A Learning Channel special on Lance Armstrong showed how he spent hours perfecting his aerodynamic position on the bike. Computers would analyze the drag caused by Lance's different positions on the bike and the bike itself(i.e.his body caused 2/3 of the total drag). All of this testing to save maybe 1 or 2 percent drag. Of course, in the Tour De France the few seconds time differential could be the difference between a win or loss.
So how could you test your own hydrodynamic position in the water and would it be worthwhile? I imagine one could push off the pool wall and try different positions of head,arms,torso,legs, and feet and find the ONE position that allows you to go the farthest. Persumably, that would be your most hydrodynamic or slippery.
Or, I suppose if you had an Endless Pool, you could tether a swimmer to some kind of force gauge that would measure the energy required to keep the swimmer stationary at a certain flow level. Then try different positions of head, arms, torso, legs, and feet to find which position requires the least amount of force to stay stationary.
Intuitively, one would think that a head down, straight torso, hips, legs, and pointed toes would be most hydrodynamic but not necessarily so.
How does that hydrodynamic position change when a swimmer breathes. Again, is one position more slippery than another and is it different for everyone? How would you test it?
I don't have answers--only questions. Any one aware of studies or empirical data?
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Former Member
One thing I might add about hydrodynamic. It's part of my coaching philosophy.
The one big difference between aerodynamics (in cycling for instance) and hydrodynamics, is that it's much easier to get a natural spontaneous feed back helpful to auto-analyse our hydrodynamic efficiency while swimming.
I can't really coach a cyclist to *feel* the drag resistance imposed by the wind on the upper body, or the bike or anything.
But I can coach a swimmer to develop this *feel* for hydrodynamic efficiency. Some have already pointed out the stroke length as a good indicator of this efficiency.
I'm absolutely convinced that good swimmers, in fact most swimmers (intermediate to advance) can also juge the amplitude of their own "acceleration/deceleration/acceleration/deceleration" pattern while swimming. It's also possible to develop this *feeling* of accute drag resistance experienced by most parts of our body. For instance, a good breaststroker can feel more or less resistance during the leg recovery, and will naturally favor a position involving less resistance.
One simple drill to learn to listen to these feelings? Swimming with a pair of pants and long sleeves sweather for a while, and then removing the cloths.... well you may want to keep a bathing suit on :joker:
One thing I might add about hydrodynamic. It's part of my coaching philosophy.
The one big difference between aerodynamics (in cycling for instance) and hydrodynamics, is that it's much easier to get a natural spontaneous feed back helpful to auto-analyse our hydrodynamic efficiency while swimming.
I can't really coach a cyclist to *feel* the drag resistance imposed by the wind on the upper body, or the bike or anything.
But I can coach a swimmer to develop this *feel* for hydrodynamic efficiency. Some have already pointed out the stroke length as a good indicator of this efficiency.
I'm absolutely convinced that good swimmers, in fact most swimmers (intermediate to advance) can also juge the amplitude of their own "acceleration/deceleration/acceleration/deceleration" pattern while swimming. It's also possible to develop this *feeling* of accute drag resistance experienced by most parts of our body. For instance, a good breaststroker can feel more or less resistance during the leg recovery, and will naturally favor a position involving less resistance.
One simple drill to learn to listen to these feelings? Swimming with a pair of pants and long sleeves sweather for a while, and then removing the cloths.... well you may want to keep a bathing suit on :joker:
