In swimming, how is it that one can excel in both sprints and long distance? Is it because the distance games in swimming are only "relatively" distance games but are not really distance games from a physiologic perspective?
In the world of tracks, for example, an athlete cannot excel at both sprints and distance. Even the athletes from the two areas look different - much leaner for the distance runners and muscular for the sprinters.
I am wondering about this because whether I should focus on either the sprint or the distance as I plan to participate in the masters meet, or whether I don't have to sacrifice one for the other.
PS: You don't "pick" your events.....if your smart they choose you....in other words be self aware and understand what your physiological make up is....just because I "want" to be a drop dead 50 freestyler doesn't mean its what I'm "built" for (guess that explains my even splitting my 100 and negative splitting the 200/500).
Oh...and by the way....people forget that "drop dead" sprinter Gary hall jr. also went 1:33 in the 200 free as a freshman in college, Phelps may be our best 100 freestyler in Beijing but also can throw down a pretty impressive 400....and KPN now owns every freestyle record from 50-1650 except the 100/500.....which she will get next month.......
These two paragraphs seem contradictory, Mr. Smith. :thhbbb: You have the ideal build of a drop dead sprinter -- you're really, really tall.
I think some people who have a lot of time to train like KPN may be able to stretch more. I stretched way more as an age grouper than I do now when I did mega yardage. I could even do a decent 400 IM.
Everyone CAN stretch, it's just a matter of whether you want to and whether you have the time. And, as a master, you can swim anything that strikes your fancy despite a prediposition to sprints or distance. I know sprinters who prefer to engine build and they are doing extremely well in longer events. Ideally, you would train some of both.
But you can only fight the physiology so much. I'm a drop dead sprinter, and would actually prefer to be more versatile and do a real bang up 200. But it ain't happening right now. I'd need more time and better shoulders to train properly for that. Plus, if bang for your buck is what you want, you should focus on what you're good at and not fight the slow/fast twitch genetics. Distance specific training should yield better results.
But, in the end, it's all what you want to do.
PS: You don't "pick" your events.....if your smart they choose you....in other words be self aware and understand what your physiological make up is....just because I "want" to be a drop dead 50 freestyler doesn't mean its what I'm "built" for (guess that explains my even splitting my 100 and negative splitting the 200/500).
Oh...and by the way....people forget that "drop dead" sprinter Gary hall jr. also went 1:33 in the 200 free as a freshman in college, Phelps may be our best 100 freestyler in Beijing but also can throw down a pretty impressive 400....and KPN now owns every freestyle record from 50-1650 except the 100/500.....which she will get next month.......
These two paragraphs seem contradictory, Mr. Smith. :thhbbb: You have the ideal build of a drop dead sprinter -- you're really, really tall.
I think some people who have a lot of time to train like KPN may be able to stretch more. I stretched way more as an age grouper than I do now when I did mega yardage. I could even do a decent 400 IM.
Everyone CAN stretch, it's just a matter of whether you want to and whether you have the time. And, as a master, you can swim anything that strikes your fancy despite a prediposition to sprints or distance. I know sprinters who prefer to engine build and they are doing extremely well in longer events. Ideally, you would train some of both.
But you can only fight the physiology so much. I'm a drop dead sprinter, and would actually prefer to be more versatile and do a real bang up 200. But it ain't happening right now. I'd need more time and better shoulders to train properly for that. Plus, if bang for your buck is what you want, you should focus on what you're good at and not fight the slow/fast twitch genetics. Distance specific training should yield better results.
But, in the end, it's all what you want to do.
