Applied Physiology of swimming Flashcards
what three things can we learn from mammals which will be beneficial for improved swimming performance
taking quick breaths
hold breaths for long time
body composition, more Hb and myoglobin
what are the two components of the dive reflex and what is the purpose of these
bradycardia
vasoconstriction of the extremities
concentrates blood to where it is needed most and maintains BP
explain the signaling pathway which occurs when diving into cold water
sensed by trigeminal nerve via sensors around the nose and mouth
signal is then sent via the vagus nerve to the diaphragm to not contract
explain how a colder pool temperature can be beneficial
heat loss is 5x greater in water
sweating is ineffective when in water
so the heat loss to water can compensate as a thermoregulatory mechanism
How can cold water be a problem if not exercising hard or if you’re a child
too much heat loss so will get cold
children have a greater SA:vol so dissipate heat more quickly,
likely to get colder
explain why swimmers are at a higher risk of dehydration
sweating mechanism isn’t effective so they sweat more
also don’t feel hot because of the water, and feeling hot is a trigger for thirst
loss of regulation of the thirst reflex
how does viscosity change as water temperature increase
as the temperature of the water increases the viscosity decreases
give pros and cons of water with increased viscosity
pro: easier for swimmer to pull on
con: harder for the body of the swimmer to move through
give pros and cons of water with decreased viscosity
pro: easier to move through
cons: harder to pull on
risk of developing hyperthermia
explain why elite swimmers may swim with gaps between their fingers
if water viscosity is high enough, water won’t flow through the small gaps between fingers
therefore can hold hand with these gaps to increase the overall surface area of the hand
what three factors are the main limit to swimming performance
skeletal muscle
breathing
motor co-ordination and skill
buoyancy is a relationship between which two factors and how does buoyancy relate to a person’s body density
body weight and weight of the water which is displaced
more dense = body weight>weight of displaced fluid = not buoyant
in terms of buoyancy, what are the pros and cons of fat and muscle
fat: increase buoyancy but is inery
muscle: decreased buoyancy but can generate propulsive force
how can a swimmer alter their lung volumes at different points of the race to manipulate how buoyant they are
exhale as much as possible at start of race to decrease buoyancy for dive
maintain a slightly higher residual volume during the race to increase buoyancy
can the diaphragm and inspiratory muscles be trained in swimmers
yes in swimmers not currently swimming
no in those who are currently swimming
what is a possible reason as to why the inspiratory muscles of elite swimmers are so well trained
tall elite athletes can breath up to 300l/min
when swimming have very limited time to actually achieve this
so have to breath very hard in order to get as close as possible to the 300l
what is the greatest contributor to drag in elite swimmers
frontal area
what is the relationship between the speed of an object and then drag force
what is the implication of this in terms of the type of training swimmers do
double speed = 4x drag
so do a mix of strength and speed training
bc would need to increase power by 8x in order to double speed
so also important to work on reducing the drag via technique etc
what are the old and the new theories of energy contribution to sprint races
old theory was that they were mostly anaerobic (98% for 50m and 90% for 100m)
newer theory is that there is a much greater aerobic contribution (70% anaerobic for 50m and 54% for 100m)
what reasons are there for swimmers training almost every day of the year
to minimise drag by small changes in technique
optamise muscle mass to energy expenditure ratio
improve stroke technique
what is Tau
the ability of the body to switch on aerobic metabolism
faster you can do this, the less O2 deficit you will have
