How does swimming work?

Swimmers face several unique challenges that athletes of most land based sports do not.

The first challenge is the total nature of all 4 competitive strokes, which involve multiple movements of both the upper and lower body and its muscles. to be coordinated is required to keep each body part moving correctly and efficiently to maximise movement through the water in both training and racing. if the coordination is thought of as a link or body chain, then it becomes easier to understand. each body segment is now a link in this hypothetical chain, and now, because all segments are linked together the movement in one segment begins to effect the movement in others. This link allows the power generated by the arms and shoulders to be carried down through the torso and down to the legs. However a loss of power may happen when one of these links become weak and this can make bodily movements to become uncoordinated, increasing the chance of injury to oneself.

Another challenge for swimmers, in all stages, is that they are forced to create a new 'base of support'. this is different to land based sports again, in that they- being on land- have a solid surface to push off, stand on, or use. In swimming this 'base' needs to be created as the majority of all training is done in a fluid environment. This element of the pool, is why it is so important in swimming, to have an extremely strong core. The core muscle is basically the key to staying fast in the water and linking the movement of the upper and lower body to move through the water.

To become a better swimmer, obviously swimming regularly and to a program is the most important thing, however there is also more to it. one of the most integral parts of developing and improving as a swimmer is dryland exercise, whether you call it land training or 'gym training' or just dryland training, it is the best way to understand the mechanics or muscular framework and its relationship in becoming a bigger and better athlete. Dryland may include- shoulder mobility, core activation, cardio, strength conditioning, and many many others. it is important to have program tailored to what you are doing in the pool at the same time and also what you need to work on to be faster.