Biology of Swimming Contents
Part One: How the Swimming Machine Works
- Muscle- How it Works
- Sarcomeres: The Base Unit of Muscle
- Myosin Heads: The Movers
- Swimming Long is Against Biology
- Muscle Damage: Explaining Soreness
- Energy Systems- The Ultimate Hybrid
- ATP:Pure Energy
- Phosphagen system: The Energy Already Sitting Around
- Glycolysis: Burning sugar
- Aerobic: Efficient Burning
- The Race Chooses the Engine.
- Fuel for each Engine
- Muscle Types- Sprinter vs. Miler
- The Motor Unit- The Basics of Control
- The Nerve Highway
- Motor units Big and Small
- Different Strokes Means Different Motor Units
- Unlocking your Nerve Potential
- Cardio- The Pump that Never Stops
- Lungs- Breathing and Acid Control
- Getting the Air next to the Blood
- Why do we Feel Air Hungry?
- Dealing with Acid: Lactate and CO2 in the Blood
- Lung Capacity and Breathing Muscles
- Lactate Threshold- The Ultimate Endurance Test
- Following the Acid: Creation to Elimination
- What is the Lactate Threshold?
- How to Test the Threshold
- Lactate Threshold Graphs for Sprinters and Milers
- Hormones- Masters of the Machine
- Training Hormones: Maintaining Sugars and Pressures
- Recovery Hormones: Refuel, Rebuild, and Rehydrate
Part Two: How the Swimming Machine Adapts
- The Basics- What's the best workout?
- Science studies in swimming: tough to generalize
- Specificity: Get better by Doing
- Playing the physics game vs. the biology game
- Elite athletes: their start point and maximum ability to train
- Endurance Training- Laying a foundation
- Aerobic Power: VO2max Training
- Aerobic Endurance: Mitochondrial Training
- Sprint Training- Top speed that lasts
- Speed Training: Nerves and Muscle Angles
- Lactate Tolerance: Buffering and Hypertrophy
- Motor Learning- Cementing habits
- Motor Pattern: Technique
- Motor Learning: Writing Motor Pattern Programs
- Taper- Super Compensating
- Day by Day Changes during Taper
- Types of Taper: Minor, Major, Retaper
- Overtraining- Too Much of a Good Thing
- Over-reaching vs. Overtraining
- What does Overtraining Look Like and How to Test for it
- How to fix Overtraining and Stop it from Happening Again
- Dryland/Lifting- Building In-Water Power... Out of the Water
- How Dryland Helps You Swim Faster
- Circuit, Strength, Power and Speed Training
- Flexibility: Increasing Power and Decreasing Drag