When skydivers are in freefall and making formations, the most critical aspect is that they match their fall rate. If not, somebody is below or above everyone else. It’s a bit like if you were at a dinner party with your friends and they are short one chair, so they tell you to sit on the floor next to the table. All your friends are above you having a good time, but you can’t be a part of the conversation.
In order to rise “back up” a skydiver will change their body position to create more drag. This will slow down their fall rate so they can be back at the table with their friends. Depending on how far below the others they find themselves, it might take a large change in position or a small one. In the struggle to get “back to the table” it’s not unusual for skydivers to get anxious and try to push the air as hard as possible. However, flexing muscles does not add anything to your drag. The wind is not intimidated by your fury.
I think about this idea pretty frequently as I go about my day. There are so many situations where I can achieve the same outcome with a small amount of effort or vigorous effort. The light at the end of the block will be red if I gun the engine and speed down the street or if I get there slowly. I love watching toddlers who are just learning to walk try to grip the floor with their toes. It doesn’t work, but they try anyway.
When we confuse effort with output, the only thing we really affect is how tired we are afterwards.
This brings me to one of the many reasons I believe women typically make better skydivers. Most men are taught that they can use their strength to muscle through a problem. Most women aren’t.
Story Time:
In the French Canadian film “Leolo” the older brother character is bullied by and has his bike stolen. He resolves to build muscles and be so big he is never intimidated again. He makes weights out of cans filled with concrete and spends his teenage years curling and bench pressing until he has a massive physique. One day Leolo and his brother are walking down the street with their bikes when they encounter the same bully from years before. The brother walks up to him and starts flexing his now huge biceps and chest. The bully punches him in the nose, dropping him to the ground, grabs his bike and walks away.
