Is there a genetically determined limit to athletic performance?
Former Member
In his autobiographical book The Naturalist, E. O. Wilson suggests that there is a genetically determined limit to an individual's athletic performance which cannot be overcome regardless of the amount of training. Using himself as an example, he describes how he became a serious runner several years after graduating college. The gap between his times and those of the top runners in his age group (expressed as a percentage) remained what it was in college.
I looked at my current times (three years after joining USMS) and found that I am 12% behind in the 1000 and 15% behind in the 500. These percentages are exactly the same as they were in 1978, the last year I swam in college. I know there are exceptions within the ranks of USMS, but I wonder how valid this "rule" really is.
Originally posted by GoRedFoxes
Doro, you are probably better than you would be if you hadn't those features.
Flexibility/hyperextension test:
Can you turn you feet (both of them) all the way around to make it look like your feet were put on backwards?
Can you reach over your head, and touch the ear on the same side of the arm your reaching with?
My doctor tells me I enjoy these tricks now, and greatly influence my swimming ability, but I am going to pay dearly for them in the future:)
The feet thing is very wierd. I can point them flat like a ballerina and can stand with them straight out to the side. Arm flexbility is not an issue and I can still do splits at my old age. :D
Interesting that backstrokers have the elbow thing going on, because both my kids have arms like mine, and my son was a darn good back stroker, and my daughter would to if she put some effort into it. Alas, she is like me and dislikes the stroke.
Originally posted by GoRedFoxes
Doro, you are probably better than you would be if you hadn't those features.
Flexibility/hyperextension test:
Can you turn you feet (both of them) all the way around to make it look like your feet were put on backwards?
Can you reach over your head, and touch the ear on the same side of the arm your reaching with?
My doctor tells me I enjoy these tricks now, and greatly influence my swimming ability, but I am going to pay dearly for them in the future:)
The feet thing is very wierd. I can point them flat like a ballerina and can stand with them straight out to the side. Arm flexbility is not an issue and I can still do splits at my old age. :D
Interesting that backstrokers have the elbow thing going on, because both my kids have arms like mine, and my son was a darn good back stroker, and my daughter would to if she put some effort into it. Alas, she is like me and dislikes the stroke.
