How to Review Swimming Research Part I

Evidence-based coaching is a hot topic around sports. However, balancing evidence and actuality is difficult. Many coaches fall into one category, evidence-based or results-based. Unfortunately, a balance is essential for maximal success and progression of sport.

Many of those fearing evidence are unable to comprehend or adequately review articles. This is not a knock at coaches, but we are currently in the information overload era. It is difficult to siphon through the garbage and find useful, pertinent, trustworthy information. Also, research articles do not always tell the story. These pieces are peer-reviewed leading to miscalculated human error. These reviewers do the best they can, but it is impossible to know every research article on the Earth and disregard every bit of false information, especially when many researchers’ post articles with monetary or credential on the line (promotions, tenure, dissertations, etc.).

On the other hand, many of those evidence-base coaches commonly fall behind the curve as elite athletes and coaches are always ahead of research. This isn't because researcher's are dumb, but research takes time. Whether it is time to pass through the review board or simply time to do the methods, it takes more time a case study a coach is able to perform.

Finding a balance is a must, but first it is essential to know the different types of research, how to find this research, and how to review a scientific article.

Common Types of Research
Experimental Reports: This is the form of research in which a research, typically at a university or company, idea is trialed and tested. This form of research is typically controlled trying to find direct cause and effect, but is a microcosm for life. An example of an experimental report is trying to see if creatine ingestion improves a 50-meter sprint, compared not taking creatine.

Case Studies: A researcher, medical professional, or anyone else keeps track of one client/patient which has improved with a form of implementation. This form of research is quicker than experimental reports, but only gives results on one person. This one person is unique and received unique opportunities which are unable to extrapolate to everyone.

Surveys: Surveys are a means to collect a lot of data on a large population. Unfortunately, these results are not controlled and the results are questionable due to what the person does outside of the study. An example of this is the Farmingham Heart study, where surveys are being given to a population over an extended period to track heart disease over time.

Theory Papers: These papers are as they sound, it is a research discussing a theory they have on a particular subject. Typically these theory papers are based on anecdotal results or a case study. Most often this theory is based on science, but is not supported by hard research.

Reviews: Large reviews bring all the information on a topic together. There are different types of reviews, one is systematic review which takes a look at all the databases and finds information on a topic. Typically, these reviews attempt to exclude poor research and draw conclusions based on all the studies.

Position Papers: Large organizations like to state their opinions. These large organizations do this in the form of a position paper. For example, if swim coaches believed swimmers should breathe every 3, then ASCA could release a position paper, supporting their case for breathing every 3.

Conclusion
The best coaches are able to process new research and adapt it to their training program as well as confirm/refute any research in surrounding their anecdotal evidence. This ability enhances the sport. Stay tuned for part II and sign-up for the Swimming Research Review and receive reviews of all the new research on swimming for only $10/month. June issue is schedule for release June 15.

By G. John Mullen founder of the Center of Optimal Restoration, head strength coach at Santa Clara Swim Club, and creator the Swimmer's Shoulder System.

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Kick Board Bobbers

Bobbing up and down on a kick board while pushing through a 1,000 yard kick set is common on most swim teams. Unfortunately, the kick board provides a base of stability for the arms and core which is not present during swimming. Moreover, a board allows an athlete to use a pivot to propel themselves forward via the spiral line described by Thomas Myers in Anatomy Trains. 

Don't get me wrong, kick boards and kicking are essential for swimmers. Every coach knows elite swimmers have a strong powerful kick, unfortunately, I feel many coaches teach this incorrectly, especially for swimmers with low back instability. 


For injury prevention and swimming success, core endurance is essential. Unfortunately, a board promotes cheating, as many unstable swimmers are able to use their arms (likely their lats) to stabilize their body and push-off. If you take this bobber off the board, many of them are poor kickers. Therefore, does using a board with kick board bobbers improve their swimming? I know it does, because they still improve their leg endurance and strength, but I think it can be better, especially if you are a sprinter where less hip rotation and more core stability is required.  

In a recent interview with Dr. Prins of the University of Hawaii, he discussed the importance of core and hip stability in swimming. By the way, do yourself a service and buy The Swim Coaching Bible Volume II, great read! In the book and echoed throughout Friday Interview: Dr. Prins, he discusses his intriguing methods for measuring the role of stability in and out of the water. A common misconception surrounds swimming about the amount of hip rotation in freestyle, especially sprint. 

In athletes with poor core stability or those who use a heavy hip driven stroke, they rely on their rotational strength to drive their legs. However, in sprinting (swimming or kicking with a board) the athlete must use less hip rotation to keep the body in a straight line or streamline position. Too often those with poor sprint kicking and swimming ability go hand in hand and I (yes I, no research here) think it is due to poor streamline and core stability. 

For athletes with low back pain and those needing to improve their sprinting (I'm not talking only 50 freestylers, this includes those who can't change speeds in and out of walls). To improve your sprinting make sure your hips are stable, derived from a strong core. Therefore, if you use a board, make sure you are not bobbing! Keep the core locked, the spine long and finish your kick! 

If you are not using a board, the athlete must stabilize their core to move forward and speed will directly correlate with an improvement in core stability, especially in long course where the swimmer is unable to use the aid of walls and dolphin kicking. 

To conclude, kicking with a board isn't bad. It improves leg endurance and strength, both essential for swimming success. However, in those swimmers with difficulties sprinting and changing speeds or those bobbing side to side with the board, it is likely they are using the board for stability. Make sure they are not bobbing on the board or force them to stabilize without a board for improvement! 

By G. John Mullen founder of the Center of Optimal Restoration, head strength coach at Santa Clara Swim Club, and creator the Swimmer's Shoulder System.

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Bonus Tuesday Interview: Dick Shoulberg

Recently I had the privilege of interviewing Coach Dick Shoulberg for our Friday interview.  Notes from our conversation follow below.  The founder and longtime coach at the Germantown Academy, Coach Shoulberg has coached eleven Olympians and been on the United States coaching staff for several international meets, including the Olympic Games.  For a more complete list of Coach Shoulberg’s coaching accomplishments, please visit his page at the Germantown Academy.


1. Please tell us how you got started in coaching
Started as lifeguard at age 16.   Many little kids at the pool didn’t know how to swim and needed instruction.  Then moved onto YWCA and summer league coaching.  Moved to Germantown Academy in 1969 and become aquatics director and started age group swim program.  In the program, we’ve been fortunate to place several kids on international teams and send many more to swim in college programs.

2. Who has most influenced your career with swimming?
High school track coach, Mr. Lewis was an early influence.  In swimming, Doc Counsilman stands out.  Also went and visited other coaches along the east coast.  Attended many clinics/conferences and learned from coaches there.  Watched great teachers outside of swimming (ballet, boxing).  From observing others I was able to from my own thoughts and design my own style.  

3. In 'The Swim Coaching Bible Volume II' you write about 'Power Training in the Pool', can you briefly discuss your favorite tools you use in the pool?
Five gallon bucket with six foot rope tied to swimmer’s waist attached to a belt.  It’s a form of Accommodating Resistance: the faster you go the harder it gets.  Also develops feel in addition to power.

4. At what stage of development do swimmers incorporate power training?
No specific age requirement.  Depends on swimmer’s ability level: fitness, strength, technique, maturity, among other factors).  Some high level 7th/8th graders use the buckets, while some high schoolers don’t.  When a kid graduates to bucket training it is seen as a “badge of honor” (their words)

5. How do you incorporate these tools within a practice and throughout a season?
3 days per week/28 minutes per session.  Can be morning or afternoon.  Not everyone can use them simultaneously due to lane space, which is why team is split AM/PM.  

Season planning: Increase bucket training shortly before taper.  Also, talked to physiologists with USA Swimming, who recommended maintaining some bucket training up to 24-48 hours before goal race.  We first learned of this strategy seeing how well the Soviets performed at the 1992 Olympics after training this way.  

6. How do you integrate resistance training out of the pool with power training in the pool?
28 minutes of dryland before morning practice (which is only 70 minutes during school year); 45 minutes at afternoon practice (two hours and fifteen minutes practice).  We regulate the intensity.  Dryland for us includes TRX, kettlebells, stationary bike, VASA trainer, plyometrics, and other tools.

Dryland is important for injury prevention, especially muscle groups that don’t get stressed in the water or that get stressed in imbalanced ways.  

7. Do you feel power training is important for every stroke and distance specialist? If so, how do you have these types of swimmer use the tools differently?
All swimmers in our program do 28 minute power sessions.  We vary the rest and intensity based on specialty: sprinters have higher intensity but longer recoveries; distance has lower intensity but shorter recoveries.

However, stroke and distance specialty are only two of many factors that affect our use of power training (stroke technique, body composition, etc)

8. In your chapter in 'The Swim Coaching Bible Volume II' you praise the Vasa Trainer. Please discuss why you like this piece of equipment and how it translate to success in the pool?
Best single tool available outside the pool.  We have nine Vasa trainers set up within six feet of the pool (we call it “Lane 7”).  Athletes do 16-28 minutes of work in various forms of intervals.  We monitor heart rate during the Vasa sessions and can be evaluate the athlete’s condition based on how long it takes heart rate to recover after intense efforts.  We can work on stroke technique and communicate with the athletes in real-time unlike the pool, where you have to wait until a rest interval.

9. Your programs have never feared distance.  How do you defend high yardage to those who are critical of it, particularly with most swimming races less than five minutes?
There are millions of ways to make fast swimmers.  I have nothing against low volume programs; many great swimmers did low yardage.  However, based on what we see in our program, the most accomplished athletes who achieved international ranking did high yardage.  We had some swimmers with better technique and talent, but they didn’t achieve as much as those willing to put in more volume.  

Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us, Coach!

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Should Female Swimmers Train Differently Than Males: Part III

In Should Female Swimmers Train Differently Than Males: Part I of this series, we explored differences in exercise physiology between males and females. One hypothesis emerging from that discussion was that females might demonstrate greater fatigue resistance. Though it’s a tough hypothesis prove due to the myriad of training variables, it’s worth considering for interpreting individual adaptations. Last week we discussed differences among youth and adolescents in Should Female Swimmers Train Differently Than Males: Part II. In this post, we’ll cover multiple areas, but will mainly focus on stress. Folklore may suggest females would be stressed than males (“drama queens”), but you can find many examples of high stress and low stress athletes in both genders. In truth, many differences lie in the art of coaching more than the science.  

Consider this interview excerpt with Coach Anson Dorrance of the University of North Carolina women’s soccer team, one of the most successful programs in all of college sports…

Interviewer: Could you elaborate a little bit more on the obvious differences you see in coaching males and females?

Coach Dorrance:  Well, it would take me forever because there are so many it'd be hard for me to recount them all. But they're motivated differently. You can't lead women with the intensity of your own personality. A part of what motivates a man is for the coach to actually scream at him during the game to get him going, and that does get him going. And a lot of the times, obviously being a male I understand this, half the time the reason you start playing is you're so irritated at the criticism. And that feeds your adrenaline….

That's totally ineffective with women. What happens when you are that way with a woman, unless you have a very good and close personal relationship with her is that you are going to actually shatter her confidence. And it's a totally ineffective way to lead women athletes. And I know that what's common in sport psychology is we all want to believe the way to motivate everyone is the same way.  But I'm here to testify, John, it's not (Silva 2011).

This excerpt is only a snapshot of Coach Dorrance’s full answer, but it gives the idea that differences are often more art than science. In terms of science, there’s probably not enough evidence to support female specific training, but there is ample evidence in gender differences to refine our explanatory models and understand the nuances of the individual athlete’s adaptation.  

One area where males and females differ profoundly is in the endocrine system. We discussed how estrogen and testosterone affect adolescent development in the previous installment. Another avenue through which hormones affect performance is the body’s stress response. Is there a difference in how females and males react to different stressors, both physical and mental? Again, this isn’t something you can ever prove with certainty due to the wide variety of training approaches and individual responses, but some common patterns do emerge.    

Cortisol levels are a common stress measurement. While cortisol testing requires a lab, you can observe potential signs and symptoms of elevation via observation. In athletics, we’re most commonly concerned with training load, but school stress, social stress, and poor nutrition (among other things) can also elevate cortisol. With females, amenorrhea is also tied with cortisol levels (Ding 1988).  

Since we’re talking hormones, we’d be remiss to ignore contraceptive use. Yes, it’s an off-limits area for many male coaches with their female athletes. But it’s important enough to have been studied repeatedly in the literature (Vaiksaar 2011, Reichichi 2008), and fairly recently among swimmers. Reichichi (2012) studied competitive swimmers and found monophasic contraceptive cycle did not impair 200m swim performance, though it may affect blood lactate readings, due to increases in fluid retention, plasma volume, and cellular alkalosis.  

As for physical training differences, several studies examine cortisol levels in swimmers and other endurance athletes. Tsai (1991) studied elite male and female endurance athletes over a full competitive season. Athletes were tested three times: preseason, midseason, postseason. Women began their seasons at higher cortisol levels and increased significantly during the season compared to men.    

However, after a three day training increase, O’Connor (1991) observed no differences in psychological or physiological responses between males and females. Though cortisol levels are a sign of stress, they are not necessarily a real-time indicator of performance.  In fact, in the short term, elevated cortisol may reflect the exact response we’re seeking as part of a sympathetic nervous response to peak for racing (the “fight” part of the fight-or-flight dichotomy). It’s a greater concern when levels are chronically elevated.

In the O’Connor study eighteen female and twenty two male college swimmers increased daily training volume from 6,800m to 11,200m for the females and from 8,800m to 12,950m for males. Stroke frequency, perceived exertion, fatigue, and muscle soreness all increased. Clearly this was a taxing effort for all, but in the short term, the stress response was the same for both genders.

The results may change for swimmers on dry land. Chatard (2002) studied a mixed gender group of swimmers over a 37 week period. Cortisol increased with volume increases and as the season progressed. Athletes completed sixty eight races during this time frame.  Although they observed no link between cortisol and race performance, cortisol was a reliable marker of dryland stress among the females.  

“Dryland” is a broad label, and can mean everything from easy stretching to intense lifting. Nevertheless, given the frequent bone density problems of female aquatic athletes, it could be that dryland is more stressful, especially in an elite sample where athletes have spent much of their lives immersed in water for up to 4-5 hours a day. This is just speculation on my part, but it is one possible explanation.  

Another explanation could be the heat dynamics of land exercise versus aquatic exercise.  Filaire (1996) conducted a female-only study, but compared swimmers to handball players.  Handball players had higher cortisol levels, with one theory being the natural cooling provided by water for swimmers.  

Training and racing can induce emotional stress too (see, The Cause of Choking and How to Avoid It). In a fairly lengthy study, Raglin (1991) followed 84 female and 102 male swimmers over a four-year period to examine psychological stress. Ratings for depression, anger, vigor, fatigue, and confusion all correlated with alterations in training yardage in both genders. Tension was higher in the female swimmers each year and did not abate with yardage reductions.   

Kivlighan(2005) studied collegiate male and female rowers and observed that cortisol levels rose in preparation for competition. Levels remained elevated over pre-event baselines and forty minutes post-competition. The sample included both experts and novices in both genders, with the only significant differences in the novice females.

Conclusion
Remember, not all stress is bad, so long as we have appropriate opportunities for adaptation to occur.  There’s probably not enough evidence to create gender paradigms for all, but knowledge of physiology and reported findings unique to each gender can help individualize based on the athlete’s characteristics, whether female or male.      

References

1. Tsai L, Johansson C, Pousette A, Tegelman R, Carlström K, Hemmingsson P.  Cortisol and androgen concentrations in female and male elite endurance athletes in relation to physical activity.  Eur J Appl Physiol Occup Physiol. 1991;63(3-4):308-11.
2. Kivlighan KT, Granger DA, Booth A.  Gender differences in testosterone and cortisol response to competition.  Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2005 Jan;30(1):58-71.
3. Chatard JC, Atlaoui D, Lac G, Duclos M, Hooper S, Mackinnon L. Cortisol, DHEA, performance and training in elite swimmers.  Int J Sports Med. 2002 Oct;23(7):510-5.
4. O'Connor PJ, Morgan WP, Raglin JS.  Psychobiologic effects of 3 d of increased training in female and male swimmers.  Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1991 Sep;23(9):1055-61.
5. Raglin JS, Morgan WP, O'Connor PJ.  Changes in mood states during training in female and male college swimmers.  Int J Sports Med. 1991 Dec;12(6):585-9.
6. Filaire E, Duché P, Lac G, Robert A.  Saliva cortisol, physical exercise and training: influences of swimming and handball on cortisol concentrations in women.  Eur J Appl Physiol Occup Physiol. 1996;74(3):274-8.
7. Silva J.  Psychological Aspects of Competition: An Interview with Anson Dorrance Head Women’s Soccer Coach at The University of North Carolina.  Journal of Excellence.  Issue No. 11.
8. Ding JH, Sheckter CB, Drinkwater BL, Soules MR, Bremner WJ.  High serum cortisol levels in exercise-associated amenorrhea.  Ann Intern Med. 1988 Apr;108(4):530-4.
9. Rechichi C, Dawson B.  Oral contraceptive cycle phase does not affect 200-m swim time trial performance.  J Strength Cond Res. 2012 Apr;26(4):961-7.
10. Vaiksaar S, Jürimäe J, Mäestu J, Purge P, Kalytka S, Shakhlina L, Jürimäe T.  No effect of menstrual cycle phase and oral contraceptive use on endurance performance in rowers.  J Strength Cond Res. 2011 Jun;25(6):1571-8.
11. Rechichi C, Dawson B, Goodman C.  Oral contraceptive phase has no effect on endurance test.  Int J Sports Med. 2008 Apr;29(4):277-81. Epub 2007 Sep 13.

By Allan Phillips. Allan and his wife Katherine are heavily involved in the strength and conditioning community, for more information refer to Pike Athletics.

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Weekly Round-up

1. Brettzel stretch
2. Listening To Music During Running Improves Performance By Up To 15% – If You’re Not Already Good.
3. In Defense of Distance.
4. Stiffness is a Strategy.
5. Bananas as an energy source during exercise.

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Friday Interview: Dr. Jan Prins

Something unique for our readers in this week’s interview. What follows are notes from a phone interview I conducted with Dr. Jan Prins, PhD. Dr. Prins is the Director of the Aquatic Research Laboratory at University of Hawaii at Manoa along with Founder and Editor-In-Chief of the Journal of Swimming Research. He is one of the contributors to The Swim Coaching Bible, Volume II. You can find more information about Dr. Prins at his website Swim Hawaii.

1. Please introduce yourself to the readers (how you started in the profession, education, credentials, experience, etc.).
Been in the sport forty years as coach and researcher. Former lead assistant under Doc Counsilman at Indiana and former head coach at University of Hawaii. Currently a professor at University of Hawaii and operates a biomechanics lab for swimming. Lab has four synchronized underwater high speed cameras to capture all stroke angles. Many labs have synchronized multi-angle but few have high speed. It took five years to set up due to high costs. Lab is also equipped with biomechanics software to assess stroke kinematics. Has spent most of his research career studying freestyle. Next focus will be turns and breakouts. Frequent presenter international biomechanics summits, not just in swimming.

2. In The Swim Coaching Bible Volume II, you write about 'applying science to your coaching'. How can coaches improve their application of science in sport?
Journal of Swimming Research now has two parts for each published article: a manuscript and a coaching application section. Coaches are often turned off by scientific mumbo jumbo. Important to simplify but don’t mindlessly recycle ideas.

Example: “roll the body; lead with the hips”…These ideas make no sense in light of the research. Unfortunately, people have used these ideas for so many years, but it’s important to make the information accessible or coaches get blurry eyed when the science gets too technical. As both a coach and researcher, he understands the importance of applying research to the deck.

Important to be patient. Treat each swimmer as an individual. Most top coaches have programs tailor made for the individual rather than putting everyone into same program.

3. You also discuss stabilization of the spine in The Swim Coaching Bible Volume II, could you briefly describe this importance?
Because water is unstable, stability must come from the hips. Hips are translators of velocity and roll in reaction to movements of the hands and feet. Hip velocity tells us how fast you are going. People assume you roll your body but that is incorrect. Previous biomechanical models were based on fixed resistance (land), but water is an unstable medium. Hip stability allows force transfer initiated by the hands and feet. Roll occurs naturally via arm extension. Don’t try to swim on your side like a fish.

4. What are the most common biomechanical flaws for each stroke between elite (National level) and ultra-elite (Olympic level) athletes in each style of swimming?
Elite athletes have very few technique flaws, but breakout velocity can vary widely between elites. That will be the next key research area. If there is a common flaw, it is slipping water on the weak side.

5. Do you have any future progressions or predictions on biomechanics?
Future research will address “interference drag,” which refers to body parts creating drag upon each other. Soni’s breaststroke pull (rounding out early) could be one way to minimize interference drag. Lochte’s arms exiting the water sooner in backstroke may be another way to minimize interference drag. This has not been formally studied yet, however. Other areas for future research include optimizing pull width in breast and fly.

More recognition that swimming is a learned skill like golf or tennis. Tennis pros and golf pros have coaches helping them with technique constantly. Takes continual awareness to keep refining stroke. Doesn’t happen overnight. Small things you do in the stroke can add up via thousands of strokes. Bad “strokes” in golf/tennis give you instant feedback when the ball goes off target. Technique flaws in swimming are more subtle.

6. One of the last topics you discuss is research equipment in swimming, what research equipment do you think is mandatory for a swim team?
TV monitors and cameras on deck allow coaches to give instruction and swimmers to get instant feedback on deck. Waterproof iPads can be placed into the water and create even faster feedback. However, video analysis is still subjective without biomechanics software.

7. You were the head assistant coach at Indiana University with "Doc" Counsilman, what was one thing most people didn't know about "Doc"?
Most people don’t realize how much emphasis he placed on stroke mechanics. Every Sunday when there wasn’t a meet (approximately forty weeks per year) was spent filming underwater from 8AM-3PM. Hard to appreciate what he accomplished with video in the 1970’s without the modern conveniences such as advanced video equipment and underwater windows!

Thanks for a great interview Dr. Prins!

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Kicking Improves Arm Strength?

Ever have a swimmer who only kick a season and gets better? How does this happen?

Cross-education is a phenomenon where the opposite side of the body increases in strength after resistance training to the one side. For example, if you perform biceps curl on your right, then your left biceps increases strength. Recently, the antagonist muscles have been shown to increase in strength on the contralateral side. With the same example, not only does the left biceps increase in strength, but so does the left triceps!

The physiology/neurophysiology behind this phenomenon is unknown, but is potentially due to an overall increase in nervous system signaling.

While working on the Swimming Research Review, I came across a recent article on this topic and started thinking, does strengthening extend to the lower extremity if a swimmer only does upper extremity work. Conversely, do the arms increase in strength/endurance if the swimmer only kicks for a season (ie if they break their arm)? These are questions coaches have wondered for years and research is starting to validate or provide a few answers. Be the coach finding the answer and asking the tough questions to better the sport!

References:

1.  Sariyildiz M, Karacan I, Rezvani A, Ergin O, Cidem M. Cross-education of muscle strength: cross-training effects are not confined to untrained contralateral homologous muscle. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2011 Dec;21(6):e359-64.

By G. John Mullen founder of the Center of Optimal Restoration, head strength coach at Santa Clara Swim Club, and creator the Swimmer's Shoulder System.

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Hyperoxic Air in Swimmers

Swimming is a unique sport in many realms, specifically breathing. This uniqueness inspired many posts on the subject, The Forgotten Rib Cage, Breathing During Sprinting, and Breathing During Swimming. In short, in events longer than 50 meters, the more oxygen consumed the better. However, this oxygen consumption must not impede forward propulsion.

Seldom are swimmers able to breathe efficiently, but if done properly, results similar to Sun, Torres, and Magnesum; frequent breathing and maximal results.

Despite breathing excessively, even high frequency breathers are unable to prevent all the negative effects of oxygen deficit. Therefore, current research suggests consuming hyperoxia (respiration of air containing a higher partial pressure of oxygen than ambient air) enhances arterial hemoglobin saturation as well as the amount of oxygen dissolved in plasma (Powers et al., 1993; Peltonen et al., 1995).

Hyperoxic (HOX) breathing is also known to augment delivery of O2 to working skeletal muscle cells (Knight et al., 1993; Prieur et al., 2002), as well as the diffusion of O2 into the mitochondria (Knight et al., 1993; Richardson et al., 1999; Prieur et al., 2002).

Obviously, breathing hyperoxia during a race is impossible, but during lactate sets or meets with frequent swim races, this is a possibility. More current research suggest using hyperoxia improves swimming peak and mean power after multiple fifty-second efforts (Sperlich, 2011).

Despite this well documented research for over the past decade, hyperoxia is rarely used even in elite athletes. This is due to the gap between coaches and swimming research. To stay up to date with these trends in research and enhance your coaching and swimming career, subscribe today to the Swimming Research Review and be the best coach possible!

By G. John Mullen founder of the Center of Optimal Restoration, head strength coach at Santa Clara Swim Club, and creator the Swimmer's Shoulder System.

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Should Female Swimmers Train Differently Than Males: Part II

Last week we discussed gender training differences of post-pubescent athletes. This week we’ll explore differences in younger athletes. We’d all agree adolescence is a volatile life stage. Boys and girls develop at different paces and thus can have markedly different responses to training, despite being the same or similar age. In this light, the most important consideration is not always gender but instead recognizing periods of rapid growth and acting appropriately on these changes. Many of the post-growth spurt training accommodations are similar for boys and girls, but girls typically hit their growth spurts sooner.  

Early teen years are critical for swimming development, but the least experienced coaches are often the ones in charge young age groups. That’s hardly specific to swimming, but coaching age groupers is often “paying your dues” to move up the ranks, as if these ages are unimportant. To the contrary, these years are foundational years and have a profound impact on the rest of a career.  It would be presumptuous to call these years “make or break” without definitive evidence, but when you consider the physiology of what occurs during adolescence, certain things happen to the body that will never happen again during the athlete’s life. Coaches must be “sensitive enough to know gender-related differences but not so much so that they form incorrect stereotypes and over-generalize” (USA Swimming 1998).

A key concept in discerning gender differences is Peak Height Velocity (PHV). PHV simply represents the main growth spurt.  Every individual is different, but on average girls will achieve PHV sooner than boys. Consider the charts below (from Canadian Sport for Life). The vertical axis represents average yearly growth; the horizontal axis represents age.  

    

PHV typically occurs in girls between ages 11 to 13.  Boys typically reach PHV between ages 12 to 14.  Note the sharp upticks in both curves preceding PHV. Based on PHV timing, a rapidly developing 12 year old girl may be at a similar development stage to a normal 14-15 year old boy. Interestingly, USA Swimming motivational times align closely with these developmental stages as many girls’ times in the 11-12 age group are less than a second behind boys for similar performance levels (B, BB, A, etc.), which is closer than any other age group.    

Training implications: VO2 max, a measure of aerobic capacity, improves significantly during the most rapid phases of growth: 11 to 13 for girls; 12 to 14 for boys (Geithner 2004). Some believe the growth spurt and concomitant increase in aerobic capacity represents a “sensitive period” with a window of opportunity for aerobic training. Think of this period as a time when aerobic training may net a greater return on investment than investments in other areas, as if comparing a financial investment with 5% return versus one with 10%.   

While the concept of sensitive periods is widely recognized by many federations, the training implications are not universally accepted due to the present lack of formal research (Ford 2011). Lack of research doesn’t invalidate the concept; it simply means more evidence is needed.  Nonetheless, it’s a concept with a sound theoretical basis and is certainly a more targeted than throwing everyone into the same workouts based strictly on time and then later guessing why some improve dramatically while others languish behind. At the very least, it is indisputable a 13 year old girl during a growth spurt is in a very different place in life compared to a late maturing 13 year old boy. Some girls may not reach their PHV until later, and some boys may reach it sooner, but on average expect changes to occur at certain ages.

The corollary to exploiting aerobic gains around PHV is the aerobic base prepares swimmers for anaerobic training in the mid-teen years, after the swimmer has added stature. Boys will add muscle mass via testosterone release. However, girls produce estrogen during these years meaning muscle gain often comes with fat gain. The years after PHV can be trying mentally too. Girls may experience rapid progress during their growth spurt, but struggle with their “new” bodies.  

No matter how hard they try, maintaining lean body composition can be difficult, not to mention the emotional toll. It can be frustrating for athletes, coaches, and parents when improvement stalls during this phase, but it’s important to recognize nature’s work and have some patience. Further, if the athlete does not put on weight when expected, it may indicate overtraining or poor diet, both of which require specific interventions.  

Managing a team of adolescent personalities is far more art than science, but it helps to understand general personality tendencies. Boys are generally more focused on tangible goals and competition.  Think of this as establishing pecking order as in the wild. Girls value learning new skills and the social aspect of sharing activities with friends.  If boys want to duke it out and compare times, it’s not productive to resist that tendency. However, since only one person can win each race (other than relays), boys should be reminded to compare themselves to their own past performances rather than investing too much into placement. Likewise, girls pursuing athletics merely for social inclusion is not to be confused with disinterest. It simply comes with the territory at that age.

Conclusion
Adolescence is obviously a time for profound physical and emotional changes. Understanding the unique tendencies of both genders can help optimize training stimuli during rapid growth periods. More study is required to validate the energy system implications, but there’s no doubt swimmers will vary based on gender-specific changes to their bodies during adolescent years.  

References

1. Geithner CA, Thomis MA, Vanden Eynde B, Maes HH, Loos RJ, Peeters M, Claessens AL, Vlietinck R, Malina RM, Beunen GP.  Growth in peak aerobic power during adolescence.  Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2004 Sep;36(9):1616-24.
2. Ford P, De Ste Croix M, Lloyd R, Meyers R, Moosavi M, Oliver J, Till K, Williams C.  The long-term athlete development model: physiological evidence and application.  J Sports Sci. 2011 Feb;29(4):389-402.
3. USA Swimming Sports Science Summit 1998
4. Canadian Sport for Life Resource Paper

By Allan Phillips. Allan and his wife Katherine are heavily involved in the strength and conditioning community, for more information refer to Pike Athletics.

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How Garmin 910xt can optimize your Swimming Experience

If you like to channelize your potential by indulging in multiple sports then Garmin has come up with their best-till-date product Garmin 910xt for you. It is a striking widget that can help you to optimize your performance in cycling, running and swimming. With this exquisite range of attributes, it cannot possibly let you down.

Swimming is a great sport which works out all your major muscle groups, and thus brings out an overall well being, but what would be even better is if you could measure how well you are performing. The 910xt by Garmin is designed both for open water as well as pool swimming. There is a one button switch that shifts you from one sport to another.

As you pick swimming, it gives two basic options, Open Water or Laps. Based on the length of the pool, it provides seconds per length for that pool and gives you performance parameters such as strokes per length, time taken per 100 yards, tracks pace, distance, heart rate and elevation. Other swim metrics including swim stroke recognition, heart rate in beats per minute, distance, pool lengths, average, and zones, swim pace, swim interval time, stroke-per-length and stroke count also come in handy with this appliance.

Not only Garmin 910xt gives the ability to compare swim workouts but also has the ability to read Swim Golf (swolf) score to determine your proficiency by determining the time taken and the number of strokes taken per lap. Combination of a sturdy design and simple operations make it useful for water sports other than swimming too. Another good point for the swimmers, Garmin 910xt watch can also demonstrate graphical stats to for swim workouts.

To track Heart Rate under water, it gives you the liberty of measuring your distance without pressing the lap button each time, which of course is a hindrance in your swim activity. The lap button can be pressed to take a break, and resume later. An excellent feature is that it also keeps a track of switch between the stroke style, and it adjusts it automatically. If you opt for Open Water option, gadget comes forward with capacity of stroke distance over swim. While if you go for Pool setting, distance-per-stroke is computed for each lap.

Garmin 910xt is also compatible with ANT+™ power meters, like Vector™ and Garmin’s pedal-based devices. It does not only provide you with real time data so that you can see how well you are performing under water, but it also lets you transfer your data to satellite or to your personal computer so that you can set goals for yourself and then keep a track of how well you are achieving them on swim metrics.

Easy-to-read and sturdy look and feel combined with an easy-to-wear and carry wrist strap makes Garmin 910xt a favorite among swimmers. Also if you combine running and bicycling experience with swimming, it is an optimal device for you. Go for this versatile gadget and you would not regret it.

By Kathrine Switzer is an ardent cyclist and devoted writer. She is obsessed with high tech gadgets like Heart Rate Monitors, Bicycle Computers and related fitness apparatus. She would be delighted if you follow her writings on various fitness, health and technology blogs or simply on twitter @KathrineSwitzer

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Weekly Round-up

1. Interview with Dan Pfaff: 5 Questions. 
2. More Functional Movement Screen Results. 
3. Nutritional regulation of muscle protein synthesis with resistance exercise. 
4. Deep Squat Landmines. 
5. Low Back Symptoms and Pathology: Does a Correlation Exist?
6. Science of Coaching Cues. 
7. Beet It: Can Beets Help You Run Faster?
8. Training the Rotator Cuff and Scapular Stabilizers Simultaneously.

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Friday Interview: Dick Hannula

1. Please introduce yourself to the readers (how you started in the profession, education, credentials, experience, etc.).

Dick Hannula - My first high school teaching position included coaching boys' swimming.  Having been a high school and college swimmer, that got me the teaching position.  Coached high school boys' swimming for 32 years.  Founded the Tacoma Swim Club and the head coach for 42 years.

2. Who has most influenced your career in swimming?

John Tallman and Bob Miller.  John, a former U of Washington coach from the scientific standpoint.  Bob, a former Cascade S.C. coach, from the "hard work" ethic.

3. As a co-editor for The Swim Coaching Bible Volume II, I'm sure you were involved in deciding which coaches contributed to each chapter. How does this process work?

Nort Thornton and I selected the authors.  The best coach that we considered the most qualified for a particular topic was approached first.

4. A lot of our readers are interested in contributing to the sport of swimming (in regards to writing), how would you suggest they get started? 

Submit articles to the American Swim Coaches Association (John Leonard) and/or to NISCA (Tom Caccia - editor)  for possible inclusion in their respective Journals.  The same could be done to Swimming World magazine.

5. If you had to pick one, which is your favorite chapter in The Swim Coaching Bible Volume II?

I would hate to pick one as my favorite as I enjoyed and learned from each chapter.  Since I am now retired,  I appreciated Ch. 4 - Mastering Swimming Through The Years - as an incentive to maintaining personal fitness through all the years of life.  I also found Chapter 24 - Positive Communication, Positive Results - to be of use beyond my active coaching years.  This chapter was big on the art of coaching and that seems to be where most coaches fall short.

6. In The Swim Coaching Bible Volume II, your chapter discusses starts and turns. In the beginning of the chapter you talk about the importance of streamlining. What is the biggest flaw seen in streamline?

Not staying with it day in and day out.  Swimmers in intense training often begin to ease off in continually streamling (really super torpedo streamling) off every wall in practice.  Coaches must not compromise on this aspect with their swimmers.

7. Do you coach biceps against the ears or slightly behind the ears? Or does it depend on flexibility/strength? If so, how d you determine which style to use?

Behind or on the far back portion of the ears.

8. What is your view on the front-weighted and rear-weighted track start?

Good question and the newer starting blocks are increasing emphasis on the back weighted.  We had flat starting blocks through most all of my coaching and front weighted was the norm.

9. How will the new Omega track blocks alter starting biomechanics?

No experience with this starting block but it should lead to major thrust from the back leg and a more direct flight pattern off the blocks - out and less up.

10. What is the biggest flaw seen in freestyle and backstroke turns? How do you suggest addressing this flaw?

I always go back to streamlining as the major flaw in most cases.  Another would be the slowing down of the momentum into the wall.  The ability to use a solid strong arm pull on the final approach to get your feet on the wall with the most momentum possible.

11. What is your favorite attraction at the Point Defiance Zoo?

I haven't been to the Pt. Defiance Zoo in a huge number of years but when I did I focused on the aquarium.  The Pt. Defiance Park was where I did almost all my running for more than 30 years.

12. What projects can we look for you in the future?

I hope I have written my last book but I probably will continue to write articles for the NISCA Journal (National Interscholastic Swim Coaches' Association).  This is something I have done  for a great number of years.

Thanks Dick! 

We highly suggest picking up the Swim Coaching Bible Volume II, great read!

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Two Styles of Fly

Sports science is always lagging behind the top athletes. At Swim Sci, we strive to stay true to sports science with products like the Swimming Research Review, but realize elite athletes are ahead of the research. Science confirms theories to improve athletes outside the top .001%. This piece speculates on the most commonly seen forms of butterfly. These types of fly have minimal research supporting their efficiency, but are seen at any top swim meet, suggesting efficiency exist. This piece attempts to step beyond the research, hopefully providing researchers an area to look and non-elite swimmers to improve.

Elite flyers typically use two different styles. The body driven and shoulder driven strokes, with associated pros and cons.

Upper Back of Phelps vs. Cavic

Shoulder Driven

PROS: This style focuses on the shoulder muscles to maximize propulsion. In this stroke, the shoulder blades are held together, providing a stable base for the arms to propel the body forward. This stroke uses no outsweep during the entry, but goes directly into the catch. Going right into the catch increases stroke tempo, stroke rate, necessary for 50 and 100 (most likely yards) distances.

CONS: Does not concentrate on the whole body, specifically the core, causing poor force transferring from the chest to the feet. This leads to high lactic acid and hydrogen ion production. Moreover, the higher tempo increases the amount of strokes and increases the likelihood of fatigue, once again increasing lactic acid and hydrogen ion production. A rhythm is harder to maintain with this style, since the stroke concentrates on the upper body and a higher tempo. Hard/Impossible to maintain tempo and speed for 200 and whole 100 meter distance.

BENEFITS: Swimmers with a strong upper body, short torso, swimming sprint fly (50 meter and yard, 100 yard, some 100 meter).

Body Driven

PROS: Uses the body as a whip to transfer energy from the chest to the hips to the feet. More rhythmic style as it uses the whole body, decreasing lactic acid and hydrogen ion production.  It allows swimmers to breathe more often, as it uses higher amplitude with the body. However, the higher amplitude is seen to bring the hips up, not the chest up. Uses an outsweep following the entry to increase distance per stroke.

CONS: Use of outsweep results in a slower tempo and does not use stable shoulder blades to propel the body forward.  

BENEFITS: Swimmers with a slower tempo, longer torso, swimming middle to distance fly (100 meter, 200 yard and meter).

Hips of Phelps vs. Cavic

Hybrid

Similar to the three styles of freestyle, a combination of these fly styles is possible during the 100 and 200 yard/meter races. However, this is less commonly seen as fly is a more rhythmic stroke than freestyle. In the future, a hybrid stroke may be more common, but isn’t typically used by elite flyers.

By G. John Mullen founder of the Center of Optimal Restoration, head strength coach at Santa Clara Swim Club, and creator the Swimmer's Shoulder System and Swimming Research Review.

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Tips to Improve Shoulder Inflammation

Inflammation is the first stage of any musculoskeletal injury. This process involves infiltration of many inflammatory signaling cells (cytokines). If irritation continues, than inflammation will not subside. Therefore, it is essential to improve inflammation as soon as possible. Once inflammation resolves, assessing muscle length, strength, and timing is essential.

In some cases, inflammation surrounds the joint, in other cases the bursae are inflamed, as in bursitis. Bursae are closed, round, flattened sacs that are lined by synovium and separate bare areas of bone from overlapping muscles (deep bursae) or skin and tendons (superficial bursae). They are present in areas of high friction and believed to decrease rubbing and absorb some of the pressure associated with the joint.

Deep bursae develop in fetal life, whereas superficial bursae form within months to several years after birth, suggesting that direct pressure and friction stimulates their development. For example, some of these sacs develop in response to environment, suggesting swimmers would have a higher volume of bursae in the shoulder to handle the high volume of overhead movements in swimming.

Whether you have bursitis or joint inflammation, decreasing inflammation is essential for improvement. Think about it, if you have too much fluid in a confined area, then mechanical pressure increases on nocioceptors (read TENS for shoulder pain) and pain persist. Luckily, everyone has the tools at home to improve inflammation with minimal cost or drug prescription from a physician.

Tips to Improve Shoulder Inflammation

1. Improve your diet: Improving your Omega-3 profile decreases inflammation. Read more about anti-inflammatory foods.
2. Non Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDS): Storied physician Dr. Janda suggests taking 600 mg three times a day to improve inflammation (for a 150 pound athlete). This high dose ensures the blood reaches titer level. Make sure to take this dose with food to decrease stomach irritation and if you take other medication, make sure no potential side effects are present. If stomach irritation occurs, decrease intake immediately.
3. Ice: Ice the joint for twenty minutes three times a day to decrease pain via counter irritation and relax the anti-inflammatory cytokines.
4. Kinesiotape: Certain taping procedures are believed to help move excess fluid from the joint to the lymph nodes to resolve inflammation.

For more tips on inflammation and improving shoulder pain, buy Swimmer's Shoulder System today.

By G. John Mullen founder of the Center of Optimal Restoration, head strength coach at Santa Clara Swim Club, and creator the Swimmer's Shoulder System.

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Community Accelerated Information

Information integration has transitioned over the past decades. People used to gather information from one source, assuming the information was correct and complete. These were the days of newspapers and one swim program per city. During this time no one questioned the popular belief or opinion. In swimming, swimmers swam on one program, then coached at the same program transferring the team's philosophy and belief. This method of information helped programs be on the same page and work in harmony. This harmony helped team's work together, but information was static. No new information came in, impaired creativity and perpetuated ecclesiastical beliefs.

New technology has changed information; unfortunately many swim programs remain stagnant. Think of all the new technology and information available to anyone on the internet. Every morning I open Google Reader to 50+ articles ranging from swimming, rehabilitation, prevention, science, and fantasy baseball (Razzball has the best humor and information, trust me). Despite the information influx, progress isn't automatic.

Now, obtaining information is easy, but siphoning through all the information is difficult, but essential. Everyone with a keyboard has a blog, vlog or www.creedthoughts.gov.www\creedthoughts where they profess their new, ground breaking information to their loyal readers. Luckily, when used properly this flux of information can accelerate progress, creativity, and learning for the whole community via community accelerated information (CAI).

Youtube has brought videos to everyone over the world. Some dancing and singing groups have formed via Youtube, creating dance groups from across the globe. This integration has brought people together who would have never met before. More importantly, learning and progressing oneself is easier via Youtube. If you're a motivated high school swimmer on a local YMCA team with minimal resources and a volunteer coach it is possible to watch and learn from elite athletes and coaches online on Youtube or other websites. This doesn't only improve amateurs, but elite athletes and coaches benefit as well (see Mirrored Swimming and Underwater Video Analysis Software Review).

No time

As a coach or avid swim fan, you are undoubtedly busy. Therefore, you are unable to siphon through all the crap on the internet and find, reliable, beneficial articles. The goal of the Swimming Research Review is to accelerate learning and information by providing a reliable, unbiased review of all the current literature pertinent to enhance the sport of swimming.

Professions Image
I've observed many coaches who back into the sport of swimming. Whether they see no other options or wish to prolong their senior swimming campaigns, many swim coaches don't view their job as their profession. This group solely views their involvement as a paycheck. These coaches will fall behind in a CAI world. CAI will leave some coaches behind. Don't be forgotten and grouped with mentally impaired physical education instructors, be creative, innovative and advanced! Take part in CAI and let Swimming Science review all the research studies and summarize the important aspects of each piece. This will save you time, money, and sanity to become a better coach!

Swimming Science is expanding on the idea of the weekly round-up with a monthly Swimming Research Review. For $10/month, you will receive a review of 30-50 publications summarizing recent research on swimming, injury prevention, physiology, strength and conditioning, and biomechanics. The cost of all these journals would amount to over $1,000 per year can be yours for only $10/month.

If you're a coach, we know you're busy and don't have time to do all the research, let us congregate all the articles and tell you the important points to make you a better coach and swimmer! Sign-up today for the June issue!

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