attention sprinters, have a question on your strength

I think Coughlin was the weakest female in Athens or one of any way ... she's no slouch either. She's been hitting the weights more as of late I think, too ...

Coughlin is an interesting case. She is small for a sprinter,but she has the best SDK anyone has ever had,she is just unbelievably fast underwater. The really unbelievable one was Eggezegy(spelling?) She was just"a wee slip of a lass" but nearly as fast as Coughlin in the 100 BK and still holds the 200 BK WR.

I guess my point would be, that weights is probably the last piece of the fast swimming puzzle. Loads of strength will never overcome technique imperfections. In other words, don't lift expecting it to take you from a :55 100 to a :45 100. Yeah, but that's at a much higher level. An average swimmer with minor stroke flaws could probably go from a 1:20 100 to a 1:05 100 faster doing some kind of weight program in addition to stepping of their swimming and technique.

Something I forgot to add, Ande would be an incredible swimmer without the weightlifting. I am sure that his times have improved to a certain degree with the addition of weights to his training, but keep in mind that he has been swimming fast for many years. Ande, if you are reading this, do you have any idea how much benefit weight training has provided you? Can you quantify it in your swim times?

How much of this is genetic bone and muscle density. I think I am a stocky heavy guy. Yet I'm doing good times on 50 BR @35 and my 50 free is OK...at 33 secs with an open turn (I haven't worked on it..just did it once). So I may be a bit faster now. I think for me it's bull power (ok save your "bull" wisecracks). I'm not lean or lan, or really flexible. I think I get a good dive, which helps me out. When I stretch out my free though I feel significantly slower...obviously could be lack of conditioning for my kick too. Where do you feel you are? Are you a bull or a bull-shark ? :) DOe you flow through or power through. When I sprint free I kind of feel my front end lifiting up.

Just returned from watching the Big East Championships finals. Unfortunately I had to leave just before the 100!!! Maybe strength doesn't have alot to do with it because these guys and girls did not look bulky and needless to say, they are fast. My problem is that I am so far away from my goal of swimming in the low 50's in the 100 free, becaue right now I am at 64 seconds. I don't know if I have two problems (technique and strength) or just one. I feel that I have the strength, but want to get feedback to be sure so I can not worry about largely ignoring the weight room. I'm 6'2", 185 lbs. with a 76" reach. My current bench is about 275 lbs. and can bench 135 lbs for 40 reps. I can do ~60 push ups, ~25 full dips and ~25 pull ups. I don't squat or dead lift, but do leg sled and I think my lower body strength is descent. After reading your replies, perhaps the biggest issue for me is how the power is applied in the most efficient and effective manner, so if this is the case, then worry more about swimming technique.

Rtodd....Ande nailed it. So often on these forums (and anywehre else) folks looks for a specific "formula" that will help them improve when in fact the first and foremost factor is your own existing strengths/weaknesses. Strength is very important for a sprinter but there are differant types of "strength"....more and more coaches are noting the importance of any incredible kick as key to the 50/100 (heck, even Thorpe 6 beat kicks the 400m free). I can't bench press a squirrel or do more than 1 or 2 pull ups...my nemesis (John) is in the 250 range for bench but can't kcik his way out of a paper bag....we're both consistently in the 21+ range for the 50 free. Case in point; compare Jason Lezak and Ian Crocker - Jason very muscular, not much flexibility, fair kick - Ian is almost "soft" but highly flexible and one of the best kickers in the world Both guys swim the 100yd free in the 42+ range. Ian "swims" the race almost entirely (15yds SDK per lap) underwater.....Jason is a bull who powers his way thru. Evaluate yourself first....then build your training program around that and don't worry so much about what others can/can't do.

I guess my point would be, that weights is probably the last piece of the fast swimming puzzle. Loads of strength will never overcome technique imperfections. In other words, don't lift expecting it to take you from a :55 100 to a :45 100.

Rtodd....Ande nailed it. So often on these forums (and anywehre else) folks looks for a specific "formula" that will help them improve when in fact the first and foremost factor is your own existing strengths/weaknesses. Strength is very important for a sprinter but there are differant types of "strength"....more and more coaches are noting the importance of any incredible kick as key to the 50/100 (heck, even Thorpe 6 beat kicks the 400m free). I can't bench press a squirrel or do more than 1 or 2 pull ups...my nemesis (John) is in the 250 range for bench but can't kcik his way out of a paper bag....we're both consistently in the 21+ range for the 50 free. Case in point; compare Jason Lezak and Ian Crocker - Jason very muscular, not much flexibility, fair kick - Ian is almost "soft" but highly flexible and one of the best kickers in the world Both guys swim the 100yd free in the 42+ range. Ian "swims" the race almost entirely (15yds SDK per lap) underwater.....Jason is a bull who powers his way thru. Evaluate yourself first....then build your training program around that and don't worry so much about what others can/can't do. So is either model better? It seems from my reading on the forum that the Crocker model is the more advised/ideal model? But can a Lezak type transform into a Crocker? Or are both superior models, and you should choose the one best that suits your own body type best? Success comes in many sizes and shapes ... ? And while Ande's statement seems clearly correct, it might be a little vague to apply. Maybe we need to know more about how to weight/other train for a Lezak/JSmith type and how to train for a Crock/PSmith body type? Or more about RTodd?

Ande, So what you are saying is that there is a strength vs weight factor in sprinting. So what would be good numbers for what I am asking? What would Lesak's numbers be? Can he do 20 pull ups or 200? If I have decent strength, which I don't know yet, I will spend all my time learning how to apply it efficiently. Paul Smith, With your great sprinting ability, you are telling me you can only do 2 pull ups? come on......If that is the case then you must have a mental kick. How do I quantify how efficient or strong my kick is? How can I tell if I am kick biased or pull biased? These are the things I am trying to figure out. I am trying to evaluate myself and determine if all I have to do is swim, or add aditional strength work in the gym. The last year I have only been lifting once a week.