The Fastest Age

Originally posted by gull80 Wait a minute--when we talk about muscle physiology, like myoglobin, mitochondria and capillaries, we're talking about VO2max. That's what muscles do--they consume oxygen. And how can swimming not depend on VO2max? Maglischo seems to think it does. As for former age groupers, if they've retained all of those adaptations to training (while not training for fifteen or twenty years!), why can't they just jump in the pool and effortlessly repeat the times of their youth? Why are breaks in training so problematic even for younger swimmers? So we're supposed to believe that it's not technique, but rather muscle physiology (but not VO2max) that benefits the former age grouper when he or she returns to swimming years later. Makes a lot of sense to me. I'm not sure I'm following you on that one? Are you saying muscle Physiology is the benefit over the technique, or the other way around? Also, how does one rationalize away the muscle atrophy that has happened in many years of not training? As for the guesswork of VO2Max... here's a good and reputable article on it: www.nismat.org/.../max_o2.html I'd like to point out that there's not a word there about Vo2Max window of development being in someone's youth. However, they do point out that VO2max does get affected by the aging process, and it is genetically predetermined. Muscle physiology is changeable throughout one's lifetime. The only known limiting factors (as I gater) are genetics and aging - in a normal healthy individual. They also say that with a proper training regiment, a person is able to reach their genetically predetermined VO2Maxpotential (minus the aging factor). So, by that logic, an out of shape former age group swimmer would probably take just as long to train back to his genetically predetermined VO2max, as any other out of shape individual (provided they're investing the same level of physical effort). If Ion thinks that VO2Max is what's holdong him back, I've come to believe that the reason gfor it i most likely genetic, and due to his age. I still don't believe that early years of swimming would help with his current VO2max. I do believe that early years of swimming may have helped him with other factors, physical and mental. In conclusion, there's no way to tell whether Ion would have been an elite swimmer had he started as an age grouper, thereare too many other factors in playto know. I do not believe that VO2Max is what is holding Ion back from reaching his theoretical potential in swimming. I'd still venture an educated guess (or postulate a theory) that If Ion is being held back by anything, it is most likely his swimming technique and the psychological aspect. Also, couple observations that Paul Smith made, that stuck in mymind is thatIon has Asthma, and that his nutrition is not the best. Those two elements will affect anyone's VO2MAx, but are independent of the age group swimming, and have nothing to do with Ion being a late bloomer, and have a lot to do with his health, age and lifestyle (nutritional and psychological aspect of it).

Originally posted by gull80 Wait a minute--when we talk about muscle physiology, like myoglobin, mitochondria and capillaries, we're talking about VO2max. That's what muscles do--they consume oxygen. And how can swimming not depend on VO2max? Maglischo seems to think it does. As for former age groupers, if they've retained all of those adaptations to training (while not training for fifteen or twenty years!), why can't they just jump in the pool and effortlessly repeat the times of their youth? Why are breaks in training so problematic even for younger swimmers? So we're supposed to believe that it's not technique, but rather muscle physiology (but not VO2max) that benefits the former age grouper when he or she returns to swimming years later. Makes a lot of sense to me. I'm not sure I'm following you on that one? Are you saying muscle Physiology is the benefit over the technique, or the other way around? Also, how does one rationalize away the muscle atrophy that has happened in many years of not training? As for the guesswork of VO2Max... here's a good and reputable article on it: www.nismat.org/.../max_o2.html I'd like to point out that there's not a word there about Vo2Max window of development being in someone's youth. However, they do point out that VO2max does get affected by the aging process, and it is genetically predetermined. Muscle physiology is changeable throughout one's lifetime. The only known limiting factors (as I gater) are genetics and aging - in a normal healthy individual. They also say that with a proper training regiment, a person is able to reach their genetically predetermined VO2Maxpotential (minus the aging factor). So, by that logic, an out of shape former age group swimmer would probably take just as long to train back to his genetically predetermined VO2max, as any other out of shape individual (provided they're investing the same level of physical effort). If Ion thinks that VO2Max is what's holdong him back, I've come to believe that the reason gfor it i most likely genetic, and due to his age. I still don't believe that early years of swimming would help with his current VO2max. I do believe that early years of swimming may have helped him with other factors, physical and mental. In conclusion, there's no way to tell whether Ion would have been an elite swimmer had he started as an age grouper, thereare too many other factors in playto know. I do not believe that VO2Max is what is holding Ion back from reaching his theoretical potential in swimming. I'd still venture an educated guess (or postulate a theory) that If Ion is being held back by anything, it is most likely his swimming technique and the psychological aspect. Also, couple observations that Paul Smith made, that stuck in mymind is thatIon has Asthma, and that his nutrition is not the best. Those two elements will affect anyone's VO2MAx, but are independent of the age group swimming, and have nothing to do with Ion being a late bloomer, and have a lot to do with his health, age and lifestyle (nutritional and psychological aspect of it).