Swimming for health, not speed

Common physiotherapy question: "How do I avoid shoulder, neck and back pain when swimming?"

As physiotherapists, people always ask us what activities they can do while recovering from their injury. Swimming is one activity that I almost always recommend, but I always have to qualify what I mean by “swimming”.

With triathlon training season approaching and new year's resolutions still in full swing, every time I walk into a pool it seems like everyone is racing against the clock. I’d like to offer some advice for those of us who aren't racing competitively and are simply swimming for our own personal health and well-being. These tips probably won’t improve your split time, but might make your body feel better when you get out of the pool.

First and foremost: Don' worry about how fast you are swimming! Listen to your body, feel where you are tight and work with it to slowly stretch out those muscle groups.

For Front Crawl:

·        Think about lengthening your spine

o   Swimming can put a lot of stress on your neck if you are constantly looking in front of you with your neck extended. When doing a front crawl, try to tuck your chin slightly and look at the bottom of the pool. Reach as far as you can with your arms and you may even want to pause for a split second at the top of your stroke to really feel a good stretch. When you go to breathe, think about reaching your chin toward your armpit.

·        Let your body roll during your stroke

o   Elite, world-class sprinters have been shown to have minimal body roll during their stroke, but this doesn't mean that it is the healthiest way to swim. Keeping your body flat with the surface of the water may be the fastest way swim if you are sprinting out a few laps, but it causes a lot of stress to on the shoulders. This is because your arm needs to reach behind you to come above the surface of the water. As you pull through your stroke, let your shoulder roll above the surface of the water. This will decrease the stress on your shoulders and you will have a reduced risk of developing tendonitis in your rotator cuff muscles.

Here is a great example of how you can use body roll to mnimize the stress on your shoulders and stretch out the muscles of your spine!

Vary your strokes!

·        Try doing a little side stroke

o   My favorite swimming stroke is probably the one I see people doing least often. The sidestroke! This one stroke stretches out almost every major muscle group in your body. Your upper leg will stretch through your hamstring and glutes, and your lower leg will stretch through your hip flexors and quads. You will also be reaching with your lower arm and stretch out your lats and spinal muscles. If you’re a fascia buff, this single stroke works to mobilize your superficial back line, your superficial front line, and your lateral line! (if you don't know what fascia is, you can read my previous post on fascia) 

·        Try some underwater swimming.

o   Next time you’re at the pool try slapping on some fins and seeing how smooth you can move underwater. Not only does swimming underwater allow for your body to move in ways it can’t on land, it also may have some other benefits for you. I find swimming underwater very quiet and peaceful, but more might be happening when you do this activity. If you are stressed out, the reduced breaths you take while swimming underwater may actually help to restore your body chemistry and relieve stress! (click here to see my last post for more on the terrible effects of overbreathing)

The underwater dolphin with fins on allows the spine to move in ways that it can't on the land! Here's a good example of what to try. Sorry, no cheesy music in the background of this one :)

I hope this advice gives you some ideas to try out the next time you are in the pool and are tired of competing against yourself to shave a few seconds off your lap time!

Happy Swimming!

Dave Zelibka, BScPT, GunnIMS, CAFCI

Registered Physiotherapist
London, Ontario

Phone: (226)777-7111

Email: dave@elevatephysio.com

Web: londonphysio.ca

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