Swimming is as old as the Stone Age. Writing
references can be dated back to 2000 BC and drawings
were found in the cave of swimmers near Sura, Egypt.
Competitions in swimming started somewhere around
1800, in Europe. Until then the breaststroke was
very famous and John Arthur Trudgen started the
front crawl or the trudgen in 1873. It was added as
a sport in the 1896 Athens Summer Olympics, which
were the first modern Olympics. Butterfly stroke was
recognized in 1952, before which it was known as a
variation of breaststroke.
The water within the human body has a little less
density compared to that of the water outside, which
forces the body to the surface. To move forward, the
water around should be pushed backward and to float,
the water should be pushed downward. The pushing is
done by using hands as paddles and kicking with the
legs. It takes less effort to swim and float in the
ocean than in a swimming pool because salty water
has more density than fresh water because of the
salts.
The basic principle involved in all swimming styles
is that the body should be kept parallel to the
surface of the water and the hands should be
positioned in outward direction, inline with the
head, so as to cut though the water and reduce the
friction. The more the body is slanted, the more the
drag. Also, by extending the hands, the average
length at the water line is increased which is
directly proportional to the increase in the speed.
Swimmers who have a good acceleration of hips have a
good hand force. The force of the hand is related to
the rotation of the hips and not the muscles in the
arms. The stronger the hip muscles, the more the
torque generated. The body should be in an incline
position so as to reduce the frontal cross-section
and drag. By doing so the shoulders do not generate
bow waves and the water line is not broken.
According to hydrodynamics, the movement of the
hands and legs, from back to front, should be as
much in air as in water, during the recovery stroke.
The shoulder rotation is necessary for the forward
motion and it requires strong abdominal muscles.
Some of the swimmers flatten their palms to move the
water backward and some spread their fingers
slightly. Breathing is another important factor to
be worked on while swimming. Correct way of
breathing can increase performance and decrease
fatigue. The body should be trained to work on less
amount of oxygen because professional swimmers take
breath in one stroke and let it out slowly till the
fourth stroke. Taking a deep breath and submerging
in the water, while kicking in the water, can
control breath.
Children can be made to join summer camps that give
swimming lessons. Swimmers need to wear body skin
kind of swimsuits so as to reduce the drag and
beginners can use aids such as Styrofoam Board until
they learn swimming properly. Beginners should
concentrated on increasing the strength along with
the other techniques.
Swimming is a great exercise as there is less impact
on the joints and bones because the density of water
is similar to the density of the human body and the
water supports the body. It is usually used to treat
people with certain disabilities and injuries.
Swimming is an aerobic exercise and is a good way to
beat stress.
The problems and hazards related to swimming are
drowning and water inhalation in a contaminated
environment. Extreme exhaustion can lead to
unconsciousness. Weaker people should avoid it
because it can be a cause to heart attacks, stroke,
shallow water blackout and carotid sinus syncope.
Excess water intake in salty water can form foam in
the lungs, which effects breathing badly. Regular
swimmers get exostosis or swimmers' ear, which is
abnormal growth in the ear canal and athlete's foot,
which is bacterial infection in between the toes.
Chemicals in the swimming pools can cause skin and
eye irritation and can even discolor the hair.
Asthmatics should avoid excess swimming in swimming
pool, as the chlorine inhalation will affect their
lungs badly. While swimming in ocean, precautions
should be taken, as there is an increased risk of
getting jellyfish sting or harm from any other
aquatic animal.
