men and women. A lifelong resident of Texas, I live and work in Wichita Falls.
I don’t have to tell people of normal intelligence who are unblinded by politics that men and women have different physical capacities. To say otherwise is a lie, and is both biologically false and a direct contradiction of the phenomenology observed over the millennia of human existence. These differences can be summarized as “neuromuscular efficiency” – the ability to recruit muscles into contraction both explosively and completely. The data are very clear on this: the average Standing Vertical Jump (SVJ) for young men is 22 inches, and 14 inches for women, with the records being 46 inches and 31 inches for men and women respectively. Since the dawn of time, it has been recognized that boys and girls – and men and women – have different levels of neuromuscular efficiency. These differences are directly attributable to the effects of testosterone, and the primary effects of testosterone take place in utero – in the womb, starting at approximately 8 weeks post-conception.
Puberty finishes the process started in the womb, with the development of the familiar secondary sexual characteristics typical of the two physical sexes. But the neuromuscular aspects started in utero are far more important, to the extent that testosterone administered to female athletes has no significant effect on the Standing Vertical Jump.
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They’re Trying to Shut Us Down
Over the last several months, I’ve lost count of how many times the powers-that-be have tried to shut us down. They’ve sent hackers at us, forcing us to take extreme measures on web security. They sent attorneys after us, but thankfully we’re not easily intimidated by baseless accusations or threats. They’ve even gone so far as to make physical threats. Those can actually be a bit worrisome but Remington has me covered.
For us to continue to deliver the truth that Americans need to read and hear, we ask you, our amazing audience, for financial assistance. We have a Giving Fuel page to help us pay the bills. It’s brand new so don’t be discouraged by the lack of donations there. It’s a funny reality that the fewer the donations that have been made, the less likely people are willing to donate to it. One would think this is counterintuitive, but sometimes people are skeptical because they think that perhaps there’s a reason others haven’t been donating. In our situation, we’re just getting started so please don’t be shy if you have the means to help.
Thank you and God bless!
JD Rucker