Can anyone explain to me how much resistance water creates while swimming? Is there a equivalent in pounds? or is there another way it is measured? If found a site that explains fluid dynamics, but I'm looking for a simpler explanation.
As Kirk mentioned, Form matters. If your cross sectional shape was that of a 4'x4' piece of plywood, the drag coefficent would go way up and it would take way more force.
And that is why streamlining is so important. Using 0.5 for the drag coefficient was a total guess, by the way. A swimmer in a good streamline probably has a lower drag coefficient than that.
As Kirk mentioned, Form matters. If your cross sectional shape was that of a 4'x4' piece of plywood, the drag coefficent would go way up and it would take way more force.
And that is why streamlining is so important. Using 0.5 for the drag coefficient was a total guess, by the way. A swimmer in a good streamline probably has a lower drag coefficient than that.
