I do a good bit of lap swimming (see goals - lower left) so I have lots of time to think about it. I routinely see athletic folks who can't swim, or swim poorly + often wonder why I find it so easy - I'm not particularly athletic. This blog is about what I'm learning about swimming dynamics + some fun stuff too.
For your safety, all posts + comments are musings + tips that have worked for me - opinion only. For the record, I strongly suggest following Red Cross swim-safety protocols.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Tiger Woods has a Lap Pool - Pic at Link
Tiger Woods has just finished updating his new home that he bought for a mere $35 million and he's put in another $15 million to touch it up. So did he do what every other gajillionnaire does when they "upgrade" their estates and first thing remove the lap pool? No! Tiger has kept his and it's a dedicated lap pool (check out the pic and story here) and appears to be 50 meters! And yes, ladies, he's single.
Friday, November 12, 2010
Removing a Buffalo from Backyard Swimming Pool - Raw Video
Georgia pet buffalo gets loose and falls through pool cover. Gets out at 1:08 with some cowboy action, after that he/she thrashes around a bit acting like, well, a buffalo. Gets a bit sad as the film progresses. More to this video than you'll see on the TV news.
Tuesday, November 09, 2010
Power vs. Efficiency
A retired NCAA swim coach I've quoted here from time to time has added another aha moment to my life-long lesson in swimming. It was late in the summer and the morning sun was blinding as I tried some backstroke kicks. The old coach was in the next lane and watching all us regulars as he is inclined to do. He saw me weaving in my lane as I had my eyes closed to keep the sun out of my eyes. He advised turning to my side with one arm extended, lifting my butt and kicking from the hip. The first instantly solved the blinding sunshine/lane weaving problem as I wasn't facing the sun so directly anymore; the rest of the advice seemed odd as it virtually did away with my flutter kick. "Is that for more power?" I asked. "No more power," was his reply, "but you'll be more efficient." He's right. It took me a while to really get the feel for it as the whole position, leg kick thing was new to me, but after one and half months I can say, I go further with each kick than I did before. Am I more powerful? No, but perhaps with the strengthening of my core by lifting my but (back muscles here), and using my hips more (more core and more whole leg), I will eventually be more powerful. Time will tell.
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