I'm sure many of you are already aware of this article on about.com It reviews a couple of studies that try to explain why swimmers tend to have more body fat than other athletes.
Thought if you weren't aware of the article you might find it interesting.
swimming.about.com/.../offsite.htm
Lainey
Parents
Former Member
My hometown is big on sports, but not so big on swimming. As a result, I was one of very few female high school swimmers in my area, and often felt insecure about myself because my running counterparts were always skinnier.
My high school coach told me something once, when I finally told her the reason I was killing myself trying to lose weight (and hurting my times because I wasn't eating right). She said, "All athletes adapt to their sport's requirements. Football players have to be heavy to block hits, basketball players must be tall to make baskets, runners must be thin to go fast, and swimmers must be more round, less angular, so they glide through the water without creating drag."
God bless my coach. I never forgot what she said.
My hometown is big on sports, but not so big on swimming. As a result, I was one of very few female high school swimmers in my area, and often felt insecure about myself because my running counterparts were always skinnier.
My high school coach told me something once, when I finally told her the reason I was killing myself trying to lose weight (and hurting my times because I wasn't eating right). She said, "All athletes adapt to their sport's requirements. Football players have to be heavy to block hits, basketball players must be tall to make baskets, runners must be thin to go fast, and swimmers must be more round, less angular, so they glide through the water without creating drag."
God bless my coach. I never forgot what she said.
