Sleeping for Swimmers

What if I told you of a legal sports performance aid, involving zero out-of-pocket cost, and virtually no side effects. This aid can be used in high mileage or low mileage, IM or free, distance or sprint, age group or master. Too good to be true? The answer (as you judged from the title) is SLEEP!

There are two ways to improve in swimming: find ways to make yourself faster, and remove things that make you slower. Sleep deprivation is one thing that makes you slower. Adding sleep won’t make you faster than you are like a synthetic suit, but removing sleep deprivation can improve your training return on investment. (For additional discussion on sleep, see recent articles on Becoming a Morning Person, Jet Lag, and Diurnal Variation)
Swimmers are generally high achievers outside the water in school and at work. Other than a select few professionals who can train full time twelve months per year, a full time training load must balance with other “life” factors. As disciplined and highly motivated folks, swimmers usually find a way to cram everything in, with sleep often sacrificed. In fact, a culture of sleep deprivation is actually a badge of honor in many circles, particularly in academic settings and in the workplace. Swimmers are not immune to this form of informal competition, and often thrive!  

BEST PRE-WORKOUT FOODS

4/23/2012

BY CHRIS ROSENBLOOM, PHD, RD, CSSD

All kinds of pre-workout supplements are being marketed to athletes claiming to boost energy, enhance performance, and improve endurance. Do you need to eat before a workout? If so, what should you eat or drink? Let’s look at who might need a pre-workout snack and the best choices.
If your workout lasts longer than 45 minutes (and what swimmer’s workout doesn’t?) you should fuel up before exercise. What you should eat and how much you should eat depends on how much time you have before a workout.
Ideally, you will have time for a healthy meal 3-4 hours before exercise, so that there is time for the food to be digested and absorbed. But when reality strikes and you don’t have time to eat before swim practice, you should at least eat 30 grams of carbohydrate. Carbs that are easily digested and eaten 15 minutes before exercise can improve your performance when compared to exercising with no carbohydrate.
Here are my top picks for snacks with 30 grams of carbohydrate. These foods also provide other benefits, such as extra vitamins and minerals needed for optimum performance.

• 6-ounce container of low-fat fruit yogurt has 30 grams of carbs with the added benefit of calcium (as much as a glass of milk), protein, potassium, vitamin A and riboflavin.
• 2 mini-bagels with a piece of low-fat string cheese provide 30 grams of carbs, protein and B-vitamins needed for energy.
• 1 medium to large sized banana has 30 grams of carbs. A banana is the original fast food – easy to pack and eat, and requires no refrigeration. Bananas are also a powerhouse for potassium, an electrolyte lost in sweat.
• Banana-strawberry fruit smoothie (8-12 ounces depending on product). Liquids, like smoothies, are easy to digest and most contain calcium and vitamin C.
• 10 mini-pretzels and ½ cup apple juice contain easy to digest carbs along with some sodium for those who are salty sweaters.

Eating before a workout doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive. All it takes is some planning to have nourishing snacks available to power you through a workout.

Chris Rosenbloom is the sports dietitian for Georgia State University Athletic Department and is the editor of recently published Sports Nutrition: A Practice Manual for Professionals, 5th edition, published by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (2012).

How to Become a Morning Person

G. John Mullen

Since we’re getting ready for morning practices, I thought I would send this out now so you can start planning ahead.

- LewisP

About John (HE’S AN OHIO SWIMMER !!!):
I graduated with a Doctorate in Physical Therapy from the University of Southern California in 2011. Although I have worked in various settings, most of my experience has been in with sports (ranging from Professional to Master’s athletes). At USC, I was a research assistant and worked on projects about physical activity and type II diabetes in Hispanic boys and lung adaptations in swimmers. I also coached at Southern California Aquatic Club, the largest Master’s team in the United States and worked as a personal trainer. In 2010, I started writing extensively being featured inSwimming World Magazine, SwimmerMagazine, and the Journal of the International Society of Swim Coaches. At this time I started a website to help congregate information on swimming research, Swimming Science and am on the advisory board for the International Society of Swim Coaches. I am also a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist with certification through the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA).
I am originally from Centerville, Ohio. After graduating from Centerville High School in 2004, I attended Purdue University on a swimming scholarship and was an Academic All American Honorable Mention as well as a National qualifier. At Purdue, I helped manufacture a soy based clay pigeon, EcoDisc, which won numerous entrepreneurial accolades.
From sleep walking to sleep deprivation, I’ve tried it all. As a child, I was overactive which was present not only at day, but also at night. I would sleep walk every night, typically waking up in the recliner at our house, but sometimes even in our car!
My senior year in college I began manipulating my sleep to optimize productivity, who doesn’t want 100% productivity with minimal sleep? At the time, I was graduating from Purdue, swimming collegiately, starting a business, and socializing with the best of them. The only problem is sleep got in the way of all this fun. It was at this time I started waking up earlier and earlier. These times of sleep deprivation forced me to research everything about waking up early.
With all this research and personal trails, I have tried it all, as minimal as 3-hours of sleep at night. Through all these sleep trials, I have found a few keys to becoming a morning person. Follow these tips to make early traffic, hyper children, or running laps around the park more bearable!
 

No LED Screens

Make sure at least 30 minutes before going to bed you put down the electronics, turn off the TV, close the laptop, and perform something relaxing. Whether this is preparing meals for the next day, stretching, or reading, stay away from the LED screens as they excite the pineal gland which regulates arousal. On a side note, take the TV out of the bedroom, trust me, and if you don’t understand why, you can always e-mail me for more explanation.

MYTHBUSTER: BREASTSTROKERS MAKE THE BEST IMERS

4/16/2012

BY KATIE ARNOLD//NATIONAL TEAM COACH FELLOW

If you are anything like me, your dreams of IM glory were crushed early in your swimming career because someone told you that breaststrokers make the best IMers (and like me, you were anything but a breaststroker). However, after doing some research on the subject, I am happy to report that you do not have to be a breaststroker to be an elite IMer.

During a moment of “what could have been” nostalgia, I looked at IM medalists from the past two Olympics. Out of the 13 unique medalists (8 female, 5 male), only one swimmer was ranked in the top-25 of a breaststroke event in the year they won their IM medal. However, of those same 13 swimmers, 2 were top-25 in a butterfly event, 4 were top-25 in a backstroke event, and 2 were top-25 in both butterfly and backstroke. The remaining 4 medalists were not ranked in the top-25 for any stroke event in that year.

While this should give hope to all you “non-breaststrokers” out there, it certainly does not mean you should stop working to improve your breaststroke. Because breaststroke is the slowest of the four strokes, IMers spend more time on that leg of the race than any other. To be an elite IMer, you need a solid foundation with good fundamentals in all four strokes.

Overcoming Mediocrity

 

Posted by Glenn Mills on Oct 15, 2011 07:29AM (1,661 views)

Over the past couple weeks, there have been a couple significant souls lost that made incredible impact on the earth.

Obviously, we all know about Steve Jobs, and those who visit here read about Al Weatherhead.  Read the third paragraph of the linked article to get some scope of understanding of Al.  I'm not writing this to further glorify these two men, but I refer to them for us all to imagine what is possible for humans.

When we think of what our own impact can be, if we were to only compare to people like Steve and Al, it leaves us all falling so short of any sort of impact, one could get very depressed with our own lack of contributuion to society.  It's a humbling experience to sit back and imagine.

However, both men wrote and encourage people to do the best we each could, with the understanding that not everyone has the ability to reach those heights.

When we think of swimming, we have to look at it very similarly.  What is our contribution to society as coaches, and what is our commitment as athletes that would be similar in any way to these great men?

Mutual Of Omaha Releases Swimming Game On APP Store

Mutual Of Omaha Releases Swimming Game On APP Store

Mutual of Omaha recently launched Swim Star 2012, a unique swimming game app, in anticipation of the U.S. Olympic Swim Trials, which will take place in the company’s hometown of Omaha, Neb. in June, and the Summer Olympic Games in London.
Swim Star 2012 allows players to select an avatar and their preferred swim stroke to compete for a place on the podium at every event. Players can progress from beginner level to qualifying, regional, nationals and world levels. Swim Star 2012 has GameCenter integration that allows players to post times to a leaderboard for each stroke. It also offers Facebook and Twitter integration to share accomplishments with friends. Details, including a video and screenshots, can be found at swimstargame.com.
The game is available for free download for iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch on Apple’s App Store. Since its launch, there have been thousands of downloads and positive reviews on the App Store.
Mutual of Omaha is a full-service, multi-line organization providing insurance and financial services products for individuals, businesses and groups throughout the United States. Mutual of Omaha’s sponsorship of USA Swimming is a key component of its sponsorship program, which also includes sponsorship of professional golf and Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom. For more information about Mutual of Omaha, visit mutualofomaha.com

Practice Schedule

Here are reminders regarding the practice schedule for this week:

Beginning Monday, April 16:

Please check with coaches regarding start date of OWU practices.
Remember, you are not required to stay for the entire practice time.  Please stay current on homework and studying.  If you can only attend a portion of practice, please feel free to do so – just let the coaches know prior to the start of practice that you need to leave early (or that you will be arriving late the next day if you know this ahead of time).

Diet and Swimmers

From the SwimSci Blog

In weight class sports (wrestling and boxing) extreme measures are taken to achieve specific weight classes. Large increases or decreases in weight can be harmful to the athlete. Luckily swimming is a sport where diets are rare (no pun). With every athlete I've assessed for weight loss, caloric intake and poor eating habits are the main issue. However, I never cut the total volume of foot in an athlete's diet, instead changing the volume of certain foods and the timing of foods is essential. Here are some quick fixes to try before cutting foods in a diet:

1. 
   Eat more fiber and eat correct carbohydrates!Replace all your enriched white flour products filled with high fructose corn syrup to 100% whole wheat and confirm the fiber quantity is high. Everyone remembers the food pyramid with the largest chunk dedicated to carbohydrates, unfortunately the picture of carbohydrates is dubious. Their picture presents a loaf of white bread, but eating plenty of fruits, vegetables as well as high fiber food will provide

Swim Sci: Swimming Nutrition

Swim Sci: Swimming Nutrition: Sports nutrition is a complex and hotly debated subject.  However, every elite athlete utilizes a diet.  At every Olympics the same countrie...

Excerpts from an Interview with Cindy Tran

from the Swim Science blog

What are you currently working on in your backstroke?
Well, I can always use work on the back half of my races. But that comes with more intention and focus in everyday workouts. Going into NCAA’s and into trials, where everyone has the potential to win, I was very focused on nailing my finishes and turns – trying to make them sharp and effortless. I think over ten years of bad habits has made it difficult to reverse them. Teri always says that whether we like it or not, we are always, always practicing turns and finishes in a workout, so you might as well practice good turns and good finishes.
What is the most common flaw between your good and elite backstrokers?
In very technical terms, elite backstrokers know how to hold good distance per cycle (DPC) with a consistently fast stroke rate. Personally, I struggle with keeping my stroke rate up when I get tired at the end of race. That’s where I can grow. Maximizing those two traits will lead to a optimum success.

Backstroke Spin Drill

We've tried this drill several times and I don't always feel that I've communicated what we're looking for with this drill.  Check out this video of former World Record holder, Jeff Rouse, performing the drill perfectly.


This drill is all about turnover speed (tempo, stroke rate) kicking, and keeping your head still.  Watch the video several times and look at each one of these aspects of the drill.

TOP QUESTIONS ON NUTRITION AND SWIMMING

3/26/2012

BY CHRIS ROSENBLOOM, PHD, RD, CSSD

Here are some of the top questions I’ve gotten from my readers.

Question: Is fruit juice a good beverage for a young swimmer who is trying to gain weight?

Answer: Fruit juice is a good carbohydrate source and a high calorie drink, so it is good for swimmers who are trying to gain weight. Look for 100% fruit juice and not fruit drinks which contain added sugars. Real fruit juice has simple carbohydrates (natural sugar) and vitamins and minerals so it is a nutrient-rich beverage. Fruit juices with the highest calories include grape juice and pineapple juice (152 and 132 calories per cup of unsweetened, natural juice) while orange and apple juice contain less calories (114 and 115 calories per cup, respectively). Fruit juice is best used as a recovery beverage or with meals. Some people don't recommend drinking a high glycemic index carbohydrate (like fruit juice) right before a workout because it might raise blood sugar and insulin levels which might affect performance. However, as a post-workout beverage, it could help the muscles restore glycogen rapidly to get ready for the next day’s workout.
You might also try some of newer fruit juice blends (cran-grape, berry-orange, etc.), but read the nutrition facts panel to find a juice without added sugars. You can always make your own juice with a home blender. Toss in strawberries, apple slices, bananas, or orange sections and find a favorite mix for homemade juice.

Wilkinson, Winning, and the Game of Life

Posted Tuesday, April 3, 2012 10:36 AM ET
Jennifer Lukas, CTVOlympics.ca Staff
Before she started winning Commonwealth medals, before she qualified and competed in six events at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, and before she started shattering Canadian records, Julia Wilkinson was just a local kid in Stratford, Ont., training in a minuscule four-lane, 25-yard pool.
"I think that I wasn't very good at the beginning. My mom tells this story about driving home from a swim meet and my sister had won a bunch of ribbons," Wilkinson told CTVOlympics a little over a year ago. "I said to my mom, 'Mom, everybody wins a medal at one time, right?'"
Wilkinson's mom, Mary, is an eighth-grade teacher.
"She said to me, 'Well, no honey. Some people, they win the ribbon of life.'" The 24 year old laughs as she remembers.
"I was like, eight. I don't understand metaphors at eight. But I just think that's funny now, because she didn't want to make me an empty promise.
Road to London: Read Swimmer Brent Hayden's Story
Eighteen years later, Wilkinson has won her share of ribbons. Decked out in a pair of flashy gold Ugg boots and gold nail polish at this week's Canadian Olympic swimming trials in Montreal, she has embodied the colour, winning three out of four races in commanding style.
The trials came close to becoming "The Julia Wilkinson Show," as the utility swimmer qualified for four Olympic events -- more than any other swimmer on the team. She could add two more depending on relay team selections at the Games in 2012.
"Swimming all these events is not as hard as four years ago," Wilkinson said on Saturday. "Four years ago I was so up and down and not sleeping. Now I feel great... It's experience and I learned that when you have a bad or great race you have to shake it off and move on."

Pool of Tears at Canadian Olympic Swimming Trials

(From the Toronto Star)

An emotional Annamay Pierse weeps after finishing a disappointing fifth in the women's 200-metre breaststroke and failing to qualify for the London Games at the Canadian Olympic swimming trials in Montreal on Saturday.
STEVE RUSSELL/TORONTO STAR

By Randy Starkman Olympic Sports Reporter
MONTREAL—Oakville teenager Tara Van Beilen promised herself she’d keep her tears inside this time. World record holder Annamay Pierse was not so fortunate.
The women’s 200-metre breaststroke lived up to its billing as the event to watch at the Olympic swimming trials, pitting Pierse against world bronze medallist Martha McCabe of Toronto and the deepest world-class field here, including the fast-rising Van Beilen.
Pierse has struggled since setting the world record at the 2009 worlds in Rome. She had trouble adjusting to the change in swimsuits and suffered serious illnesses, including dreaded dengue fever at the 2010 Commonwealth Games.
She’d been unable to push herself in training the way she wanted and her worst fears were realized in finishing a distant fifth behind the 1-2 performance of Van Beilen and McCabe, who posted the second and third fastest times in the world this year.
Pierse was inconsolable. Tears streaming down her face, she talked to the reporters in the press room afterwards with her boyfriend, Olympic kayaker Mark Oldershaw, at her side.

Canadian Swimmer Julia Wilkinson

Breaking the 1-minute barrier

By Julia Wilkinson

Posted: Friday, March 30, 2012 | 10:30 AM

Read 0 comments0
Julia Wilkinson celebrates after winning the women's 100-metre backstroke at the Canadian Olympic Swimming Trials on Wednesday. (Paul Chiasson/Canadian Press)

I am no stranger to delayed gratification.
It's the life of a swimmer, at least after your 13th birthday when you stop dropping time every time you hit the water.
Every year, I spend countless hours training, but I am only in peak race preparation maybe twice every season. I spend a long time working on the details, with my fingers crossed that what I am doing will translate to my race by the time I taper.
That is why, after four long years of waiting, it was so sweet to finally break the one-minute barrier in the 100-metre backstroke en route to qualifying for my second Olympic team. That's right: I'm officially London-bound!
It's only day three of the six-day competition, and we have seen what Olympic trials are all about. In the first event on day one, my young (18-year-old) teammate from the Victoria Academy of Swimming, Alec Page, won the 400m individual medley and saw his Olympic dream come true. When I saw that he had defeated the field and qualified for the team, I thought my heart was going to explode with pride. Alec is a swimmer who loves to race, works harder than almost everyone I know, and has so much talent it's scary.