I agree with you, John.

But there are two things you have not mentioned.

1.  They would have carried out the activities you referred to with real
dynamism.  They would have thrown everything into it - fast!  Power!
That's the esssence of paleo exercise.  Power = strength x speed.  The best
analogy I can come up with for us is pushing a stalled car: you get a grip
on the car and push like buggery for 5 - 10 paces.  Then you rest and try
again for 8 - 9 paces.  After five <sets>, you've had it and you take a
breather.  Sort of a strip set, and it comes naturally.

2.  Another set of activities you did not mention, and which I think would
be very important, include fighting fellows.  Fighting to the death,
fighting for sport and fighting for play.  There would also be
simple "showing off",

I am only speculating here and I have no evidence, but its consistent,
isn't it, with the way we behave today.  I'd also guess that both older and
younger men would join in the competitions, much as the dominant male of a
wild animal herd retains his dominance for as long as he can through
fighting, some to the death, some ritualized.  For wild animals the
fighting is to retain access to the breeding females.  For paleolithinc man
it may have been that directly, but is more likely to have been mediated by
social, cultural and traditional norms.

I am reminded of the skeletal analysis done by a US paleoanthropologist who
demonstrated that the profile of paleolithic bone injuries was more
consistent with present day rodeo riders than any other contemporary
group.  They were grappling directly with large beasts, not standing well
back and throwing spears or rocks.  That's strength!

Anyone else like to have a shot at this one?  Perhaps with some ethnography.

Keith

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