Straight Arm Pull Ups

For swimmers working out the chest muscles is an everyday occurrence. On the other side swimmers have a tougher time working their back muscles . In some cases swimmers end up having a little bit of a hunch in their shoulders. One way to eliminate the problem is to do straight arm pull ups.

To do this you need an assisted pull up machine. Set the weight at a level that will make take some weight off of you. Then with your knees on the pad have your arms out straight up to hold the bars. Slowly relieve the pressure off your arms and go down all the way so that your arms are straight up and down. Then pull yourself up but keeping your arms straight. Do not lock your elbows. Repeat 3 reps of 12.

Thin this exercise you will feel all of your back muscles working. This will build them up and even out the amount worked on the chest muscles.

Low Attendence

It seems like it is the time of year that club sports are showing a lack of motivatio and attendence. For the University of Colorado Swim Team we have seen a huge drop in these two fields. With over 100 people pay dues only an average of 20 poeple actually come to practice at the moment. The coach thinks it is because we are not a team but I feel that she is completely off base with that assumption.

The coach need to remember that we are students first and that most swimmers major priority is school then swimming. We are not division athletes who get paid to go to practice and swim. We pay to do what we love. So at the end of the day if we have a huge test to study for or practice to go to most of us will pick studying for that exam.

Also this is a rough time of the year for all students. We have mid-terms, term papers, projects, and jobs that take us away from practice. There is also sickness that goes around that we cannot prevent. So at the end of the day it is not that we are not a team or don't care it is the fact that we are students that have other things that we need to do as well. Yes we can try to balance everything better, but we do the best we can.

Open water swimming

Wether you swim in a lake or the ocean, swimming outdoors in the open is a totally different experience then that of swimming in a lap pool. The waves that crash into you, constantly throwing you off course in the ocean makes you work twice as hard. The murky unclear water of lake water makes it difficult to navigate without lifting our head. The sense of accomplishment once you make it to your stopping point is priceless.

For me swimming in open water is this calm experience that nothing can quite compare too. You feel as if you are once with nature, testing it while at the same time and working with it. There are no lane lines to keep you in place, no walls to tell you when to turn and when to stop. It is completely up to you where your end is.

It is one of the most challenging and yet rewarding exercise or race you will have. The sport of open water swimming is growing and becoming more popular among swimmers. Still in the early stages American swimmers have been putting their mark on the sport. Only time will tell where the sport will go.

ASAU qualifying meets

So ASAU has this new rule for this year to qualify for regionals and nationals. First you have to swim at an ASAU sanctioned meet within the season. This means that any swimmers from the previous years cannot use the events they swam last year, but have to re-due them this season. That is understandable. The only thing is though there are only two sanctioned ASAU meets before regionals and nationals, both are within the first three months of the season while regionals and national s are still four and five months away. No one knows exactly what they want to swim yet and no one is going to be going fast times yet. The big confusion is that though we have to have swam the events this season we are still able to use last year times from nationals as seed times for both this years regionals and nationals. What the point then in having this ruling?

The founder of ASAU is trying to get more clubs to swim against each other but with lack of funding through the universities clubs cannot afford to do a lot of traveling. It is easier to swim against other universities, division schools, in the area. This makes the opportunity to swim sanctioned ASAU meets almost impossible for some clubs. Both ASAU and NCAA need to do a better job at incorporating all teams for the sake of the sport.

Supplements

My male roommate and fellow swimmers is into taking protein shakes after working out. Out of curiosity I tried some of his, the taste was not so great. I am just really curious in how these protein shakes would affect me and my swimming ability. Would I get stronger or just bigger? Would it have any affect on me at all? Are there different types of protein shakes out there for men and women? All these questions raced through my head.

At the end of the day though I feel as long as I eat protein throughout the week I should be fine without having to take any supplement instead or with. I don't think that protein shakes or any other type of legal supplement is right for me. There are to many questions and unknown answers for me to get into them.

Swimmers main source of energy/strength comes from protein and carbs. If you have to take a supplement to get that energy/strength then by all means go ahead, It is just not for me. I will do it the old fashion way through diet and exercise to be fit for the sport.

Club Sports

Club sports have to be the best thing for competitive athletes. The people that do club sports are either to worn out t and then those who love the sport but are not good enough to compete at the division level. These club sports are growing in size and amount. Teams are getting bigger and better and more team are being created all over the country. Just alone in the club swimming arena almost 15 teams have been added to the league just this year.

This past Friday the University of Colorado Club Sports board put on an event for the club sports. Three members from each club team was selected to compete in a ice dodgeball competition. The three members from each club team was put together with another club to make up a team. Then there were brackets made and everyone competed with each other. This event was a great way for the club teams to come together and get to know each other better. It was also a way to celebrate the clubs and what they are all about, students coming together over something they love.

There are not many programs that are able to do what the club sport board did for the teams. I have never heard of division programs doing stuff like this. Club Sports is all about having a good time and enjoy the sport again. I am so glad that Colorado has this program and that I am a part of it.

What Now

So now that Natalie Coughlin is off Dancing with the Stars what happens to her now? Does she go straight back into swimming or is she going to be doing more endorsements and shows? How come she can still be one of the fastest women in the world and not have to constantly train like most athletes?

These sort of questions go through my mind constantly. I'm the type of athlete that has to train all the time just to keep in shape. Even taking a week off for me puts me right back at zero.

I would really like to know the secret that these top athletes have , besides just being talented.