Thought it would be neat to share our stories about the best athlete we ever swam with. Note that it is not necessarily the fastest or best swimmer we have trained with.
The best athlete I ever trained with was a young man that showed up for my masters swim group. He was training to pass the test to be a Navy SEAL officer. Having graduated from a non-Naval Academy college, the standards for making the officers cut were tough. He was, however, a good prospect.
With no prior competitive swim background, he was able to get his 500 yard sidestroke down to a 7:30 in a matter of a few months. However, this was not the main thing that impressed me. It was the times/scores on his practice tests which I helped time him on.
Here is what he could do:
500 yard sidestroke swim: 7:30
8 minute rest
2 minutes of push-ups: # done was 112
2 minute rest
2 minutes of sit-ups: # done was 110
2 minute rest
max number of pull-ups (palms facing away from body): 25
8 minute rest
1.5 mile run done in combat boots and long pants: 9:05.
The guy was a machine. Speed, strength, endurance, and power. Doing 25 pull-ups shortly after a hard swim, pushups, and sit-ups was impressive! The young man decided not to pursue a career in the Navy but chose to stay near family. Last I heard he had started his own business and was doing well.
A lot of people I know who swam in college took up triathlons, running or cycling after graduation and they all did very well, some of them extremely well. I know of none who did poorly, assuming they were even somewhat dedicated to their new sport. They were not exceptions. A lifetime of swimming provided them with the conditioning and mental discipline for such sports.
IMO swimming is not unique in this regard, in either direction (good or bad). An athlete who excels at one sport is likely to excel at others. The exception would be an elite-level athlete who is merely average in any other sport...though not necessarily performing at an elite level in other sports, which is probably the point of the original post.
To be sure, some sports favor body types and physiological adaptations that make the person poorly suited for some other sports. I doubt Shaquille O'Neal would make a very good gymnast; that doesn't make him a poor athlete (as an aside, I still smile about the commercial where Shaq was a jockey in a horse race). Some great cyclists -- particularly the climbers -- appear to have the upper body of an underdeveloped 12-year-old. Heck, look at the Kenyan marathoners; could you imagine them on the football field?
And I beg to differ, but running does not require any great coordination, as Philipp implies. We're not talking about basketball, hockey, volleyball or golf here (sports where excellent lifelong runners are just as apt to be klutzy as anyone else).
A lot of people I know who swam in college took up triathlons, running or cycling after graduation and they all did very well, some of them extremely well. I know of none who did poorly, assuming they were even somewhat dedicated to their new sport. They were not exceptions. A lifetime of swimming provided them with the conditioning and mental discipline for such sports.
IMO swimming is not unique in this regard, in either direction (good or bad). An athlete who excels at one sport is likely to excel at others. The exception would be an elite-level athlete who is merely average in any other sport...though not necessarily performing at an elite level in other sports, which is probably the point of the original post.
To be sure, some sports favor body types and physiological adaptations that make the person poorly suited for some other sports. I doubt Shaquille O'Neal would make a very good gymnast; that doesn't make him a poor athlete (as an aside, I still smile about the commercial where Shaq was a jockey in a horse race). Some great cyclists -- particularly the climbers -- appear to have the upper body of an underdeveloped 12-year-old. Heck, look at the Kenyan marathoners; could you imagine them on the football field?
And I beg to differ, but running does not require any great coordination, as Philipp implies. We're not talking about basketball, hockey, volleyball or golf here (sports where excellent lifelong runners are just as apt to be klutzy as anyone else).
