Is Swimming Still An Athletic Activity Or Is It Now A Mechanized Sport?

Sometimes the dividing line between innovation and unfair advantage seems blurred: what's a "food supplement," for example, and what's a drug? Then there is the issue of a controversial running shoe that may or may not be banned for the Boston Marathon or any other USATF sanctioned race, depending on whom you quote. Consider also another running related technological tweak: the Oregon Project. This involves having elite athletes live in conditions designed to simulate high altitude, so as to improve performance. As the article states, Runners eat, sleep, watch TV, and play videogames at what their bodies think is high elevation. Meanwhile, they train at Portland's sea level. Then there's the laptop loaded with some $35,000 worth of Russian software. By analyzing heart rate patterns, the software aims to take the guesswork out of training. Plug electrodes into the auxiliary box, wire up the runner's chest, and four minutes later there's an onscreen message suggesting just how intensely to work out that day. If the runner adds an electrode to his forehead, in 15 more minutes the system assesses overall health by checking the condition of his liver, kidneys, and central nervous system. Johnson, for one, is a big believer in the software. "It knows when I'm ready to go," he says. Other high tech tools available to the Oregon team include a vibrating platform to increase leg power and a hyperbaric (high-pressure oxygen) chamber to repair muscle tears. The company's goal in all this is clear: use technology to counter the increasing domination of African runners, many of whom were born and train at altitude. Next to this, buying a fastskin suit to improve swimming performance is very low-budget. So are a lot of the techno toys we bring to our favorite sports, whether running, swimming, etc. Some of the innovations are things we now take for granted: stopwatches, high tech fabrics... and even heart rate monitors. By using these items on a large scale, people have raised standards--and increased participation--in sports across the board. Better shoes and clothes have made it possible for runners to continue in the sport or take it up later in life. (Of course, the "chicken/egg/chicken" question arises: did the innovations fuel participation or vice versa?) Better info about nutrition and training, some of it acquired through coaches, some perhaps through coaching/workout software, allows the less gifted (I count myself in this category) to make more progress simply by avoiding injuries and staying healthy for a longer time. And most of us, within reason, will try some of the new innovations, although in most cases, our pocketbooks won't stretch as far as, say, a sponsor's, so elite athletes will certainly have "stuff" most of us can't afford. But why not? As was mentioned, the bottom line isn't the equipment: it's the person... his or her ability, desire, and self-discipline. No casual runners are chosen for the Oregon Project. No simply fitness swimmers are sponsored to wear the latest fastskins. We're asking for more and getting it... but still, so much depends on the "we" who ask.

Sometimes the dividing line between innovation and unfair advantage seems blurred: what's a "food supplement," for example, and what's a drug? Then there is the issue of a controversial running shoe that may or may not be banned for the Boston Marathon or any other USATF sanctioned race, depending on whom you quote. Consider also another running related technological tweak: the Oregon Project. This involves having elite athletes live in conditions designed to simulate high altitude, so as to improve performance. As the article states, Runners eat, sleep, watch TV, and play videogames at what their bodies think is high elevation. Meanwhile, they train at Portland's sea level. Then there's the laptop loaded with some $35,000 worth of Russian software. By analyzing heart rate patterns, the software aims to take the guesswork out of training. Plug electrodes into the auxiliary box, wire up the runner's chest, and four minutes later there's an onscreen message suggesting just how intensely to work out that day. If the runner adds an electrode to his forehead, in 15 more minutes the system assesses overall health by checking the condition of his liver, kidneys, and central nervous system. Johnson, for one, is a big believer in the software. "It knows when I'm ready to go," he says. Other high tech tools available to the Oregon team include a vibrating platform to increase leg power and a hyperbaric (high-pressure oxygen) chamber to repair muscle tears. The company's goal in all this is clear: use technology to counter the increasing domination of African runners, many of whom were born and train at altitude. Next to this, buying a fastskin suit to improve swimming performance is very low-budget. So are a lot of the techno toys we bring to our favorite sports, whether running, swimming, etc. Some of the innovations are things we now take for granted: stopwatches, high tech fabrics... and even heart rate monitors. By using these items on a large scale, people have raised standards--and increased participation--in sports across the board. Better shoes and clothes have made it possible for runners to continue in the sport or take it up later in life. (Of course, the "chicken/egg/chicken" question arises: did the innovations fuel participation or vice versa?) Better info about nutrition and training, some of it acquired through coaches, some perhaps through coaching/workout software, allows the less gifted (I count myself in this category) to make more progress simply by avoiding injuries and staying healthy for a longer time. And most of us, within reason, will try some of the new innovations, although in most cases, our pocketbooks won't stretch as far as, say, a sponsor's, so elite athletes will certainly have "stuff" most of us can't afford. But why not? As was mentioned, the bottom line isn't the equipment: it's the person... his or her ability, desire, and self-discipline. No casual runners are chosen for the Oregon Project. No simply fitness swimmers are sponsored to wear the latest fastskins. We're asking for more and getting it... but still, so much depends on the "we" who ask.