I can't believe we lost a snorkel, pull bouy, kickboard and goggles

My son (AC) had a meet this weekend and we broke the "golden rule" of only taking one pair of goggles. Well, actually, I threw a pair of mine in there just in case. Fortunately, we made it through the meet with no goggle mishaps and without losing them.

But, we did succeed in losing them somewhere between the meet and home (or maybe they are in car).

Just last week, we realized that AC's snorkel, pull buoy and streamline kick board were missing...as well as his backup pair of goggles.

At any rate, looks like I'm heading over to SwimOutlet to get replacement goggles (the Jr. Vanquisher's are always on sale). But he may have to wait for the other equipment.

Wonder what the chances are of him paying me back when he's old enough to work?

MORAL of the story: Even in the midst of the chaos of a swim meet, make sure you have EVERYTHING before you leave. And...if you take equipment to the pool, keep it all together versus pulling it all out and leaving it on the bench until practice is over. That way, (A) you won't leave anything behind, and (B) hopefully nobody will walk off with your stuff!

LZR from Speedo available – 5 Reasons NOT to buy one for your swimmer

The LZR Racer, which reached must have status after its stellar showing at the US Olympics in Beijing earlier this year, is now available at a swim store near you.

While they are a completely mind-blowing piece of technology, they really do not have a place in competitive swimming (at least if you have any respect for swimming as a sport). Oh...and don't forget that they are super cool looking!

In fact, my own 10 year old son (9 at the time) expressed his desire to have one of the LZR jammers. At his age, it was more about the fact that he had seen the likes of Michael Phelps sporting the LZR line of technical suits than his interest in being faster.

According to Speedo’s own website, “These are very high performance products and limited numbers are available worldwide”.

In my opinion, this means: limited quantities = higher prices = cost prohibitive = creates an unequal playing field = bad for the sport.

So why do I believe you should not buy these for your swimmers?

• Cost: This reason is self explanatory if you look at the pricing for this Speedo line of tech suits. Even if cost was taken out of the equation, there are several other reasons parents should make the decision to say no to these types of suits.
• Do we really want to give our youth the misconception that these things are a “magic bullet” for being FAST? It’s implied by the nature of marketing and product development that sport equipment manufacturers are already at work on their next” latest and greatest” world record shattering technology.
• Do we want our swimmers to feel like they have to have the leading suit on the market to be competitive? And how many would-be swimmers would be lost because of the higher cost of participation in the already costly sport? This is not in the best interest of swimming.
• Should our young swimmers be focusing on what tech suit is the fastest or on mastering the essential technical aspects of each stroke and event?
• There is still a controversy over these types of suits crossing the line between legal in competition and that of being performance enhancing and therefore banned from competition.

Thankfully, there is currently a moratorium on use of the suits through the 2008-09 NCAA competitive swim season. Unfortunately, the main reasoning is due to the availability of the suits and not the underlying principle of keeping the sport of swimming pure.

However, there is still a chance the moratorium could remain intact even after the availability issues have been worked out.

The CSCAA…expressed concern that the suits may, in fact, aid in flotation and
enhance performance -- both explicitly prohibited by FINA and NCAA rules.
Independent scientific testing, currently under way, should resolve that
issue within the next few months. To date, other than the CSCAA, the only
other major swimming body in the USA to take the position that the suits should
not be allowed is the American Swimming Coaches Association (ASCA). Last
weekend, USA Swimming banned the suits from age group competition only.

So at least for now, the younger swimmers will not be immediately impacted by the use of these suits in competition.

By the way? Did I mention the price?

Speedo Male LZR Racer Highneck Bodyskin: $545.95
Speedo Male LZR Racer Legskin: $345.95
Speedo Male LZR Racer Jammer: $285.95
Speedo Female LZR Racer Record Breaker Kneeskin: $419.95
Speedo Female LZR Racer Highneck Bodyskin: $545.95
Speedo Female LZR Racer Record Breaker Bodyskin Price: $469.95

Just a Few of the MANY health benefits of Swimming

If I were to have to choose the most comprehensive and healthy sport, it would be swimming (hands down).While swimming is challenging, the many benefits are outstanding and unequaled.

MUSCLE GROUP INVOLVEMENT Swimming involves the use of almost all the muscles required for movement, but without the progressive wear and tear on the body experienced by more traditional exercises involving running and jumping.

MUSCLE TONE & STRENGTH
Regular swimming will increase muscle tone and strength because water resistance is greater than air and the muscles have to work continuously to keep the body moving.

CARDIOVASCULAR FITNESS Swimming is great for endurance, and cardiovascular fitness. These benefits are achieved without overworking the heart.

LUNG CAPACITY Swimming improves the body’s use of oxygen and increases lung function which is why swimming can often decrease symptoms in some asthmatic people.

WEIGHT CONTROL Swimming improves the ability to control and maintain a healthy weight.

STRESS REDUCTION Like other sports, swimming decreases stress by releasing endorphins and other relaxing chemicals.

LONGEVITY Swimming is a sport for all ages and fitness levels and a person can start swimming at any age. For many people it is the only form of exercise they can participate in.

CONFIDENCE As with other sports, swimming will improve self esteem and increase mental toughness.

Breaststroke Kicking Drills for Competitive Swimmers

A weak or incorrect breaststroke kick can throw the whole stroke off and ruin even the most perfect pull...The following kicking drills will keep your legs doing their part.

Kick Using a Pull Buoy or Band: Place a pull buoy between knees and perform the Breaststroke kick (you can also use a band around knees. This drill works on “Hiding the kick” – GoSwim Breaststroke with Brendan Hansen has a great section showing how Brendan hides his kick. (See my review of the instructional DVD here.)

Kick with Hands at Side: Perform breaststroke as normal (normal breathing rhythm and leg movement) except keep hands straight and still at the sides with thumbs touching outer thigh. Each time legs recover, try to touch heels to hands. As heels come up, breathe. Purpose: enhances hip action and proper leg position – Like the kicking on back drill below, this one reinforces keeping hips in line with knees.

Breaststroke Kick on Back: lie on your back and kick Breaststroke with hands either above head in streamlined position or at side, keep knees below surface. This drill works on keeping knees close together and keeping the hips in line with the knees (Kicking with Hands at Side also works on hip/knee alignment).

GoSwim Breaststroke with Brendan Hansen by GoSwim

Ab Exercises that will Strengthen your Core and Improve your Swimming

Swimming is such an all-encompassing sport in regard to muscle usage. Good form relies heavily on a stable core which is why ab work is a necessity for swimmers who wish to swim at a competitive level.

Here are 4 of my favorite abdominal exercises which are a great way to add some strength to your core and allow your body to move more steadily though the water, improving form which will increase speed. That is, if you are consistent with working your abs!

• Jackknife Reverse Crunch with Swiss Exercise Ball (This exercise will also strengthen the hip flexors)
  Place yourself in a push up position with your feet on the ball. Draw your legs in slowly in a controlled movement, making sure you concentrate on keeping your spine (no arching), head and neck aligned. Slowly return to the start position again focusing on spine alignment and control.
• Swiss Ball Leg Raises
  With Swiss Ball between ankles and arms outstretched to the sides, raise ball with legs to a 90 degree angle keeping legs straight. Lower the legs in a slow and controlled motion focusing on the abs. If this is too difficult, start out with no ball and legs slightly bent. Keep your spine flat against the floor and don’t allow your feet to touch the mat at the bottom of the movement.
• Russian Oblique Twist (with or without medicine ball or dumbbell)
  With ball in hands and arms outstretched slightly and angled slightly less than 90 degrees toward feet, do a partial sit-up. While holding yourself up with your abs, arms still outstretched, take the arms (holding medicine ball) and twist the arms and waist until the ball almost touches the floor. Arms should stay straight the whole time and entire movement should be controlled. Back should stay aligned (no slouching or arching). If this is too tough, do the exercise without the ball.
• Pendulum or Double Leg Circles
  If this is the first time you have attempted this exercise, start with your legs together and straight at a 90 degree angle with the floor. Slowly, and with control, drop legs down and around and back to the original upright position. Alternate between clockwise and counter clockwise. The higher the circle the easier so if you are having trouble, don’t allow your legs to circle as low. You can also bend your legs and make the circles that way. Keep your core stable and contracted. Make sure your legs are the only thing moving. Do not wiggle at the waist.

Cardiovascualr Dryland Training in Swimming - Why do it?

photo credit: eric.surfdude on Flickr

creative commons license

If swimming is such a great sport, why does it need to be supplemented by "dryland" workouts?

It is BECAUSE swimming is a great sport that dryland is important because swimming uses all of the large muscle groups at the same time and continuously (without the stopping and starting common to ther sports).

Increasing cardiovascular conditioning, flexibility and strength through dryland exercises effectively enhances swimming athleticism which translates into greater performance in the pool. It is beneficial for youth swimmers and up.

The swimming body needs strong muscles, flexible joints and the stamina necessary to propel the swimmer through the water with speed. Without dryland, swimming would still allow a person to get a decent workout, but the ability to compete on a competitive level would be limited at most.

Common to dryland workouts is the cardiovascualr portion. Many different methods are used to improve cardio conditioning. Commontypes of this type of conditioning include:

• Running
• Jumping
• Rowing
• Stair Climbing
• Versaclimbing

Although the training preferences vary coach by coach, the versaclimber is appealing to many because it uses the upper and lower body (taking care of several areas at once). The versaclimber is a common piece of gym equipment and is easily confused with the Vasa Trainer which is a swim specific apparatus which is not as readily available. If you have one available to you...use it!

Dryland conditioning typically begins with the cardio portion, then progresses to flexibility and strength exercises. The conditioning cycle then moves into taper and the whole process starts over again the following program year.

For great dryland workouts, check out USMS.org and search "dryland workouts".

Parent Expectations of New Swimmers – How to Support your Child

It’s only natural for parents of new swimmers to want their child to do well at the first meet. It’s very tempting to compare your swimmer to other children and to rate their performance based on other swimmers’ achievements. It’s also natural to feel disappointment when your child performs below their ability.

If your swimmer is aware of this type of thinking it will only cause your child’s confidence to weaken and can make their first competitive experience in swimming to be associated with negative feelings. In addition, it will cause your child to begin thinking that their success is based on how they measure up to others versus doing the best that they can do.

• Keep your child focused on their achievements
• Step back and let the coach talk to your child after the race and point out things done well and things that need to be worked on
• Don’t focus on place or time in comparison to other swimmers
• Remind your child that they are racing themselves and trying to improve on their time
• Reassure your child that other swimmers are nervous and you would be nervous too
• Make sure your child knows that what matters to you is that they do their best and have fun
• Tell them that you are proud of them

For further reading, I recommend:
10 Commandments for Swimming Parents
by Rose Snyder, Managing Director Coaching Division, USOC Former Director of Club Services, USA Swimming