Here's the link:
www.nytimes.com/.../04fitness.html
Very interesting article. I do a little yoga and deep breathing and it has helped in lots of ways, including making me more calm in everyday life. I can tell if I miss a day or two. It has helped me relax before big swims. I have not had any major injuries, but I can't be sure that's the reason.
Thanks for posting this! I have a stressful several months coming up--teaching at two different places, training for a long swim in August, then the Philly Marathon further along in November...
STRESS??? I'M NOT STRESSED OUT!! WHY WOULD I BE STRESSED OUT??? WHADDYA MEAN STRESSED??? :help: I'm just the picture of calm, no? :cool:
Seriously, I've tested out some of these ideas: for about a minute, thought of the most stressful situations, then took my pulse... then something relaxing... then took pulse... significantly lower after the relaxing thoughts. If that little exercise made my pulse go slower, think of all the other ways mind can affect body.
Julie Foudy (I think) did a motivational speech and in it she said that your mind can only hold one thought at a time and it is up to whether you make it a positive one or a negative one. Great advice!
for about a minute, thought of the most stressful situations, then took my pulse... then something relaxing... then took pulse... significantly lower after the relaxing thoughts. If that little exercise made my pulse go slower, think of all the other ways mind can affect body.
Amazingly, using the deep breathing technique for a minute or so before you have your blood pressure measured can also have a significant effect on your BP measures. Just take a minute to settle and breath deeply with your eyes closed and you will be surprised.
I have also used the progressive muscle relaxation technique on nights when I'm too keyed up to get to sleep. It's amazing how well that works.
Thanks for posting the article. I like having the references.
I've used this technique to get to sleep on sleepless nights as well. It does work. Whereas I don't think calcium, valerium or those so-called sleep supplements work at all. I think this same comment was made on another thread too. So I guess others are finding success with it. I also think the point about stress causing possible injuries or illness is quite valid. Stress is inevitable but yucky.
Donna:
Tylenol PM? That doesn't work for a serious bout of insomnia. Quiet brain would work, but what if you don't have a quiet brain? Sometimes after a 7:30-9:00 practice, I'm pretty wired for awhile.
This a complex and overlooked issue. Is "stress" really the issue, or is it our response? As the journalist points out, many of us can turn any conflict into a big issue. So often our own expectations, or how we play into the expectations of friends and family, are a huge driver.
Beyond all of that, breath control and imagery should be second nature to us swimmers. We should all really tap into this. Did Ande have this in one of his tips? (There are so many good tips in that thread that I'd have to re-read it many times to digest it).
I have found yoga to be very helpful for both my shoulders (which is why I started doing it) and for my overall outlook. I even have a mantra: "less caffeine, more breathing". It sounds sappy and ridiculous to some but it works for me.
Nice post. I agree there is a difference between stress and our response to it. But I prefer to think of it as internal stress vs. external stress. How we handle stress is obviously important. I've found it's best to avoid "drama" with the expectations of family and friends as much as possible. There can be a lot of unproductive circular finger pointing nonsense going on. So I try to opt out or compartmentalize it while still being empathetic when needed. I tend to not like drama overly much.
Some external stress is inevitable though. You're working on a dealine, you've got a big meeting with a client, a surgery, a project due. Not that you can't work on calm responses to that too. When I was living in my old law firm, grace under pressure was a highly valued skill. I used to try to do my fantasy baseball picks while simultaneously finalizing a brief for filing. That helped. But it's sometimes difficult to be calm in the midst of frenzied chaos and screaming people.
Or you're stuck in your 10,0000th traffic jam of the week. That's one good thing about Rochester, Tom. You probably aren't too worried about traffic. Try having a low blood pressure where I live in traffic. I've been rear ended three times in the last month. Now, they are always plowing into the hitch on my Durango, so it's usually their car that gets damaged. So I've gotten pretty sanguine about that. Nonethless, having to get 3 kids to 3 different places in an hour isn't always easy with Radio Disney blasting in the background. This is one reason I'm a night owl. I like a little decompression after the kids have gone to bed.
Is caffeine really bad for breathing? I try to only drink it in the morning, but I'm curious about that as a congested person, partially due to the former swampland I live in.
www.rice.edu/.../caffeine.html
caffeine
i will let the article speak.
Oh boo. This article, well reasonably well written, concludes that caffeine is bad for sprinting and good for endurance, although it admits that there is conflict and reaches a generalized conclusion on balance. I really don't agree, but maybe that's because of my own sensitivity and response to caffeine. I think caffeine is great before sprinting. It has saved me on a couple occasions. Now, I'm always pounding down water so I'm not dehydrated. I remember on the "Help with Sprinting" thread that a lot of sprinters, including breaststroke genius Wayne and GoodSmith chimed in agreeing that caffeine helped sprinting.
Amazingly, using the deep breathing technique for a minute or so before you have your blood pressure measured can also have a significant effect on your BP measures. Just take a minute to settle and breath deeply with your eyes closed and you will be surprised.
I have also used the progressive muscle relaxation technique on nights when I'm too keyed up to get to sleep. It's amazing how well that works.
Thanks for posting the article. I like having the references.
last year before my first physical after turning 40 (guys you know what this means). i did some meditative breathing to calm myself. it got my heart rate down to 36 causing my md to order an echocardigram.
No NY Times here unless I go online; everything is Spanish.
Sleep=long swim OR
A tylenol PM if I am mindful, but I think being mindful is the reason the article describes ways not to be.
Quiet brain sounds much better to me.
Donna
This a complex and overlooked issue. Is "stress" really the issue, or is it our response? As the journalist points out, many of us can turn any conflict into a big issue. So often our own expectations, or how we play into the expectations of friends and family, are a huge driver.
Beyond all of that, breath control and imagery should be second nature to us swimmers. We should all really tap into this. Did Ande have this in one of his tips? (There are so many good tips in that thread that I'd have to re-read it many times to digest it).
I have found yoga to be very helpful for both my shoulders (which is why I started doing it) and for my overall outlook. I even have a mantra: "less caffeine, more breathing". It sounds sappy and ridiculous to some but it works for me.
