Authors : Jadhav P . U . and Dagar R.S.
Page Nos : 222-224
Description :
The act of swimming takes place in a medium that presents different gravitational and resistive
forces, respiratory conditions and thermal stress to the performer compared to air. Moreover, the energy
cost of propulsion in swimming is high, but
a considerable reduction occurs at a given velocity as result
of regular swim training. For example, in the event of medley the energy cost is lowest for front crawl,
followed by backstroke, butterfly and breast
-
stroke. In addition to this the dynamics of
physiology and
muscle movements while swimming makes the research pertaining to same very critical. Hence, a
systematic review of the body of literature pertaining to this aspect (physiology and swimming
performance) available through reputed journals has
been carried out. The review process is conducted
by considering the general principles of deductive reasoning and is presented in chronological order. The
study shows that though certain specific investigations have been carried out, most of them are with
the
elite swimmers of developed countries, which are hardly directly applicable in the Indian context. Thus,
there appears to be an urgent need to conduct focused research in the field of physiology of swimmers
and its role in their performance.
