About the physique and age groups of swimmers. Anthropometric indicators affecting swimming technique and speed

Undoubtedly, swimming has a whole bunch of positive benefits that cannot be ignored when choosing the ideal physical activity for regular exercise, but one of the most significant advantages of swimming is the opportunity to gain a slim, fit and ideal body. After all, have you ever heard someone say something like, “Wow, that dude has such a great body! Just like a swimmer."

Swimmers' bodies attract attention because we are usually slim and toned. We're usually tall, broad-shouldered with (usually) well-defined six-pack abs! Swimmers look fashionable, stylish and cool all year round!Here are 9 signs that you have the body of a true champion:

1. You are tall! In most cases!

Look at the athletes who are among the elite of world competitive swimming, they are usually all incredibly tall. For example, among menholders of world records for 100m H/s, born in 1976 or later, have an average height of approximately 1.92m plus, and the shortest among the world record holders of the US team, Rowdy Gaines, has a height of 1.85m.

If your parents were not uncle and aunt Styopa, do not despair. The legendary long-distance conqueror Janet Evans is only 1.65m tall, David Berkoff - the man whose incredible dolphin at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul made everyone's mouths agape, is 1.75m tall. If we take our “contemporaries”, then there is no need to look high, the Japanese superstar Hagino Kasuke (1.77m) is living proof that, despite the general trend, you can swim and shine without having the tallest height.

2. You are flexible!

Before the start of each swim, Michael Phelps stands on a stand and warms up, making cross swings of his arms, ending with a clap behind his back. Phelps also has incredibly flexible ankles and seemingly inhumanly hinged elbows and knees.

The movements required from our body to swim quickly make the latissimus dorsi muscles, shoulders and swimmers' backs themselves flexible. After all, throwing your arms over your head thousands of times during freestyle swimming alone gives flexibility to our shoulders.

3. You are strong!

What I'm talking about here is not the ability to lift huge weights in the gym, but rather relative physical strength (although a video of famous rabbit lifter Nathan Adrian performing a bench press with 80kg dumbbells in each hand might suggest otherwise). Michael Phelps does 30 light pull-ups in one approach. And the fragile Natalie Coglin, who easily juggles dumbbells and kettlebells, will completely outshine many jocks. Yes, you most likely won’t see us tearing off the barrel of a tank and throwing cars, but we can walk on the floor on our hands with relative ease and do a couple of dozen push-ups without breaking a sweat.

4. You have pronounced latissimus dorsi muscles!

Your latissimus dorsi muscles stretch across your entire back, from your spine to your shoulder. Because of the quadrillion billion strokes we do every day throughout our careers, these are the muscles that get, um, a little bigger. Excessively well-developed back muscles will always be a distinctive feature that identifies you as a real swimmer.

5. You have the shoulders of a swimmer!

Huge shoulders!
This word is pronounced this way, precisely because this feature is characteristic only of us. The highlight of the swimmer’s figure, which is a clear inverted triangle, is the massive shoulders. I also call them Mega Shoulders, and for good reason, because together with the developed latissimus dorsi muscles, this feature of our figure makes every trip for clothes a real adventure. Broad shoulders are a kind of calling card by which a swimmer recognizes a swimmer from afar, regardless of nation, language or religion.

6. You are streamlined like a torpedo!

Despite all our (relative) physical strength and the shocking amount of time we spend in the pool and gym, we don't have mountains of muscle and are more likely to have lean and toned bodies. After all, success on the water requires this of us. Unlike our land-based athletic brothers and sisters, we compete while immersed in an environment that resists our every new movement. Water is almost 800 times denser than air at sea level. To adapt to such conditions, our bodies must take the shape not of a racing car, but rather of a torpedo. More streamlined swimmers always have a little more advantage over their more muscular competitors. Swimmers are real, strong “crackers” and this is what allows them to swim quickly and efficiently.

7. Your hair is always wet and frizzy!

It is not so difficult to distinguish a swimmer from other groups of the population, just by taking a quick glance at the top of his head. In the winter season, only the swimmer's hair is wet and tousled from the very early morning, and the entire back of his sweater or shirt is covered with wet spots. In summer, everything is the same, except that 1-2 times of treating hair with chlorine and sun gives it a light highlighting effect. If you can’t identify a swimmer by his hair, don’t despair; the crimson prints from his swimming goggles that flaunt around his eyes at any time of the year will help.

8. Wow, what triceps you have!

Swimmers have beautiful and pumped triceps. Absolutely all swimmers, with the exception of frog-like breaststroke swimmers (I say this, probably, because I was never able to fully master the breaststroke and I envy you guys) use the triceps in the final part of the stroke, which means that each of us throughout throughout his career he averages just over 3.2 million contractions per triceps. After such work, these muscles have no choice but to be nice and big.

9. The amount of hair on your body is constantly changing!

Hair is also part of your body, right? Yes Yes! Sometimes too, sometimes not)
It is this rhetorical question that lies behind the heartbreaking pre-competition sessions of shaving the chest and back of boys, and the irritation that fills girls when they have to explain their hairy legs. It doesn’t matter how many times we hear: “What, does this make any difference?” - we will know that the difference is colossal. Only we understand that nothing can replace that feeling when, diving into the water for the first time after shaving, you feel how the water itself carries you forward with every stroke!

The article was prepared and translated by the site using materials from the resource: SwimSwam.com / Thanks for the photo: TYR

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Ministry of Education of the Republic of Belarus

Educational institution

"Gomel State University named after Francis Skaryna"

Correspondence faculty

Department of LALS

Test

Topic: “Anatomical structure of a swimmerand its influence on technology"

Completed by: Student V.N. Silkova

Gomel 2011

Plan

Introduction

1. Structure of the musculoskeletal system and motor quality

2. Brief list of exercises

3. Anthropometric indicators affecting swimming technique and speed

Conclusion

List of used literature

INconducting

The anatomical features of a person must be taken into account not only when choosing a method of swimming, but also when mastering the technique of movements in one or another method of swimming.

Human anatomy has gone through a long and complex path in its development. The main role in its emergence and development was played by the demands of practical life. Anatomy did not develop in isolation, but together with other sciences, primarily biological ones. Let us dwell on the relationship between anatomical studies and the development of physical culture and sports. The need for an anatomical analysis of movements to improve sports performance, gender and individual characteristics of the body to substantiate the methods and means of physical education determined the need for anatomical research to study the motor system and the mechanics of movement of the human body. In turn, the expansion of anatomical knowledge contributed to progress in the field of theory and practice of physical culture. The works of P.F. Lesgaft on issues of anatomy and physical education were of great importance for the development of both anatomy and the science of physical culture. In his ores P.F. Lesgaft laid the foundation for the doctrine of the movements of the human body. He created the course “Theory of Bodily Movements,” which presented material about the proportions of the human body, teaching about its position and movements. In determining the individual anatomical characteristics of a person, height, the largest cross-sectional area, build and proportions of the body play a role.

Based on the experience of previous generations, knowledge, and literary information, we can come to the following conclusion: the most important influence on the technique and speed of a swimmer is the anatomical structure and certain dimensions of the human body.

1 . Structure of the musculoskeletal system and motor quality

The technique of modern sports swimming methods, which has undergone significant changes, was created and improved taking into account human motor capabilities.

The form of movements depends on the structure of the joints, their shape and mobility.

Athletes with good mobility in the joints can freely and easily perform movements in large arcs without disturbing body position and general coordination of movements, and also involve the main muscle groups involved in the movement.

The structure of the human osseous-ligamentous apparatus is such that each limb can be considered as a system of levers connected in series to each other. For these levers, the joints serve as points of connection and support, and the possible directions and amplitude of movement of each of these levers is determined by the structure of the corresponding joint. Consequently, the “working” movements cannot be performed strictly in the direction from front to back, which would be the most correct from a mechanical point of view. If the limbs were simple rather than multi-membered levers, the movement of the rowing surfaces could only occur along arcs of a circle, the center of which would be the joint connecting the limb to the body. Such a movement would be ineffective, since from the point of view of creating traction force, the rowing surfaces would be in a disadvantageous position most of the way. Due to the fact that the limbs are a system of levers, it is possible to change the path of the main rowing surfaces and move them not along an arc, but in a slightly different direction, giving them a position that is more advantageous from the point of view of creating traction force.

What parts of the limbs are the main rowing surfaces?

Obviously, those that will experience the greatest water resistance during the stroke. Such parts are the distal links of the lever limbs.

Firstly, they have the least streamlined shape. Secondly, a relatively large frontal surface. Thirdly, and most importantly, they move at the fastest speed.

From this it is clear that the upper part of the arm not only does not create traction force, but even slows down the progress of the swimmer. This happens because when the swimmer moves forward, his arms move along with him. The upper part of the hand, in relation to a fixed point in space, moves not back, but forward. The resistance of the water, which creates support for the swimmer, occurs only on that part of the arm that moves backward at a speed greater than the speed of the swimmer’s movement forward. Since the speed of movement of a point on the lever is proportional to its distance from the attachment point, and the resistance is proportional to the square of the speed, the greatest resistance per unit surface occurs at the very end of the limb - the lever.

Therefore, the main rowing surfaces will be the hands, feet and adjacent parts of the forearm and lower leg.

When developing such physical qualities of an athlete as strength and flexibility, it is necessary to take into account anatomical features. In accordance with changes in these features, you can improve your swimming technique.

Motor activity occurs as a result of the interaction of internal and external forces. Internal forces include forces that arise in the body itself and act within it. They can be passive or active. The former represent the resistance of muscles, tendons, ligaments, and bones to the deforming action of external forces. When the elastic parts of the musculoskeletal system, especially muscles, are stretched, elastic tension forces arise that counteract and limit the stretching. The presence of these forces can be easily identified: when the stretch is eliminated, the muscle shortens. The main importance in the activity of the motor apparatus is the active forces that arise when the muscles are excited.

The active strength of a muscle is characterized by the magnitude of the maximum tension that it is capable of developing when excited. To measure muscle strength, it is necessary to find out the weight of the load that the muscle, at its maximum excitation, is able to hold without contracting or stretching.

The force exerted by a muscle depends on:

1) the contractile force of the single muscle fibers included in its composition;

2) the number of fibers in the muscle;

3) initial muscle length;

4) the nature of the nervous effects on it;

5) mechanical conditions of the action of the muscle on the bones of the skeleton.

The more fibers a muscle contains, the greater its strength. A single motor unit, consisting of, for example, 100 fibers, can develop a force of 10-20 grams. Many skeletal muscles have a force greater than their body weight.

During sports training, muscle fibers thicken and their energy resources increase. In this regard, the strength of the fibers, and, consequently, the strength of the muscle as a whole increases.

To characterize contractility, determining the absolute strength of the muscle is of great importance. The so-called force per 1 sq.cm of cross-section of muscle fibers. To determine it, you need to divide the amount of force developed by the muscle as a whole by the amount of its physiological diameter. It must be kept in mind that the physiological diameter (that is, the cross-sectional area of all muscle fibers as a whole) often does not coincide with the anatomical diameter (that is, the cross-sectional area of the muscle).

The absolute strength of different human muscles is expressed on average by the following values (in kilograms per 1 square cm): gastrocnemius + soleus - 6.24; neck extensors - 11.4; shoulder - 12.1; triceps brachii - 16.8.

The sympathetic nervous system has a great influence on muscle strength and performance. L.A. Orbeli and his colleagues found that impulses coming to the muscle through sympathetic nerve fibers increase its excitability and functional mobility, enhance its metabolism and nutrition. All this taken together leads to an increase in muscle strength.

The force developed by a muscle depends on its initial length. If you first bring the ends of the muscle closer together, then, other things being equal, it will develop less tension. On the contrary, if a muscle is first stretched, as is done during many physical exercises, then it becomes capable of higher tension and contraction. However, with excessive stretching, its performance decreases again.

Of great importance for clarifying the topography of working muscles, as well as the scope of special strength training for swimmers of different specializations, is the analysis of the relationship between nine cross-sectional areas crossing the muscles that bear the main load during swimming and strength indicators.

For rabbit sprinters, sections - deltoid shoulder and strength readiness and swimming in this way. For rabbit runners-stayers, the relationship between the sizes of cross-sectional areas and indicators of strength is significantly less than for rabbit sprinters. Among stayers, the highest correlation was observed between the amount of traction in the water using their legs and full coordination. This means that for success in swimming the 1500 m freestyle, strength capabilities are not decisive. When training stayers, you should use the largest weights, selectively loading the muscles involved in the arm stroke.

Representatives of backstroke swimming are distinguished by their specific strength preparedness. When swimming on the back, you need to mainly develop the strength of the muscles of the shoulder, forearm, muscles that adduct the shoulder, which take a large part in the middle and end of the arm stroke, and the latissimus dorsi muscle.

Dolphin swimmers have a high correlation between strength indicators and cross-sectional areas of the deltoid shoulder and thigh. Much attention should be paid to developing the strength of the muscles of the shoulder girdle and arms, the muscles of the back and front surfaces of the body.

Breaststroke swimmers in all indicators of arm strength are inferior to swimmers specializing in other methods, but in terms of the magnitude of stroke efforts with their legs they take first place. In special strength training, breaststrokers need to use exercises aimed mainly at increasing the strength of the muscles of the lower belt and lower extremities, primarily the hips, gluteal muscles, and foot flexors.

Thus, the specificity of functional muscle topography in swimmers depends on specialization; high athletic results in some swimming methods are achieved primarily due to strength training, while in others - due to good hydrodynamic qualities and endurance.

The strength of the muscles involved in the work is determined in positions typical for swimming. For example, a test is to press on the handles of a suspended deadlift dynamometer in a standing position. The dynamometer handles are located at the level of the shoulder girdle. More accurate data from this test can be obtained if this measurement is taken while lying on your back.

Large values of the ratio of muscle strength to weight of an athlete correspond to his best data.

As you know, joint mobility and muscle strength have a negative relationship. Therefore, swimmers who have high strength indicators, as a rule, have less mobility in their joints.

The concept of “joint mobility” is closely related to the concept of “flexibility”, which means a physical quality that allows you to perform movements with a large amplitude. These concepts are often seen as synonyms, however, there are certain differences between them. Mobility in a joint refers to the range of motion in a specific joint, while flexibility refers to the range of motion in some part or parts of the body.

There are three types of mobility in the joint: free, active, passive mobility. The volume of free mobility involves natural, smooth and economical movements, in which active muscle forces do not act during the entire period of the movement, but only within certain limits. For example, free, non-fixed movements of the hand are clearly visible when carrying the arm through the air when swimming front crawl.

When measuring mobility in joints, the volume of active mobility is determined, which increases due to the maximum effort of the muscles involved in the movement and the extensibility of the antagonist muscles. Only in breaststroke swimming does dorsiflexion at the ankle joint require active mobility before the legs begin to move.

When determining the volume of passive mobility, it is necessary to strictly dose the pressure (external force) on the body segments. The volume of passive mobility is the largest, since there is no resistance from antagonistic muscles and ligaments. When swimming front crawl, backstroke and dolphin, passive mobility in the ankle joints is required when kicking.

The method of swimming, the technique of its implementation, as well as its various individual options are based on the capabilities of the joints, determined by the anatomical structure. The development of structural and functional mechanisms of movement in the joints not only does not allow us to correctly understand the essence of the method of swimming and its technique, but also creates the prospect of individual modeling of the latter, taking into account the structural features of the joints of each swimmer.

Individual differences in joint mobility indicators appear very early, even in preschool age, so these indicators serve as a reliable criterion both for the selection of young swimmers and for guiding the choice of the main method of swimming.

A large range of movements is the main condition for the correct technique of sports swimming, which allows you to achieve high results while using energy economically.

Poor joint mobility makes it difficult to master the correct technique and causes unnecessary movements that reduce the effectiveness of performing the exercise in a horizontal position. The mobility of the arms depends on the mobility of the shoulder joints, as well as on the mobility of the spinal column, thoracic and lumbar regions. With insufficient mobility of the shoulder girdle, an athlete swimming in the butterfly-dolphin style is forced to lift the upper body out of the water to perform preparatory movements with his arms. Mobility in the hip, especially the knee and ankle joints is of great importance when swimming breaststroke: its limitations do not allow you to perform stroke movements with your legs. If the mobility of the cervical spine is poor in front crawl swimming, the swimmer not only turns his head to inhale, but also lifts it up. This disrupts the overall structure and consistency of movements. As a result, changes in the vibrations of the body occur, and the position of the body and the angle of attack change.

Swimmers with insufficient mobility in the ankle joint cannot achieve high speed when swimming with their legs in the “front and back crawl” manner, and in some cases do not move forward at all. This is explained by the fact that the foot is the main link of the leg, ensuring the progress of the swimmer when swimming freestyle with only his legs. Therefore, the shape and especially mobility in the ankle joint are of paramount and decisive importance for creating forward movement (A.K. Dmitriev). Given the enormous importance of mobility in the joints, swimmers must systematically perform exercises that promote the development of this quality.

2 . Brief list of exercises

Exercises for mobility in the shoulder joints (performed in pairs):

1. Starting position - the first, hands on the belt, the second, standing one step behind, holds the elbows of the person in front. Springing movements with the elbows inward (connection).

2. Starting position - standing opposite each other at a distance of 1-1.5 meters, with a wide stance of your arms, tilting your torso, placing your palms on your partner’s shoulders. Springy swinging downwards, pressing on the shoulders.

3. Starting position - standing with your back to each other at a distance of a step, clasp your straight arms below. A simultaneous lunge forward with the leg followed by a springy sway.

4. Starting position - the first sits with his arms raised, the second stands behind in a lunge, resting his knee between the partner’s shoulder blades, and holds his hands, making springy swings with his hands back over the top and back through the sides.

5. Starting position - the first in a lunge, bending over, moves his arms back and up, the second in a front lunge holds his partner by the legs, making springy swings with his arms towards himself.

Mobility exercises for the hip and ankle joints:

1. Starting position - sitting on your right leg. Without lifting your pelvis, move your torso onto your right leg.

2. Starting position - standing sideways against the wall, holding onto it with the same hand. Swing your leg forward and backward. Same with the other leg.

3. Starting position - sit down with your legs bent, spread your knees out, grab the bottom of your shin with your hands, and rest your elbows on the inside of your leg at the knee. Springy swinging knees down, pressing with elbows.

4. Starting position - kneeling, feet extended with the back surface towards the floor. Leaning your torso back with your hands on the floor behind you and lifting your knees off the floor, springy swaying on the instep of your feet.

5. Starting position is the same, but move your feet in different directions. The execution is similar.

6. Starting position - kneeling, feet extended with the back surface towards the floor. Raise your arms upward with a swinging motion, lifting your knees off the floor.

7. Starting position - sitting on the floor, put one leg on the other, with the opposite hand grab the middle of the foot. Rotate your foot with your hand to the right, left, circular movements in both directions.

8. Starting position - rest on your knees. Raising your knees, rocking on the back of your feet.

9. Starting position - the right leg is bent at the knee joint. Rotation of the foot in one direction and the other. Same with the other leg.

As you know, joint mobility and muscle strength have a negative relationship. Therefore, swimmers who have high strength indicators, as a rule, have less mobility in their joints. Among crawlers, stayers have the highest rates of joint mobility, and sprinters have the lowest (Table 1).

Table 1.Joint mobility

Swimming methods	Flexion at the shoulder joints, cm	Plantar flexion of the foot, degrees.	Dorsal flexion of the foot, degrees.	Flexion at the knee joint, degrees.

100 m crawl
Crawl 400 m
Crawl 1500 m



Medley swimming

Better mobility in the joints, especially in the shoulder and ankle, is observed in representatives of the most technically complex swimming methods - backstroke and dolphin.

Those who specialize in complex swimming are characterized by fairly high mobility in all joints. In breaststroke swimming, mobility in the shoulder joints is not critical. Therefore, breaststroke swimmers take the last place in terms of indicators, but in terms of mobility in the knee joints and dorsiflexion of the foot they take the first place, which reflects the specifics of swimming in this way.

anatomical muscle mobility swimming

3 . Anthropometric indicators affecting swimming technique and speed

Of all sports, during selection, various tests are used to determine the suitability of an athlete for any sport. In swimming, during selection, anthropometric indicators or, as they are also called, total body dimensions (weight, height, length and circumference of limbs, chest circumference) are especially taken into account.

The starting data for creating an idea of the height and weight of swimmers, as well as how significant these indicators are, can be the data of participants in the XXVII Olympic Games in Sydney 2000 (Table 2).

Table2


			Height and weight index			Height and weight index

This table provides average data on height, weight and height of the weight index, which is equal to the difference (height - 100 - weight), Olympic champions, bronze medalists, swimmers who took 6th place. The table shows that the distribution of awards among participants is subject to a certain pattern: “big” - big rewards, “small” - small ones.

Height and weight indicator is the main one in determining the predisposition to swimming.

Swimmers of different swimming methods differ significantly from each other in total body size.

Studies have shown that the tallest swimmers are those who specialize in backstroke. The amount of resistance experienced by a swimmer in the water, determined by the towing method, turned out to be greater when the swimmer was positioned on his back than when he was positioned on his chest. This can probably explain the fact that backstroke swimmers are taller than rabbit sprinters, lighter in weight and have a small relative body surface area. Athletes specializing in medley swimming are somewhat inferior to them in body length. A more significant difference between backstroke swimmers and dolphin swimmers. The shortest swimmers are breaststroke swimmers.

Breaststroke swimmers have the heaviest weight; the second place in this indicator is taken by representatives of medley swimming; dolphinists are somewhat inferior to them in weight and the lightest in weight, despite their high stature, are athletes specializing in backstroke swimming.

Physique, that is, the proportions of individual parts of the body, influence swimming technique and sportsmanship.

Long-distance crawlers who swim long distances have smaller total body sizes; their body type is muscular according to S. Seago or athletic according to E. Kretschmer, which means good development of the motor system: skeleton and muscles. Their chest is cylindrical and wider, their belly is taut and strong. For these swimmers, the functional capabilities of the body are of utmost importance, which determines high achievements in endurance work.

Back swimmers are also large, like sprinters, but in turn are slightly taller, with a larger chest circumference and a shallow depth. Obviously, body length matters a lot when swimming on your back.

Medley swimmers are somewhat inferior to spin swimmers, although they are equal in height. Their physique is more muscular, with larger girths. The sizes of breaststroke and butterfly swimmers are almost the same, but slightly different from other swimmers. They are smaller but have more developed muscles, especially butterfly swimmers with a more rounded chest.

Perhaps smaller size does not play a decisive role in achieving high results in these types of swimming, although in recent years there has been an increase in these swimmers. Some of them are either close to the size of stayer rabbits or equal.

Swimmers differ in girths and areas of the corresponding sections.

Athletes whose work is of a speed-strength nature, i.e. sprinters and dolphinists have high girths and cross-sections of the corresponding areas, such as the shoulder girdle, upper arm, pelvis, hips, and lower legs.

Breaststroke swimmers and medley swimmers are also similar in cross-sections of the shoulder girdle and shoulder (their girths and cross-sections are somewhat smaller). Stayer rabbits have the smallest cross-sectional area of the shoulder girdle.

In terms of waist and hip girths, breaststroke swimmers take precedence, and then, based on the same girths and corresponding cross-sectional areas, there are rabbit sprinters, spin swimmers, and dolphin swimmers. The latest medley swimmers and rabbit stayers.

Now let’s consider how the size of the shoulder and hip girths can indirectly judge the strength capabilities of athletes (Table 3).

Table.3 Body circumference dimensions of high-class swimmers (cm)

Swimming method	Wrist	Forearm
100 m crawl
Crawl 400 m
Crawl 1500 m



Medley swimming

In athletes specializing in freestyle swimming at different distances, the girth dimensions of the chest, hips, and shoulders decrease with increasing distance length.

As the length of the distance increases, the speed drops and the work moves into a zone of lower power, which does not require large muscular efforts, and, consequently, the requirements for the morphological type of the swimmer change.

In the first place come the signs that characterize endurance and contribute to a better body position in the water, better streamlining, and buoyancy. Athletes specializing in backstroke and dolphin swimming have the highest girth indicators, since the swimming speed approaches the speed of rabbit sprinters. Breaststroke swimmers have the highest hip and buttock girths, since in breaststroke swimming the main load falls on the legs. Representatives of backstroke and medley swimming do not differ from each other in terms of waist and buttock circumference, but there are statistically significant differences between them and breaststroke swimmers and dolphin swimmers. Dolphinists take first place in terms of buttock girth. Among representatives of backstroke and medley swimming, this indicator is the lowest.

Swimming technique and speed are also affected by the size of the limbs. Thus, persons with longer limbs and a larger paddling surface have lower specific pressure per unit area of water. These swimmers may have a longer, more powerful stroke, but with a slower tempo. Athletes with relatively short limbs tend to increase the tempo of movement, as well as increase the specific water pressure per unit of rowing surface.

In addition to the body and limb sizes themselves, you need to pay attention to the indicators of their ratios, for example, in the ratio of shoulder width / height - pelvic width / height, the lower the indicator, the greater the suitability for swimming, and in such ratios as arm length / height and leg length / height, on the contrary, that is, the higher the indicator, the better the athlete’s capabilities, which means the longer the limb, the greater the area of resistivity of the water, the more powerful the stroke. To identify the indicator of the dependence of arm length on a swimmer’s height, another determination method can be used: the ratio of arm span to height. The span of the arms is determined by the distance between the ends of the middle fingers, spread apart. If the arm span is greater than the height, then there is an increased fitness of the athlete. If the arm span is equal to the height, then it is moderate, and if the arm span is less than the height, then it is reduced.

As a result of the analysis of the correlation between sports results and 83 morphofunctional characteristics, features of physique and physical performance were identified that determine success in one or another method of swimming.

The crawl speed of 100 meters is in close correlation with characteristics characterizing strength capabilities: body length and weight; cross-sectional areas - deltoid, shoulder, forearm, thigh; arm and hand length. A high connection was also found between sports results and the magnitude of strength indicators in statistical, dynamic and hydrodynamic operating modes. A high correlation was found between the result and the age of swimmers, that is, sprinters reach the heights of sportsmanship at a more mature age than stayers.

Swimming speed at a distance of 400 meters in freestyle depends on indicators such as mobility in the shoulder joints, vital capacity of the lungs, length of the upper segment (length of the neck and head), length of the legs and body. In addition, the morphological prerequisites for success at this distance are a small waist circumference and a flattened chest shape.

Swimming speed at a distance of 1500 meters in freestyle is closely related to such characteristics as mobility in the ankle joints, vital capacity (VC), foot height, length of the upper segment, width of the hand, as well as indices of the ratio of body weight to height and pelvic width to height , body length. Indicators characterizing the strength qualities of swimmers - body weight, deltoid and tibia area - have a negative relationship with the result. In addition, these swimmers are the youngest in age, so they are inferior to sprinters in weight, girth dimensions, cross-sections, and, therefore, strength indicators.

Thus, swimmers specializing in medium and especially long distance swimming differ significantly from sprinters in physique and physical fitness, which is explained by the laws of bioenergy. If for sprinters the work is of a speed-strength nature and occurs in the anaerobic zone, then for stayers it refers to the zone of aerobic energy supply, where great demands are placed on the functional capabilities of swimmers, primarily on endurance.

The speed of backstroke swimming is determined by indicators of body length, mobility in the shoulder and ankle joints, vital capacity, shoulder girth and the body weight to height ratio index. The relationship between sports results in swimming using this method and the strength indicators of the arms has been established: in the static mode with indicators in the middle and end of the stroke; in dynamic mode - with small and medium weights; magnitude of pulling forces using the hands and with full coordination. A negative relationship with age indicates that the heights of sportsmanship in this method of swimming are achieved in younger years.

Sports results in dolphin swimming are determined by such morpho-functional indicators as body weight, foot height, shoulder and chest circumference, mobility in the shoulder and ankle joints. Swimming speed is closely related to strength fitness, indicators of which are the cross-sectional areas of the shoulder, deltoid, and thigh. There is a negative relationship between athletic performance and the length of the upper segment, leg, thigh, lower leg, as well as the area of the hip and waist. When swimming as a dolphin, the main mover is the shoulder girdle and arms, as evidenced by the cross-sectional areas of the deltoid and shoulder and their relationship with strength and athletic performance. Probably, the participation of muscle groups that cross the sections of the waist and hip does not play a decisive role in the speed of swimming in this way, and their excessive development creates an obstacle to forward movement, worsening the streamlining of the body. A significant correlation with age was also revealed, that is, in dolphin swimming, high athletic results can be shown at an older age.

The speed of breaststroke swimming is closely related to such morpho-functional characteristics as mobility in the knee and ankle joints, thigh girth, shoulder length, cross-sectional area of the thigh, length of the thigh and upper segment. There is a negative relationship between the result and shoulder width. A relationship has been established in swimming speed with the magnitude of traction forces using the legs and with full coordination. High-class swimmers specializing in breaststroke are the oldest.

Morpho-functional prerequisites for achieving high results in complex swimming are mobility in the ankle (flexion-extension), knee, shoulder joints, indicators of body length, hips, and the index of the ratio of pelvic width to height. The best results in swimming using this method are shown by tall athletes with good mobility in the joints and light bones, as well as with long arms, as evidenced by the cross-sectional values of the shoulder, forearm, length of the hand, and arm. Young athletes can perform successfully in this type of swimming.

Swimmers with long, well-developed limbs and relatively low body weight have more favorable opportunities to achieve high athletic results.

Most of the swimmers who won the Olympic Games and other major competitions were tall, light in body weight, and had long limbs. It is no coincidence that many athletes at the age of 14-17 (during the period of vigorous growth of the body and especially limbs in length), even with insufficient muscle strength, but relatively low body weight, achieve high achievements in swimming.

Some swimmers at this age not only achieved international class sports results (S. Belits-Geiman, V. Mazanov, L. Viktorova, G. Yakovleva, G. Androsov and others), but also set a number of world records (G. Prozumenshchikova, I Kondras, D. Fraser, M. Rose, D. Kondras, T. Stock and others).

A study of the physical development of the best swimmers confirmed that swimmers, both men and women, are characterized by the following features: tall height, average weight, short torso, long arms and legs, broad shoulders, narrowed pelvis in relation to the shoulders, flattened but wide chest , with good development and great mobility, large vital capacity of the lungs, large inhalation force and average exhalation force, harmoniously developed muscles (G.M. Krakowiak).

It is clear that long limbs with appropriate muscle development make it possible to perform long and powerful strokes; broad shoulders, a narrow pelvis, long legs give the body a streamlined, drop-shaped shape; a flattened chest creates a stable body position; a large excursion of the chest and a large vital capacity of the lungs allows one to take a deep breath, which provides the body with the necessary amount of oxygen during intense work and gives the swimmer’s body less specific weight. When swimming, the main support on the water comes from the movement of the swimmer's hand and foot. Therefore, the size of an athlete’s foot and hand has a certain meaning. Swimmers with large feet and hands have an advantage. According to comparative data from G.M. Krakowiak, the length of a swimmer’s foot, on average, significantly exceeds the length of the foot of athletes of other specialties. So G.M. Krakowiak found that the average foot length of swimmers is 29 cm.

Zconclusion

1. When selecting children for swimming, coaches should take into account the characteristics and size of a person’s physique, as well as mobility in the joints.

2. In swimming using the “crawl on legs” method, in addition to such factors as muscle strength, frequency of movements, joint mobility in achieving high speed, their length also affects.

3. With equal leg lengths, the swimmer who has longer and more mobile feet develops greater speed.

4. The swimmer who has longer hands develops greater speed with the same arm length.

5. When swimming in the “front crawl” coordination, the highest speed is developed with the help of the arms, and the legs create a slight traction force and support the body on the water.

6. In achieving high results, the main thing is not height, but body proportions, that is, the ratio of the length of the limbs to the length of the swimmer’s body.

7. Of course, tall stature, long limbs, long feet and hands cannot fully determine the level of sports achievements; they only create the prerequisites for a swimmer’s successful sports activities.

8. Studying the anatomical structure and size of the human body allows us to solve a number of practical problems and approach the issues of selecting children for swimming and individualizing the process from a scientifically based position.

List of used literature

1. Absalyamov T.M. Scientific support for the training of swimmers [Text]: textbook / T.M. Absalyamov, T.S. Timakova. - M.: FiS, 1985.

2. Bulgakova N.Zh. Selection and training of young swimmers [Text]: textbook / N.Zh.Bulgakova - M.: FiS, 1978.

3. Butovich N.A. Swimming [Text]: textbook / N.A. Butovich. - M.: FiS, 1965.

4. Vrzhesnevsky I.V. “Basics of swimming technique” [Text]: textbook / I.V. Vrzhesnevsky. - M.: FiS, 1966.

5. Geselevich V.A. Medical directory of a trainer [Text]: textbook / V.A. Geselevich. - M.: FiS, 1982.

6. Dmitrieva A.K. Swimming [Text]: textbook / A.K. Dmitrieva. - M.: FiS, 1966.

Posted on Allbest.ru

How our swimmer classifier was developed

Swimmer classification is the brainchild of Paul Newsome. He remembers well what formed the basis of this development and the history of its creation.

Paul Newsome:

There are a lot of swimming competitions in the UK where I grew up, and I've always been very interested in how a swimmer's body type affects their performance in butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle. The tallest swimmers with flexible hip joints were particularly good at breaststroke; tall, muscular athletes with powerful kicks were good at freestyle and backstroke sprints; the stockier guys, flexible in the upper part of the body, swam wonderful butterfly. Because I was short myself (compared to some of my giant competitors), I excelled best in the 100 and 200 meter butterfly events, as well as the longer distance freestyle events. It seemed that no matter how much I worked on my speed, I would not be able to achieve more in the sprint, but I swam perfectly from side to side, maintaining an average speed. Unfortunately, there are no prizes for regular training and diligence; in our business, one thing was valued - to swim first.

I couldn't choose a different height or foot size. And it would have been much easier for me if someone had told me then that my genetic data could give me an advantage in one of the styles or at a certain distance. Then, of course, I would give up trying to achieve supernatural speed in the 50m freestyle, competing with opponents who were 190 cm tall. Moreover, the style and technique that suited these guys was completely useless in my case.

When I was a junior, coaches reported that my results did not look very convincing. Friends gave me the nickname “Steamboat Willie,” a reference to the frequency and vigor of my strokes. Unfortunately, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, open water swimming was not yet a popular activity and young swimmers aged 10-11 were not encouraged to swim distances exceeding 400 metres. We can only regret that we did not know then how different styles and skills apply to swimming in different conditions and at different distances.

Unfortunately, as an athlete, I was not able to reach the international level. But at the age of 16, I switched to triathlon and, finding myself in open water, I immediately felt at home: the advantage in aerobic training and a fast stroke pace had an effect. I felt much more confident on long distances in choppy water than I did on 50 or 100 meters in the pool. While still a junior and under 23, I represented Great Britain in triathlon from 1997-2001. It's just a fantastic feeling to know that you are one of the fastest swimmers. I was grateful to my coaches for the knowledge and experience gained in swimming, and to myself for persevering in the sport, while many of my comrades “retired” while still teenagers.

I never had any doubts about what to do after completing my degree at the University of Bath: I intended to become a swimming and triathlon coach, with a desire to work primarily with older athletes with little swimming experience. I wanted to help them improve their performance in the water through my knowledge of biomechanics and video analysis skills. Everything turned out just fine.

In 2002, I found myself in sunny Perth (still in the role of an ordinary tourist with long blond hair, looking like a hippie). I was offered... a head coaching position at the largest triathlon club in Western Australia. The aquatic center at Challenge Stadium was to be my base and had three 50m pools. A sports facility of truly incredible size! The best equipment in the world worked here around the clock and it seemed that the possibilities for my favorite video analysis and correction of athletes’ technique were simply endless. That’s when I started building up my “video library,” accumulating invaluable practical experience along the way. Despite the fact that the local guys were constantly making fun of the fact that some “English girl” would teach them, the Australians, to swim, I immediately started working with a large number of swimmers. Some of them were just taking their first steps in sports, others were medalists in triathlon competitions and open water swimming. When you have the fortunate opportunity to work day after day with hundreds of swimmers of different levels of fitness, willy-nilly you begin to notice certain patterns in their movements. I, being an inquisitive person, and also with an analytical mindset, began to compare the main errors in technology with the characteristics of the physique, gender and experience of the athletes. I asked myself: is there a connection between swimming efficiency and physical performance? Am I doing the right thing by giving different instructions and advice depending on the type of swimmer, because sometimes they even contradict each other?

At that time, it was believed that everyone should be taught the same way, “cut with the same brush,” regardless of their physical build and previous experience. One of the most important instructions then was the call to lengthen the strokes as much as possible, as much as physically possible, reducing their frequency. This was believed to improve efficiency. But how can we understand what it means to “lengthen” and “maintain the correct number of strokes” if athletes differ in height and arm length? A figure of less than 40 strokes per 50 meters was then considered cherished for swimmers and coaches; after all, both Ian Thorpe and Alexander Popov took fewer strokes than either of their competitors, and their work on the course looked very graceful. Swimmers were constantly forced to perform endless medley swims in the pool, reducing the number of strokes for a given distance. Those who had the least amount of them were praised, others with above-average performance were “rejected”, labeled “ineffective”, and it no longer mattered what speed they would show at the next competition.

It seems that when they sat down to write their textbooks, most swimming coaches and theorists simply refused to notice that there are swimmers in the world who excel at distances exceeding 400 meters in the pool, including open water swimmers. Take, for example, world open water swimming champion and multiple marathon winner Shelley Taylor-Smith from Perth. In 1991, Shelley took first place in the marathon swim, and beat not only all women, but also all men. That same year, she won gold at the World Championships in the 25-kilometer open water event. In no other sporting disciplines requiring prolonged physical activity have women been able to outperform men. But Shelley did this contrary to all traditions.

Shelley not only broke gender stereotypes, she also broke traditional swimming techniques! With a height of 165 centimeters, Shelley, like most swimmers with such physical characteristics, could not perform less than 40 strokes at 50 meters in the pool, her figure was about 52 strokes. Shelley achieved speed through the right combination of length and faster stroke rate (about 90 strokes per minute). For many who dared to work with such a high stroke rate, this would mean an unequivocal verdict: “Ineffective.” But then one of the best long-distance swimmers came into the world, and her technique was just that. And the result: cup after cup at the biggest competitions, the female athlete outperforms the male swimmers. Shelley developed and perfected movements that were optimal for her body type, just as Olympic champions Janet Evans and Laura Manadu, David Davis and Lotta Friis (all of whom were awarded medals at the Olympic Games) later did. It was very exciting to meet Shelley and watch her swim with her own eyes. And the more I watched, the more I realized that the traditional view of swimming is wrong: there is no one-size-fits-all way to become effective.

Swimming styles

While everyone in the press and on the Internet kept saying, “the long stroke is always better,” in practice I found that for some this was true, but for others the advice was terribly harmful because it was not suited to their size and strength training. In pursuit of a longer stroke, these swimmers created as many problems as they solved. I coined the term “glider” back in 2004, after observing many swimmers who tried to extend their stroke as much as possible by gliding (gliding). Everything was fine with the coordination of movements, with the position of the body in the water, but they stopped in their development, trying to develop the longest possible stroke. Having received a scientific education in the field of sports, I understood that it was necessary to conduct appropriate research, to obtain indisputable evidence of the erroneous propaganda of the elongated stroke, especially since examples of a critical attitude towards the previously unshakable postulate began to come one after another.

Thinking back to my own experience, I realized that for giants with a height of 190 cm and powerful blows, the sliding technique is perfect, because they can use footwork between strokes to push themselves forward, but personally I was not tall, nor with powerful blows. Many of my students shared these same characteristics, and most of them were training for open water competitions and triathlons, where the surface of the water is constantly choppy and rippling due to the proximity of other swimmers. Understanding the need for different approaches to teaching swimming to different people was the main result of my reflections. While it's helpful to start with visual examples (like our Mr. Smooth animation), you should be able to adapt to the conditions you'll be swimming in, as well as find the optimal style based on your experience, fitness, and even personality. .

One of my coaches at university always said: “ Swimming styles“It’s like fingerprints, no two are alike.” And, realizing that this was indeed the case, I began to compare what I saw and came to the conclusion that some repeated errors and patterns in movements develop into certain “types” of swimmers. Stronger athletes with limited swimming experience were hampered by low foot position in the water. Other students boasted good footwork and wonderful body positioning, but they invariably ended up behind everyone else when using the kolobashka. Swimmers with a more analytical mind could explain in detail what and how they should do in the water, but found themselves completely unable to put it into practice. I put myself in yet another category - swimmers with extensive experience who have developed a complex of “wrong” technique, unable to actively use their legs (and at the same time they can swim sprints!).

It was clear that swimmers needed to develop skills and work on technique in different ways. If they could be classified, broken down into specific types, and given individual guidance on how to improve their skills, they could develop the optimal stroke rate and technique that best suits their body type. We could get away from programs written as carbon copies that only work on a few lucky people. Working together with other Swim Smooth coaches, exchanging experiences and ideas, in 2007-2008 I finally formulated the principle of dividing swimmers into types. Two years before this information was posted on the website www.swimtypes.com, we tested and improved the “error correction” system. I felt joyful excitement at the thought of the potential inherent in our classification, but at the same time I understood that it still needed to be thoroughly worked out and justified before it was revealed to everyone.

Having worked through the technical issues surrounding each type of swimmer, I became interested in the fact that they all have their own distinctive character traits. As a coach, over 15 years of work, I have become convinced that a mentor’s ability to communicate and give correct advice means no less to an athlete than the advice itself. Over the years I have met a great number of swimmers: some of them were very direct people who wanted straight answers to straight questions, without any accompanying hypocrisy, others were eager to hear scientific explanations, some did not want the coach to interfere with technical issues but needed in maintaining their motivation, there are those who need to be encouraged, and in no case be “intimidated” by technical terms. If you are a mentor, then our classifier will help you establish communication with other swimmers. When you know what to talk about, when to talk and how to ensure that the information is understood by the interlocutor, you have found the key to success in the coaching field. For me personally, this is the most interesting thing I could learn from developing my system.

In general, this is a kind of summary of thousands of hours of coaching work. We have put a lot of effort into adapting this system as much as possible, making it easy to understand and use in practice. To make it easier for you to remember the necessary information, we resorted to animation and light humor. Just don’t think that we included them in the text out of carelessness. Just the opposite. Find out what type you are and figure out how to work on optimizing your skills, and you'll begin to progress quickly, just as if you were training with us in Perth.

Adam Young:

If this is your first time hearing about the division of swimmers into types, you may doubt how justified it is. I had a lot of questions myself when Paul and I started thinking about this concept in 2007. Please keep an open mind as you read the descriptions of each type. View information about each of them, watch video clips on our website. I am absolutely sure that soon you will begin to recognize the types of swimmers yourself by their technique and personality traits.

Since our system was made public, we have spoken with many trainers around the world. They said that they themselves often thought about dividing swimmers into types, but were unable to systematize their judgments. If you've been thinking about this too, then our breakdown of swimmers into personality types, as well as our presentation of two ideal swimming styles, should be very interesting to you. I hope that this classification will inspire you to come up with new coaching ideas and give you the confidence to combat the carbon copy training that we have all had to put up with over the past 20 years.

About Shelley Taylor-Smith

Shelley's physique and technique seemed specially designed for ideal open water swimming. I compared it to a Ferrari: designed for high speed over long distances. Shelley could maintain a steady speed of 40-45 cycles per minute (80-90 G/min) in all sorts of conditions: both on waves and on flat water, at different temperatures.

Shelley is best described by the following story: One day, when she was approaching 40 (she was still the world leader in open water swimming), Shelley came to me and said that sometimes she wanted to change her body (specifically her broad shoulders), to look more feminine. I replied: “This body is the body of a world championship winner, in retirement you can do whatever you want with it, but now nothing needs to be changed in this perfectly tuned mechanism!”

Stephen Moonatons, founder of www.openwaterswimming.com and former coach of the US Open Water Swimming team, noted: “Shelley Taylor-Smith’s success in beating male competitors time after time led to the International Federation having to establish an equivalent monetary rewards for women and men. Shelley's achievement will always live on forever, moving from body of water to body of water around the world."

Coach Graham Carroll

Efficient swimming. Methods of training swimmers and triathletes/ Paul Newsome, Adam Young; lane from English - M.: Mann, Ivanov and Ferber, 2013. - 400 p. (Sport drive). Published with permission of the publisher.

As you know, coaching experience is manifested not only in the ability to prepare a good athlete, but also in the ability to find a more gifted one.

Due to the insufficient development of the scientific basis for selection, it is especially important to study and disseminate best practices in the practical work of trainers. Based on this, we set the task of finding out, using a questionnaire (including 26 questions), by what criteria coaches select children in the pool, what exercises they use during selection, what they consider to be the main and what is secondary, etc. The survey was attended by 107 of the most productively working coaches of our country.

What did the analysis of personal data show?

Age of applicants. About 95% of the surveyed coaches take into account their age in the first stages of selecting newcomers. Of these, 13% of coaches prefer to recruit beginners 5-6 years old, 43% 7-8 years old, 34% 9-10 years old and 10% over 10 years old.

External data (physique). The greatest preference for visual assessment is given by 91% of trainers. 64% of trainers use exercises in water and 46% on land.

This indicates that today a coach makes a decision to leave a child in a youth sports school or not, focusing mainly on his appearance. Coaches strive to recruit tall children (91% of coaches), slim (68%), light weight (55%), long muscles (54%), and good posture (31.8%) for swimming lessons. By the way, GDR coaches mainly focus on these same morphological characteristics during selection.

Of the additional information given by trainers on the issue of physique, the following are interesting. Preference is given to boys and girls with broad shoulders and a narrow pelvis (T. I. Talyanskaya), slender, “lean”, with a narrow pelvis (G. V. Yarotsky), with long limbs, large hands and feet (S. S. Borodchak , Yu. P. Burmensky, Yu. F. Zheleznoye, A. M. Karpova, I. M. Koshkin, L. P. Kreer, etc.).

Trainers note the importance of such features as thin wrists and joints (O. P. Rimsh, I. M. Chumakova), indicating the lightness of the bone skeleton, as well as the volume and structure of the chest (F. B. Zhitkova, 3. T. Pakhomova ), characterizing the functionality of the respiratory system and buoyancy.

Honored coach of the RSFSR N.M. Nesterova considers “dry” legs and “sharp” knees in beginners to be one of the positive signs that determine successful swimming lessons. Honored Coach of the USSR I. Yu. Kistyakovsky names lightness of legs and relative strength of arms as the main indicator of a newcomer’s prospects.

Due to the fact that the morphological characteristics of a person are closely related to his functional indicators, one can determine by appearance a predisposition, for example, to work of a speed-strength nature (anaerobic performance) or to work requiring endurance (aerobic performance).

Research we conducted on the strongest young swimmers in Moscow showed that children who have the best results in 50 and 100 m freestyle swimming have greater weight, shoulder width, hip circumference, height, arm and leg length. At medium and long distances, athletes who are successful are those who are lighter in weight, have less muscle mass, have thin wrists and ankles, have better streamlining and buoyancy, and have a greater ability to withstand fatigue (the ability to “endure”).

Named coaches a number of other factors that should be taken into account when selecting. Among them are the proximity of the place of residence of those coming from the pool (67% of coaches), the general appearance of the child, complexion, characterizing health, physique (72%), and the sports background of the parents (68% of coaches).

Many coaches (N. M. Nesterova, T. A. Klembrovskaya, O. N. Prokhorov, etc.) prefer to select children who are smart, have “live” eyes, and do well in secondary school.

Exercises used in selection. Trainers use various exercises (tests), which help identify such qualities as flexibility, body streamlining and buoyancy, physical fitness, etc. Exercises for testing flexibility are especially widely used (87%): bending the body in different directions, various abductions and adductions arms, flexion and extension at the ankle joints, abduction of the arms up and back (mobility in the shoulder joints), rotation of the arms; imitation of crawl footwork; performing a “bridge” or an exercise such as reaching the corner of the shoulder blade with the opposite hand.

To determine the ability to relax, O. P. Rimsh and G. V. Yarotsky offer the following test: taking a beginner’s hand by the palm, holding it suspended, forcing all its muscles to relax, then letting go; in this case, the hand should fall down like a “lash” - sluggishly and “lifelessly”.

More than 30% of respondents consider it necessary to identify the functional capabilities of the respiratory and cardiovascular systems using the Stange test (determining the duration of breath holding).

In water, the most effective in determining the talent of children, according to 31.4% of trainers, are exercises in sliding without moving the legs and swimming with a board with movements of the legs.

Basic criteria for inclusion in training groups. All trainers put health (99% of trainers), hard work (99%), and performance indicators first. (99%), desire to swim and attendance (98%), mastering swimming techniques (98%), school performance (78%).

Coaches include the most typical signs of good swimming technique: high body position, streamlining and buoyancy (56% of coaches), rhythm (36%), “propulsion” from the stroke (33%), as well as softness, lightness and freedom of movement (N. A. Alexandrova, T. I. Talyanskaya, G. V. Yarotsky).

Regarding the differences between the selection of boys and girls, coaches note that girls need to be recruited into the Youth and Youth Swimming Sports School 1-2 years earlier (by age), since their dropout rate for various reasons is greater than that of boys. Regarding the criteria for selecting girls and boys, coaches express the following opinions: “I give preference to emotional and independent boys, tall and emotional girls” (V.L. Krasilnikov);
“In boys I pay attention to the length of the legs, in girls - on height and general physical development” (A. N. Davitashvili); “It is very important for girls to pay attention to the prospects for physical development” (I. Yu. Kistyakovsky).

Of practical interest is the following, for example, characteristic given by experienced coaches: boys quickly get used to the water and learn sports swimming methods, they are bolder than girls, but girls are more disciplined, they master movements better, have more stable attention and greater diligence, it is easier with them, calmer; boys overestimate their capabilities more, and girls underestimate them; they are more likely to have a fear of water; boys come to the pool on their own, girls are more shy, they are mostly brought; girls need to be more interested, but it is easier to work with them, since they are more attentive, more organized, and quickly grasp the trainer’s explanations; You need to be more demanding of boys, you need to be “tough” with them; girls require more gentle handling.

Psychological qualities of the future champion, his character. Even the highest qualities will not be realized in sports results without the active mobilization of the moral and volitional resources of the individual. And such mobilization is impossible without will, character, and focus.

Answering the questionnaire, coaches indicate that the character traits of the future champion should be dedication to the sport, enthusiasm, desire to become a champion (M. S. Farafonov, V. A. Gushcha, N. F. Kryukova, etc.), strong character (L. P. Kreer), independence, inquisitiveness, emotionality, liveliness (N. M. Nesterova, F. B. Zhitkova, V. P. Bannikov). They emphasize that the coach should facilitate the development of these qualities, and not suppress them.

M. N. Kremleva, Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, State Center for Physical Education, Moscow

You can grow thanks to regular exercise in the pool, especially if you have not completed puberty and your growth zones have not closed. Can swimming help increase height for those whose growth peak has already ended and growth zones have closed? In my opinion, yes, it very well can.

The effect of gravitational forces in water is limited, unlike on land, where the effect of these forces is fully manifested, therefore the discs between the vertebrae, as well as the bones of the skeleton, will have less load and can more easily increase in length. The joints of the body will become more mobile. Wide movements of the arms and legs during swimming can improve breathing and stretching of the body. Physical activity will increase your growth hormone levels. All this will affect the growth of a person, both with closed growth zones and with open ones, only in the first case the main increase will be due to straightening of the spine and compressed tissues, and in the second - due to the elongation of bones.

What swimming styles are best?

Many guides and height-increasing experts call breaststroke the best swimming style for height. Absolutely, breaststroke works great for our goal, but I would add crawl and backstroke to it. Together, these swimming styles increase height perfectly.

When swimming backstroke, straighten your arms behind your head and arch back to lengthen your torso. You need to keep your head and neck straight. During the front crawl, stretch your arms forward. When swimming breaststroke, the movements of the arms should stretch the back in both directions at a constant pace, and the movements of the legs should add flexibility to the movement of the body. To make it clearer, watch the video below.

Breaststroke:

Crawl swimming:

Backstroke crawl:

The best results are given regular classes lasting at least 3–6 months, 3–5 times a week and at least an hour a day. Plus, it's important to get 8-10 hours of sleep and...

As a child, I was always a little slouched, but I eventually corrected the situation when I became interested in increasing my height and first tried to do and then. And yet the slight stoop remained. When I started swimming, I noticed that my posture improved and my breathing became slow and deep. My chest became wider and more powerful, so I began to feel additional confidence.

From a fitness perspective, the benefits were obvious. My VO2max, which characterizes the body's ability to absorb and metabolize oxygen from the air, after 6 months of swimming was 68 ml/kg/min. For an ordinary untrained person, this figure is about 40–50 (I didn’t measure it before starting classes, but I suspect it was like everyone else). I noticed that my torso took on a different shape, my stomach contracted, and my back muscles expanded and my body became V-shaped. My neck became a little slimmer and my thoughts became clearer.

My height has increased by a couple of centimeters. Among my friends who went to the pool with me, everyone became taller! We were 20–25 years old and many had not grown up for the last 3–4 years. After several months of swimming, everyone grew by an average of 2–3 cm. I know a person who managed to kickstart his growth and grow by more than 10 cm in a year in the pool.

In fact, you should practice swimming, even if you don’t set a goal to grow, because of all the ways to improve body tone, I think there is nothing better than swimming.

How to exercise in the pool?

So, the pool affects growth, helps and promotes human health. It remains to sort out some working aspects so that swimming lessons bring you maximum benefit.

You need to start your workout with a warm-up, then the main part, which consists of swimming “backstroke”, “breaststroke”, “belly crawl” and then recovery. Focus on the distance. The further distance you can swim without resting, the better. Intensity and speed also matter. If your goal is to increase your height, then it is preferable to train at alternating fast and slow paces than to swim at a constant slow pace. It is during intense muscle work that the production of growth hormone increases. If you want to add load, use weights.

Remember that intervertebral discs do not open and lengthen immediately after entering the water. This can take several hours, but usually no more than 30 minutes of intense swimming.

Well, that’s basically all about swimming for growth! I think you understand everything! There's nothing complicated. We go to the pool regularly. There we swim breaststroke, crawl, and backstroke. We sleep and eat well. We get the desired result. We continue to swim in the pool to maintain good health, but not so often and intensely. All!

So I take my leave. I hope you liked the article! See you in touch!

Best regards, Vadim Dmitriev