Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) was transformed into the peak of physical perfection in Captain America: The First Avenger and Marvel has finally revealed what exactly the Super-Soldier Serum did to Rogers' once-sickly body. Captain America wasn't the first recipient of the Super-Soldier Serum - that was Johann Schmidt AKA The Red Skull (Hugo Weaving) - but Steve was the first who had his best qualities enhanced by the technology developed by Dr. Abraham Erskine (Stanley Tucci) in the early 1940s.

Captain America's power levels don't rank him among the galactic heavy-hitters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe like Captain Marvel (Brie Larson), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), or even Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), but Rogers' physical prowess, combined with his strategic acumen, hand-to-hand combat mastery, and his indomitable will, make him an extremely dangerous adversary. Thanks to the Super-Soldier Serum and the process that included being infused with vita-rays that Steve underwent as part of Project Rebirth in 1943, Captain America is much stronger and faster than a normal human, and he is able to endure inhuman amounts of punishment. Rogers' abilities allow him to humorously lap the Falcon AKA Sam Wilson (Anthon Mackie) multiple times in a footrace and his physical might factored into how Cap was able to wield Thor's enchanted hammer Mjolnir in Avengers: Endgame.

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However, the exact ways the Super-Soldier Serum altered and benefited Steve Rogers weren't detailed until the new book The Wakanda Files: A Technological Exploration of the Avengers and Beyond, which was written (in the real world) by Troy Benjamin but was commissioned within the MCU by Shuri (Letitia Wright). Shuri is definitely interested in the Super-Soldier Serum that created Captain America and its similarities to the Heart-Shaped Herb that grants her brother, King T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman), the powers of the Black Panther. The Wakanda Files contain the research notes from Project Rebirth in 1943 following the successful transformation of Steve Rogers via the Super-Soldier Serum and the results are fascinating.

Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson Falcon and Chris Evans as Steve Rogers Captain America in Winter Soldier

As fans saw in Captain America: The First Avenger, Steve Rogers was given penicillin and injected with Erskine's Super-Soldier Serum before he was placed into a radiation chamber capsule. Under the direction of Howard Stark (Dominic Cooper), Steve was saturated with vita-ray radiation to stimulate muscle and tissue growth. After 100% exposure, Rogers emerged from the capsule a brand new man, taller and more muscular. Project Rebirth was a complete success.

The Project Rebirth classified files further details that the Super-Soldier Serum's changes to Steve Rogers went beyond the physical. The study reveals that Steve's metabolism "burns four times faster than the average male of his age and build", and compared to an average person's 1800 calorie intake, Rogers now "burns an average of 7650 calories daily" - and that's if he's resting. Steve's metabolism burns even more calories when he's physically active. The report concludes that "his required [daily] caloric intake is immense". 

As for the specifics of Captain America's enhanced physical abilities, Rogers' file reports that "he has the ability to bench-press several tons" and it was estimated that Steve would be able to "comfortably run thirteen miles in thirty minutes". (Sam Wilson, to his chagrin, can attest to this in Captain America: The Winter Soldier.) Rogers' "lung capacity and efficiency are astounding", especially considering he was an asthmatic before Project Rebirth. The Super-Soldier Serum also enhanced Steve mentally: "His memory is near-photographic" and "his real-time analyzation and strategic planning ability are unmatched".

The summary notes for Steve Rogers' Project Rebirth file concludes that thanks to the Super-Soldier Serum, "his previously debilitating physical ailments have been alleviated" and that the Serum not only "promoted muscular growth and development..." and "enhanced and strengthened his immune system" but it also "promoted change on a cellular level, creating a protective system of regeneration and healing". The files end on an uplifting note that Captain America's healing factor could have been a boon to humanity and that "the Super-Soldier Serum... could be the cure to a variety of diseases and have untold potential". This adds even more tragedy to the fact that Hydra killed Dr. Erskine so that the science that created Captain America was lost and wasn't able to benefit mankind.

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