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
Extra weight is a hindrance. But one thing to consider is the buoyancy factor which comes along with it. An elite triathlete with little or no body fat will sink like a stone if they exhaled and tried to float. An English Channel swimmer offsets drag caused by gravity because of their girth. They float.
Gilligan however could probably kick the Skipper's ass in a 50.
• Archimedes' principle. A body in water is buoyed up by a force equal to the weight of the water displaced. When the weight of the water you displace is greater than your weight, you float, because the force of buoyancy is greater than the force of gravity.
• Specific gravity. People float at very different heights in the water -- why? The ratio of the weight of a body to the weight of the water it displaces is its specific gravity. Pure water has a specific gravity of 1.0; this is the standard against which other objects are compared. A body with a specific gravity less than 1.0 floats; one with a specific gravity greater than 1.0 sinks. People with lots of muscle, heavy bone structure, and little body fat do not float as easily as those with more body fat and less muscle. Females generally are better floaters than men (the average female has 21 to 24 percent body fat, while the average male has 15 to 20 percent); so, too, are very young children (who have more fat weight and less muscle) and older people
Extra weight is a hindrance. But one thing to consider is the buoyancy factor which comes along with it. An elite triathlete with little or no body fat will sink like a stone if they exhaled and tried to float. An English Channel swimmer offsets drag caused by gravity because of their girth. They float.
Gilligan however could probably kick the Skipper's ass in a 50.
• Archimedes' principle. A body in water is buoyed up by a force equal to the weight of the water displaced. When the weight of the water you displace is greater than your weight, you float, because the force of buoyancy is greater than the force of gravity.
• Specific gravity. People float at very different heights in the water -- why? The ratio of the weight of a body to the weight of the water it displaces is its specific gravity. Pure water has a specific gravity of 1.0; this is the standard against which other objects are compared. A body with a specific gravity less than 1.0 floats; one with a specific gravity greater than 1.0 sinks. People with lots of muscle, heavy bone structure, and little body fat do not float as easily as those with more body fat and less muscle. Females generally are better floaters than men (the average female has 21 to 24 percent body fat, while the average male has 15 to 20 percent); so, too, are very young children (who have more fat weight and less muscle) and older people
