Advantages of Upper Body Strength

Swimming is a rigorous sport so upper body strength exercises should be performed to ensure that the body is fit and healthy. In order for these training exercises to be effective, you should be consistent with your daily exercise regimen. The motivation to be good in swimming should be inculcated in your system. What exercise can be done daily to prepare the swimmer? The following are some of these:



1. Push ups

This should be done at least 100 times. Start gradually from 20 to 30 push ups and then upwards, but don't miss on this essential exercise. This builds up the abdominal area and strengthens the abdominal muscles, the chest and the triceps. These muscles are vital when swimming as they are the ones used to extend the swimmer's length and breadth of reach. The longer and wider it is, the faster a swimmer can swim.

2. Weight lifting

Applying load pressure to the muscle areas will develop endurance to fatigue and weariness. Loads could be started at 25 pounds and then could go higher to as much as 100 pounds, depending on the person's muscle mass and stamina. The exercise causes an isometric contraction and sometimes an isotonic contraction which would invariably create a stronger muscle mass and tone.

3. Hand grips

This strengthens hands and arms. It also tones muscles because of the contraction caused by the movement. They are easy to do whenever there is a chance; like during short work breaks.

4. Sit - ups

This hardens and strengthens the abdominal areas. The deltoid muscles, triceps and arms undergo contractions and relaxations that cause the muscles to expand and become bigger and stronger.

This is good also in flattening the abdomen and removing excess flab from that area. Sometimes sit-ups can be done together with push-ups.

5. Resistance bands

These bands could be used in areas where you would want to concentrate on. Since it is the upper chest and arms, the bands could be used up and down the back through continuous motions or even behind it as long as the movements are smooth to ensure liquidity of movement.

The swimming strokes could serve well as an exercise for swimming; breaststrokes and butterfly strokes are great upper chest and body training regimen.

These exercises should be done daily or 3 times a week, at the least. Superb athletes go without let-up. They train continuously, repeatedly and patiently. Great swimmers are not born, they are made. With persistence, patience and determination, swimmers are turned into awesome athletes; perhaps, someone who would prove to be an equal, even to 8- time gold medalist in swimming, Michael Phelps!