If we have ever seen a rugby match, we will have noticed the physiques of its players. Somewhat similar to what happens in World's Strongest Man competitions, rugby players appear to be slightly overweight. But could we say that they are fat?
The truth is that the physique of rugby players usually develops quickly to excel in the professional game. Most are stocky, clearly muscled but not very defined and almost always with a very rounded belly. Can't they be considered fat people? Well no.
Overweight accepted for their positions
It all depends on the position you play. A pilier is much bigger than a defender. Also, the latter is much more defined. But that's because they're training for a different kind of position and development on the field. There are players who will have to apply a lot of power and speed in about 15-30 seconds, while others will have to melee against the players of the opposing team.
These athletes have trained to be able to sustain repeated bursts of force for that length of time. Not continuously, but with ups and downs in intensity and times when they will apply power interspersed with times when they need to move quickly. The body shape they have is what allows them to do that.
If they didn't have the right body shape for their sport, wouldn't they have provided a solution for slightly overweight players? Also, although they look fat, they have a much higher body mass than other people. Being "covered" by a layer of fat, they appear large and can generate a false feeling of obesity.
What should your BMI be?
The BMI (Body Mass Index) is a measure that can cause confusion, especially in this type of athlete. In rugby, according to statistics, the average duration of the actual game is 35 minutes, which is much more than for American football. Also in rugby, the game has much more accelerations and quick movements. In this sense, it is probably somewhat similar to tennis.
Based on these considerations, the Average BMI of 27 in rugby it seems a bit high compared to what you would expect. It is estimated that the 26 should be established, which is approximately 4 extra kilos per player. There is a reason that justifies these additional 4 kg. Rugby players are very muscular. In the process of building muscles, people also increase the percentage of fat in your body. Building muscles takes much less time, compared to toning muscles to reduce the amount of fat.
The importance of such muscle toning is different in different sports. It is very important, for example, in gymnastics where the athlete raises his body. In rugby it is less important and athletes prefer to dedicate their training to the accelerations and technique improvement, than to muscle toning. This muscle toning is also much less important in team sports than in individual sports. In team sports, much time is spent on multi-player exercises, while in individual sports, toning is essential for performance.
So, on average, rugby players (based on appearance) have around 15% fat. An average player weighs 91 kg, is 183 cm tall and has a BMI of 27. Therefore, the weight of fat is about 14 kg. It would take hundreds of hours for that guy to maintain the same muscle mass and reduce the fat content to 10%, so the BMI would become 26 as we said above.