Swimming

Question: swimming?? is it normal for you feet to hurt after swimming 100 100's in 3hrs and 40min (i am in my teens and this is my first year swimming on a team)

Answer: It depends on the person... but I am wondering how do you kick? Do you kick from your thighs or do you kick from your knees or feet? That might be the issue. The strongest kick will come from your thighs and usually your feet will not hurt. You might get a foot cramp/charlie horse for a little while, but then it should go away. I have been swimming for over 10 years and I have to say that I haven't heard of people having their feet hurt all that badly after a long set... but it all depends on the person. I hope that helps.

Question: SWiMMiNG!? what are some fun, cool, ways to jusp into a public pool? a pool with out a diving board

Answer: I'm a lifegaurd so I see lots of unique ways of jumping in without a diving board at our facilities. If it is deep enough try diving, if not, I see people doing cannon balls, spins, really any thing they can think of within reson. If your pool has a rope try to invert yourself upside down and the flip back in feet first. It's a blast!!

Question: How do I breathe while swimming the front crawl style? I am a good swimmer and can swim every kind of swimming style with ease. However, I have a problem while swimming the front crawl or freestyle swimming style. I cannot breathe sideways while swimming, my head is underwater throughout and I cannot move my head sideways. However, when I try my swimming speed slows down. Is this wrong? I am about to enter a swimming competition soon and don't want any blunders there or anyone to raise a objection that my swimming is wrong.

Answer: You do not want to submerge your head completely underwater when you are swimming freestyle. Keep your neck in line with your spine and as you alternate sides for breathing turn your head just until your mouth surfaces enough to catch air. Then roll your face back into the water. When this is done correctly it will allow you to get the air you need and keep swimming quickly. This is really something that a coach can help you with best. However in the mean time I would recommend going to youtube and watching some videos of freestyle swimming. There are millions of michael phelps videos on there that are good examples of how to do it flawlessly!

Question: What age can you start swimming lessons? I am not expecting my daughter to be able to swim alone or super well at her age (almost 2). But I think she would love swim lessons. She loves the water. In the bath tub she lays on her stomach holding herself up with her arms, kicks her legs (like she is swimming) she also loves to put her face in the water and blows bubbles. Does anyone know what age I can put her in swim lessons (of course I know I will be in the water with her) Thanks! I will probably look into getting her into lessons this summer!

Answer: My son is in swimming lessons. They start it at 6 months but the 6 months-2 yrs is done with the parent in the water as well. After that they are just with the teacher.That's how they do it at my son's anywho)

Question: Is swimming an effective way to tone up and shed just a few pounds? I weigh 180 and 6'2'' and 20 years old. I hate running and working out in a gym but i want to get back into shape and tone up. Is swimming more for losing weight or does anybody know if it can tone you up a noticeable amount. Also, if it does tone you up could you give me a few swimming tips to help me acquire my goal

Answer: YES IT IS

Question: How do I prevent my swimming suit from deteriorating in the the chlorinated water? I swim competively. I swim in the longer kind of Speedo suit (Jammers) but I would like to know how to prevent it from deteriorating. Every night after swimming practice I always soak it in cold fresh water. But is there any other soulution or advice that you may have? Thanks in advance.

Answer: Aside from the one solution offered here by respondent #1, I suggest that you wash it immediately in cold water after you've finished (pls. don't wash it with strong detergent) and hung it to dry away from sunlight. Or buy Speedo Endurance+, this lasts for six months max.

Question: What would recommend for going swimming when you are having your monthly visit? Have you ever worn a tampon going swimming? I've only ever heard of one of my friends using them when swimming, do they work and which one is best for swimming?

Answer: Any tampon should work Just make sure you use a fresh on before you go in the pool. And bring a change. I prefer Playtex.

Question: What are swimming requirements in high school? If a high school has swimming as a requirement for graduation, what are the exact swim skills students need to demonstrate? Is it some basic strokes and ability to swim the length of the pool and back? Is diving a requirement? I know that is will vary from school to school, I'm only trying to get a general idea of how much swimming/diving students are expected to master before graduation. If you are responding with the swim requirements of a particular high school or school district, it would be great if you can mention which state the school is located in.

Answer: I went to high school in Upstate New York and we didn't have a swimming requirement. We had a swimming section of gym class 1 semester a year, but I refused to swim so I always failed that semester, haha. Sorry I can't help ya... I'm interested to see the other answers, though.

Question: How much faster is it to swim in a wetsuit than in normal swimming trunks? I am interested in doing triathlons (1500m swim). I understand wetsuits give more bouancy - so how much quicker are the times than regular swimming in a pool? Is there any data / guesses on this?

Answer: They're slower due to more drag and weight. A wet suit needs a thin film of water next to the body to insulate the wearer, so you're also carrying water with you. The best swimwear for pure speed are the soon to be made illegal for competition hi tech Speedo, (and other makes) full body style swimsuits that are designed for pool use. The reason for full wetsuits, amongst other things, are insulation and protection from certain waterbourne objects like jellyfish.

Question: How expensive are beginner dance and swimming lessons? I'm a teenager who wants to learn to swim and dance, but I don't know how expensive lessons would be. For dance, I would want to take beginner ballet classes, just for fun to learn a little. For swimming, I would just want to take beginner classes on stuff like basic strokes and breathing, and try to work on building up swimming strength throughout the year. I know that prices are different depending on where you go, but what would you say the average prices would be?

Answer: It depends largely on where you live. In the mid-west swimming lessons are between 30 and 40 dollars for a group lesson 8 lessons, half hour each. I would advise getting private lessons, however, as you will get one on one attention the entire time. They run from 50-80 dollars for 4 lessons, half hour each. The price depends on the teacher as well. More experience equals more money. I have no experience with the dance thing though. Good luck with that.

Question: Can anyone make water spiral threw an automatic swimming pool cleaner's pipes? My question is can you make the water in your automatic swimming pool cleaner's pipes spiral. Speeding up water flow, greater suction power, faster automatic swimming pool cleaner, a turning force is created on the swimming pool pipes. The automatic swimming pool cleaner will be able to turn itself out of tight spots.

Answer: Try a Hayward Navigator, it turns itself out of steps and ledges and spends more time cleaning the pool! You're welcome!!

Question: How many calories do you burn swimming? I recently dislocated my hip, my nerves are damaged etc. It actually came off the socket and they put it back in. I have had problems with my right leg and hip for a long time now. It is painful to walk, do regular workouts but I can swim. Swimming is not painful and I was wondering how much do you have to swim to burn calories? The last thing I want to do right now with summer is pack on the weight, get out of shape and not moving my leg seems to cause trouble. Anyone have ideas?

Answer: Swimming is a great way to burn calories and tone muscles. It's great because it's zero impact and it works the entire body. You'll not only work your legs (from kicking) and arms (from the strokes) but you'll tone your back, chest, abs, glutes, all over! Try to vary your strokes, and do 2 or 3 different ones each session. Since I'm not good at butterfly, I always do freestyle, breast stroke, and back stroke. Here's an example of what I do when I want to swim for an exercise. Oh, and when I'm describing my routine, a "lap" is "there and back" and a length is just one way. I start out with a nice-paced freestyle lap or two to get warmed up. Then I'll do the same with breast stroke. Medium paced, there and back, twice. Then I go pretty hard freestyle again about 2-3 laps. This gets my heart rate up pretty quickly. When I'm tired, I go to breast stroke. If I ever get too out of breath, I switch to back stroke. That way I can breathe whenever I want, catch my breath, but I never stop working out. Once I've caught my breath, I go back to freestyle. And basically repeat all over again until I'm done. Usually about a half hour. To keep the pace going, I have really worked on my flip turns. That way I never have to stop and hold on to the side of the pool. It's a non-stop workout for 20-30 minutes, and I feel great afterwards. It's a GREAT all over workout. Remember to drink water! A lot of people get dehydrated while swimming. All the water makes you think you're not sweating as much and also makes you not as thirsty. So you have to make a conscious effort to drink water before and after your workout. Also, wear goggles so your eyes don't get all red and yucky. :)

Question: What good, simple swimming costumes are there that allow you to stuff them without it being noticable? With padding and stuff. I have a swimming costume, and when i try to put padding in it looks so obvious. So what good, simple swimming costumes are there that allow you to stuff them without it being noticable?

Answer: I hardly doubt that anyone will care if your swim wear is padded or not; they're going to stare whether you're a AA or a DD. Be happy with how you look :D But if you absolutely must have padding, I would have to agree with LC; get an underwire or pre-padded suit. A lot of lingerie/underwear shops sell really cute ones.

Question: What swimming times should I be aiming for in order to get a scholarship into a good college or university? For women what are the times that would qualify you to earn scholarships in all of the events for good colleges?? and if anyone knows specifications about applying for swimming scholarships like what qualifications you need and how much training you would put in and what getting a scholarship actually requires you to do when in the college would be good to know too! Or any other information that you know about the matter! Thanks! xx :)

Answer: This is a huge question and depends on many factors... do you mean just academically good schools (i.e. Harvard, Yale, etc) or good in both academics and swimming (Stanford, University of Arizona, USC, etc)? Stanford, U of Arizona, and USC are in NCAA Division I and have been strong in athletics for years; Harvard is in NCAA Division I, but I don’t think they have had much of a showing at the NCAA Division I Swimming Championships in any recent time. Each school has their own standards for who they will give athletic scholarships to and some schools will only give out partial scholarships no matter how good you are; they can split scholarships up that way and increase the amount of people that they can give aide to (the NCAA limits the amount of athletic scholarships a school can give out).See the link below for the NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving website - this is a good place to find out which schools are in which Division. My best advice to you would be to go to each school’s athletic website, they should have a current roster with each of their current swimmer’s best events and best times; their fastest will have scholarships, shoot for the times they have posted. You can also, contact the schools you are interested in; each school’s athletics’ website will have an email link either to the Head Coach or each Assistant Coach. Introduce yourself and ask them what times they think you need to get a full ride scholarship to their school. Keep in mind that if you are less than a Junior in High School, colleges and universities are not permitted to actively recruit you, however you can initiate contact and they can answer your questions (at least, those were the rules back in 1995, when I was recruited by the University of Arizona for women’s swimming, the NCAA may have changed their bylaws since then; your club coach should be able to help you contact the right people for conduct rules). Also, check out the NCAA Championship qualifying times, you will need to beat those times if you want a full ride to the best swimming schools, but that is still no guarantee (see the second NCAA link below). Remember that no school will want you as bad as when they don’t have you, especially if you are good, so bargain hard for your future; it is in their best interest to get you in their program for as little expense as they can manage. If you are persistent, it shows your dedication and coaches really like dedication! Best of luck! Denali

Question: How do I personally get a good cardiovascular swimming workout? During the winter, I swim all the time on a swim team, so I am a decent swimmer and I get a good workout then. I would like to swim off-season to get in shape, not necessarily to work on my swimming, but more to get in good cardiovascular shape and to lose some weight. So, does anyone have a good workout I could follow? Thanks!!

Answer: I have that same problem: What to do on the off season. Well, I go biking every other day for 45 minutes to an hour. Then I weight lifts. On the other days, I run, and then weight lifts. With the running and biking it helps keep you in shape for swim. When you start up again, you will feel like you are really out of shape, but you are just using different muscles. Also, do ab workouts, like crunches, and then leg lifts and v-sits, pikes and bikes. If you strengthen up your abs, your turns will be faster, and your times will improve.

Question: Is it good to learn swimming underwater only? I only picked up swimming last year by starting to learn swim underwater. I don't know how to swim in freestyle & breaststroke neither until know. I learned swim underwater by observing others & practice on my own. Just wonder can I consider myself know swimming by just know swim underwater?

Answer: Most children learn to swim underwater on their own because it is easier to sink than to keep yourself above the water. Make it a point to get better at swimming with your head above the waterline. Technically you CAN swim but you are doing yourself a lot more good if you learn to swim above water as well. Swimming under water usually occurs because the swimmer in question cannot hold his or her head above the water in a buoyant position. Those swimmers usualy put their feet down to take a breath and cannot tread or stay afloat. This is a very risky situation because it provides a false sense of confidence in the underwater swimmer if you say he or she CAN swim. Technically yes, that person can propel him or herself through the water. However, it does not necessarily mean that person has the skills to stay afloat in deeper water and take the necessary breaths. Do yourself a favor and learn to surface swim. Good luck!