Dara just one the national title in the 100M Freestyle in 54.4 at the ripe old age of 40. Simply Incredible. :applaud: :woot:
If that's not inspiring I don't know what is.
Former Member
Everything changes, times change because of training techniques. Also changes in actual technique.
Most of us old guys can almost equal our old times when we train. The problem is to train.
Looking at other individual sports (Cross country skiing, cycling, track & field, rowing, tennis) it is possible to find Olympians in their 40s. The amazing - disturbing - part of the story is the 6 year break. I believe that a similar comeback was made in speed skating where Dr. Erhard Keller (Olympic champion 68 - 72) managed to duplicate his previous best time over 500m at the age of 38 or 39 after having taking a break of many years. Here we have a roughly similar story from the past, except that the good doctor's best time was not competitive anymore when he posted it.
A friend told me there was a reason Coach Quick left Stanford. Something about supplements, maximum permissable limits and daily testing to monitor levels.
Who trained Dara in 2000?
hmm
You are correct, counselor. Too many red blood cells is a condition called polycythemia. Your blood becomes too thick, forming clots that can cause strokes and heart attacks.
Out of curiosity, how close would the normal person be to this level vs a top level athlete
Has anyone given any thought as to why someone swims. I have thought long and hard on this and have not commented in this thread.
I swim because it feels good. Do I want to be the fastest in my age group. If I did I would work hard and try.
What a waste of time trying to be the best.
What are the rewards except to meet your maker sooner.
Dara Torres amazing for sure. It does not make me want to do any more than I do. It does not make me want to train and beat the Smith boys, the good one or the bad one...
Tiny? ROFLMAO. Anyone who's 5'11" with her statuesque physique is not "tiny."
Well, I did mean bulk, not height. :D I was sitting right off the starting blocks for the 50 tonight and she's plenty lean.
Good for her. I don't see too many other athletes making similar offers re: testing.
Running is not a good comparative to swimming for many reasons..... Weight training, taper,..... even the general yardage or mileage is a vastly different concept. Consider this, the average sprinter trains about 100 times his/her race distance every day. This is not possible for runners. Yet the longest competitive event in the pool is around 15 minutes (the mile) as opposed to the marathon which is several hours.
I'd stick to swimmer vs. swimmer comparisons.
John Smith
What a waste of time trying to be the best.
Many people use competition and finishing high as their motivation. I don't think this means they are wasting their time, we all are motivated by something.
