Nutrition
Nutrition is an important part of training for any Olympic athlete but even more so for swimmers. Swimming burns a lot of calories. A 150-pound body doing vigorous freestyle laps can burn nearly 700 calories in an hour. Many Olympic swimmers will swim more than six or seven miles a week. Nutrition should be targeted to build a balance between endurance and muscle strength because of the stringent training requirements. Protein, protein supplements and carbohydrates should be a major part of the diet. Michael Phelps consumed 12,000 calories a day, six times the amount of an average man's intake.
Weight Training
Weight training for Olympic swimmers should be focused on building long and strong muscles. A swimmer's body should have enough strength to cut through water resistance while providing enough flexibility to perform repetitive motions like the various swimming strokes. The legs should be strong enough to get a good push off of the walls for turns, yet able to maintain the propelling kicks. Some lifting techniques for Olympic swimmers focus on range of motion, especially with the arms. All repetitions should be performed at their maximum length with medium to heavy resistance. One exercise involves strengthening the shoulders through standing raises. Swimmers stand with their feet one foot apart while holding dumbbells at thigh level in each hand. They raise their arms slowly to shoulder level with palms facing each other. Then they turn their palms to face the floor and slowly lower the weights. Weight training should be at least 30 minutes a day (not including warm-ups), two times a week.
Recovery
Forty-one-year-old Dana Torres emphasized recovery as part of her Olympic training. She became the oldest person to win a swimming medal in the 2008 Olympics. Torres included massages as part of her regular workout, aiding the muscles in recovering faster from strenuous workouts. Her massages were not the spa-type of relaxing rub downs. They often included two people standing on and kneading her muscles, applying great pressure. Ice baths are also a good way to recover. Since swimming requires use of almost all the major muscle groups, it isn't uncommon for there to be great soreness after training. Ice baths help reduce swelling and soreness faster, allowing Olympic swimmers to train more often throughout the week.
Mental Training
Swimming in a crowded gym with thousands of onlookers may seem like a lot of pressure for an athlete. With the entire world watching, the pressure can multiply a hundred fold. That's why mental toughness is also a part of Olympic training. From sun up to sun down, the focus on swimming could easily be taken away by a multitude of distractions. Interviews, autographs, tours, crowds and competing against the best in the world can't come easy. Olympic swimmers must strengthen their minds to focus on the event at hand. Some swimmers develop routines like listening to certain songs or self-talk before hitting the water.
Swimming
Olympic swimmers don't just hit the pool and do laps all day; they practice all the techniques needed to shave off those precious seconds from their times. Almost every aspect of swimming is studied, from the mechanics of the stroke to the push-off at the end of each lap. For example, olympic coaches may focus on sculling, the action of moving your hands near your head to complete a stroke. The amount of time an Olympic swimmer spends in a pool training depends on the events they swim. Dana Torres, a sprint swimmer, trained at least two hours a day swimming 5,000 meters worth of specialized laps and drills. Famed Olympian Janet Evans, who set world records in middle and long-distance events, swam up to 12 miles a day when she trained. Rebecca Adlington, another competitive swimmer, reported she swam at least one two-hour session per day in the pool, with a few days of two two-hour sessions. Each session involved 3,000 to 8,000 meters of swimming and water aerobics.
Tags: Olympic swimmers, Dana Torres, Olympic training, part Olympic, part Olympic training, training Olympic, Weight training