Swimmer's Daily

  • Is your lower back hurting? Jump into the pool! Studies show that swimming can relieve pain in patients with lower back pain and build up your body against back pain. Today we’ll look at all the reasons why swimming is good for your lower back pain. Our prediction: you’ll be signing up for a pool membership in no time.

    Photo by Guduru Ajay bhargav from Pexels

    Lower Back Pain

    As you may know, most lower back pain is caused by strained muscles and/or ligaments. Often this occurs because of sudden movements, excessive use and/or imbalanced muscle groups. If you want to resolve lower back pain in the long-run, experts recommend avoiding high-impact exercise (that requires fast and repetitive joint motion) and using low-impact exercise to build up lumbar muscles and better support the body.

    Reasons Why Swimming Can Help

    Swimming is an ideal way to get low-impact exercise and relieve your lower back pain. The unique environment of swimming can do a lot for your body and really get you in shape for becoming pain-free in the future. In fact, researchers have found that swimming helps patients with lower back pain more than dryland exercises.

    1. Swimming reduces stress in your joints. 

    The buoyancy of water is a big help to those suffering from back pain. In the water, your body weight is completely supported. Unlike like walking or biking, this means that your joints won’t have to bear any weight. This is the perfect way to work on your lumbar muscles without worrying about the stress and pressure of your weight. You’ll get the workout you need to strengthen your muscles without pounding your joints painfully.

    2. Water is relieving on your muscles. 

    In general, water is relieving on your muscles. When you go swimming, the water will keep your muscles loose and relaxed. Some athletic centers even have heated pools, which are even better for getting your muscles in a fluid position to workout. Warm water is also shown to have a pain relieving effect.

    3. Swimming builds a wide range of muscles.

    You use almost every muscle group when you swim. It’s a full-body exercise that requires you to engage lots of muscles, including important ones like your core, lower back, shoulders and calves. This is ideal for lower back pain because it means you’ll build up your core and lumbar region so that you can better support your weight on land. In addition, the resistance of pulling your arms out of the water strengthens muscles more quickly than other types of exercise.

    4. Swimming increases your range of motion. 

    Because swimming works so many muscles and suspends your body weight, it has the effect of boosting your range of motion. After a period of swimming, you’ll notice that your body is more flexible and your muscles have a larger range of motion. This is great news for your lower back pain, since you can prevent tears or strains by boosting your motion. In this way, sudden or awkward movements don’t affect your back as much.

    Image by PublicDomainPictures from Pixabay

    Swimming Exercises to Try Out

    When you start swimming for lower back relief, start small. If you’re not ready to do full laps, try something more mild. Overall, there are three exercises that will do wonders for your back:

    • Water aerobics: This is a series of movements in the water that can boost your muscles and get your comfortable with exercising in water. Sign up for a class to get guidance!
    • Pool walking: Instead of swimming, you can also walk through water. You’ll need a swallow pool to do this, but it can be extremely good for starting your pool workouts. Your joints won’t feel a thing!
    • Laps: In the end, laps require the most physical exertion. Laps are really good for boosting your muscles and getting the aerobic exercise you need. Try to work up to doing laps.

    Tips for Swimming with Lower Back Pain 

    When you start to swim, be mindful of your lower back pain. While swimming is quite safe for your back, you’ll want to follow these tips to avoid hurting it accidentally:

    • Use good technique: If you’re not sure how to swim properly, hire a trainer at first. You will need to use good technique so that your body stays in alignment and you don’t strain your neck, shoulder and back muscles when you go to breathe.
    • Focus on spine-friendly strokes: Backstroke and sidestroke are best for back pain because you don’t need to arch your back to do them. Freestyle is also good, though if you have disc problems, you may want to avoid the repetitive motion of freestyle. Butterfly and breastroke require arching your back, so you will want to save those for when your back has healed and you can continue to build up your lumbar region.
    • Put on a snorkel: You may feel funny using a snorkel in a pool, but it’s a great idea to avoid twisting your neck and shoulders. This may help relieve back pain because you don’t have to turn your head. In addition, you may feel more comfortable as you start to do laps.
    • Add a kickboard or a pool noodle: You can also try using a kickboard or a pool noodle to support your body even more as you swim. This may be a good idea to learn proper technique and also to ensure that you aren’t overdoing it at first.
    • Build your swimming muscles on dryland: If you want to build your swimming muscles even further, or make sure that you’re using the right technique, you can also do swimmer stretches in your own home so that you’re even more ready to hit the pool.

    Final Takeaway

    Splash away your lower back pain by swimming on a regular basis. However, if you continue to suffer from lower back pain, it may be a good idea to see a specialist as well. Contact a chiropractor near you to get a customized care plan for your lower back. An expert chiropractic clinic – such as Juneau’s Better Health Chiropractic – will make sure that your appointment goes swimmingly.

    About Dr. Brent Wells

    Dr. Brent Wells is a graduate of the University of Nevada where he earned his bachelor of science degree before moving on to complete his doctorate from Western States Chiropractic College. He founded Better Health Chiropractic & Physical Rehab in Alaska in 1998. He became passionate about being a chiropractor after his own experiences with hurried, unprofessional healthcare providers. Dr. Wells hopes to treat his patients with care and compassion, while providing them with a better quality of life through his professional treatment.

  • In 1936 in New York, Eleanor Holm, a Brooklyn born and raised swimmer and daughter of a New York City Fire Department officer, comments about her removal from that year’s U.S. Olympic team because of alleged inappropriate behavior aboard the ship en route to the Olympic Games in Berlin, Germany. Holm, a 100-meter backstroke gold medalist at age 18 at the 1932 Olympic Games, had qualified for the 1936 Olympics and was the favorite to win another gold medal in the 100-meter backstroke. She had set world records in the 100-meter backstroke and 200-meter backstroke and had not lost a race in seven years.

    In July 1936, Holm and more than 300 other Olympians departed New York Harbor on the S.S. Manhattan. Before the ship arrived in Germany, Holm was off the team, a decision made by the American Olympic Committee (now the United States Olympic Committee) and its powerful president, Avery Brundage, who claimed Holm was a poor role model for breaking curfew and drinking alcohol, although there was not a ban against U.S. Olympians drinking.

    One night on the ship, she was in attendance as an invitee at a sportswriters party on the first-class deck and stayed past curfew. Another night on the ship, she attended another sportswriters party and would admit to drinking Champagne at the event. Other Olympians were seen drinking alcohol on the trip but were not removed from the team. When they learned of Holm’s removal from competition, about 200 fellow team members asked the American Olympic Committee for her reinstatement, but Brundage kept her ban in place and she didn’t complete at the Games.

    https://youtu.be/tD8xs0qWiSY

  • Ashland High School water polo and swim team members talks about the importance of swimming in their lives.

  • Two extraordinary competitions thrilled the crowd on the fourth day at the European Diving Championships in Kyiv. In the women’s 3m final 3.70 points separated the three medallists while the margin was 4.74 in the men’s 10m synchro. Russia’s Kristina Ilinykh missed the 3m title and the Olympic qualification by 1.25 points, while Inge Jansen, celebrating a second-ever Dutch gold in this event, had already secured her berth in Tokyo at the Worlds. The Russians got better news earlier when Aleksandr Belevtsev and Nikita Shleikher won the 10m synchro in a fierce battle.

    (L to R) SERBIN OLEH, SEREDA OLEKSIIUKR Ukraina silver medal, BELEVTSEV ALEKSANDR, SHLEIKHER NIKITA RUS Russia Gold Medal, DIXON MATTHEW, WILLIAMS NOAH GBR Great Britain Bronze medal Kyiv, Ukraine UKR 08/08/2019 Diving 10 meter platform synchro men podium Len European Diving Championships 2019 Sport Arena Liko Kyiv, Ukraine Photo © Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
    (L to R) JANSEN INGE NED Netherlands Gold Medal Kyiv, Ukraine UKR 08/08/2019 Diving 3 meter springboard women podium Len European Diving Championships 2019 Sport Arena Liko Kyiv, Ukraine Photo © Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
    (L to R) ILINYKH KRISTINA RUS Russia silverMedal, JANSEN INGE NED Netherlands Gold Medal, PUNZEL TINA GER Germany bronze medal Kyiv, Ukraine UKR 08/08/2019 Diving 3 meter springboard women podium Len European Diving Championships 2019 Sport Arena Liko Kyiv, Ukraine Photo © Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
    (L to R) JANSEN INGE NED Netherlands Gold Medal Kyiv, Ukraine UKR 08/08/2019 Diving 3 meter springboard women podium Len European Diving Championships 2019 Sport Arena Liko Kyiv, Ukraine Photo © Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
    PUNZEL TINA GER Germany Women – 3m Springboard – Preliminary Kyiv, Ukraine UKR 08/08/2019 Diving Len European Diving Championships 2019 Sport Arena Liko Kyiv, Ukraine Photo © Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
    BELEVTSEV ALEKSANDR RUS Russia, SHLEIKHER NIKITA RUS Russia Men – Synchronised Platform – Final Kyiv, Ukraine UKR 08/08/2019 Diving Len European Diving Championships 2019 Sport Arena Liko Kyiv, Ukraine Photo © Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
    SERBIN OLEH UKR Ukraina, SEREDA OLEKSII UKR Ukraina Men – Synchronised Platform – Final Kyiv, Ukraine UKR 08/08/2019 Diving Len European Diving Championships 2019 Sport Arena Liko Kyiv, Ukraine Photo © Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
    SERBIN OLEH UKR Ukraina, SEREDA OLEKSII UKR Ukraina Men – Synchronised Platform – Final Kyiv, Ukraine UKR 08/08/2019 Diving Len European Diving Championships 2019 Sport Arena Liko Kyiv, Ukraine Photo © Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
    DIXON MATTHEW GBR Great Britain, WILLIAMS NOAH GBR Great Britain Men – Synchronised Platform – Final Kyiv, Ukraine UKR 08/08/2019 Diving Len European Diving Championships 2019 Sport Arena Liko Kyiv, Ukraine Photo © Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
    BELEVTSEV ALEKSANDR RUS Russia, SHLEIKHER NIKITA RUS Russia Men – Synchronised Platform – Final Kyiv, Ukraine UKR 08/08/2019 Diving Len European Diving Championships 2019 Sport Arena Liko Kyiv, Ukraine Photo © Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
    ILINYKH KRISTINA RUS Russia Women – 3m Springboard – Final Kyiv, Ukraine UKR 08/08/2019 Diving Len European Diving Championships 2019 Sport Arena Liko Kyiv, Ukraine Photo © Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
    JANSEN INGE NED Netherlands Women – 3m Springboard – Final Kyiv, Ukraine UKR 08/08/2019 Diving Len European Diving Championships 2019 Sport Arena Liko Kyiv, Ukraine Photo © Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
    JANSEN INGE NED Netherlands Women – 3m Springboard – Final Kyiv, Ukraine UKR 08/08/2019 Diving Len European Diving Championships 2019 Sport Arena Liko Kyiv, Ukraine Photo © Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto

    Medallists, Day 4

    Men’s 10m synchro: 1. Aleksandr Belevtsev, Nikita Shleikher (RUS) 417.30, 2. Oleksii Sereda, Oleh Serbin (UKR) 413.16, 3. Matthew Dixon, Noah Williams (GBR) 412.56

    Women’s 3m springboard: 1. Inge Jansen (NED) 293.85, 2. Kristina Ilinykh (RUS) 292.60, 3. Tina Punzel (GER) 290.15

    The second Olympic qualifying event of the meet, the women’s 3m offered everything diving is loved for. The lead was changing constantly, almost all finalists had ups and downs so not until the very last dive the outcome had been decided.

    For a while Ukraine’s Olena Fedorova seemed to be on track to gain the Olympic berth, she performed three fine dives, led after two rounds and was second with two more to go. But then the morning shadows started chasing her again – she qualified in the last, 12th spot – and a badly missed jump took her out of the contest.

    Inge Jansen topped the ranks after three rounds, had a session-high 67.50 in Round 2, but the Dutch couldn’t make her fourth cleanly so the gap was reduced to 7-9 points before the final round. Kristina Ilinykh in the meantime climbed higher and higher after her weaker opening just like 2013 champion Tina Punzel, who had to bounce back after her 3rd round horrors but got 67.50 to her fourth and that propelled her to the second position.

    The pressure was on Ilinykh, however, since among the top three only she was shy of the Olympic berth. Jansen and Punzel had the very same dive in the fifth, and got the very same score, 63.00, so the Dutch kept the 3.70 points gap between them. (Punzel earned her third medal here after gold in the team event and silver in the mixed 3m.)

    Ilinykh, topping the prelims, was the last to dive and faced a big challenge: needed 70.25 points to win the competition, so had to come up with the best attempt of the whole evening. Well, she was up to the task, performed a great forward 2.5 somersaults with a twist, got 7.0-8.0s, still, missed the gold by 1.25 points as the dive was worth ‘only’ 69.00 points – the best of the evening but not enough to send her to Tokyo. (According to the current reading of the rules, double qualification by the same athlete didn’t give any of the two spots to the next highest ranked diver – Jansen got a berth at the Worlds by making the finals and as a winner here also earned the Olympic place. The LEN TDC is to turn to FINA for further clarification, since in other disciplines – like in water polo – the rules share the spots in similar scenarios.)

    The first part of the afternoon session already thrilled the fans who had arrived with high expectations to watch the nation’s new star Oleksii Sereda in action. The 13-year old stunned the diving community by flawless performances at the World Championships three weeks ago (finished 4th both in the 10m synchro and in the individual final in Gwangju).

    The first two rounds warmed up the complex for the climax of the 10m synchro event as the high DD-dives were yet to commence. And the following two rounds divided the field, after R4 it was clearly a three-horse race with the Russians, the Ukrainians and the British.

    Aleksandr Belevtsev and Nikita Shleikher were on fire, in the first four rounds all their marks were in the range of 8.0-9.0s. The middle two jumps were both 80+ pointers, so they built a massive 20-point lead ahead of Matthew Dixon and Noah Williams, plus the local favourites Oleksii Sereda and Oleh Serbin. Just to demonstrate how close it was: after four rounds only 0.18 point separated the latter two.

    Soon came the first dramatic scenes as the Russians made their first mistake, Shleikher got only a couple of 5.5s for his dive and the synchro marks also fell below 7.0. Since they jumped first, their rivals could see that the door got wide open – though it was also clear that the Ukrainians needed to be at their best as their DDs were significantly lower in the last two rounds: 3.0 and 3.2, while the Russians had a 3.4 (which they just messed up a bit) and 3.6 for finish, while the Brits had a 3.2 and a 3.7 to perform. The hosts’ fifth dive was a great one and Dixon&Co. also came up big so the gap was reduced to 6 and 8 points before the last round.

    Finally – as it happens frequently – the DDs decided the outcome. The Russians bounced back a bit, their last dive wasn’t the very best (mostly 7.5s) but good enough to receive 83.16. As for the hosts, Sereda was brilliant again (he got all 9.0s for his last two dives), Serbin made the last an outstanding one too, so it was all 9.0s and even a 9.5 flashed on the board but the lower difficulty limited their progress. They cashed in 86.40 points – the highest of the competition though not enough to pass the Russians.

    For the Brits, with their 4 and a half summersaults (DD3.7, the highest in this event), it was an all-in situation as a great dive would have won them the title. Well, they fell just a bit short, it was a fair but not great attempt which left them in the bronze medal position, just 0.60 points behind the Ukrainians and 4.74 behind the Russians which showed how close the entire race was.

    Quotes

    Inge Jansen, Netherlands, gold, 3m springboard

    “Obviously, I’m very-very happy because I won and especially because two years ago I came fourth here. I really wanted to show that I could do better by producing my best. I tried to enjoy all my dives and I just did that! I didn’t expect that it was going to be enough to finish first so I’m absolutely happy now.

    Between my dives I was listening to music and tried to focus on my next one. I just tried to approach this final step by step, so I tried to do five separate dives.”

    Kristina Ilinykh, Russia, silver, 3m springboard

    “To be honest, I’m a little but upset. I think I could have done better. I missed a couple of my dives which I usually perform better, that’s why I cannot be happy with this silver medal.”

    Tina Punzel, Germany, bronze, 3m springboard

    It’s a laughing and a crying eye. I have rarely seen such a crazy competition, I guess. No one could do five good dives. That’s why it annoys me even the more, that despite I’ve also made a big mistake, I still got so close to gold. On the other hand, I enjoyed the competition, the last two jumps were very good. It was a good lesson, I got some more experience and now try to enjoy this bronze. I already have a complete set of medals again and I have more chances too.”

    Aleksandr Belevtsev, Russia, gold, 10m synchro

    “We were training a lot to get this medal and I’m very happy that we achieved it. The practice is the major factor in our win but the sports diet and our weight are also key elements for our win.”

    Oleksii Sereda, Ukraine, silver, 10m synchro:

    “I’m happy that we got the silver medal. To be honest, I’m a bit tired after the World Championships. I did everything I could so I’m satisfied with this result.”

    Matthew Dixon, Great Britain, bronze, 10m synchro:

    “We didn’t expect that medal because everything can happen on the given day. We just tried to do our best dives and see what happens. That was a really good competition we got personal bests, we got the bronze medal and we are really happy with it.”

    For detailed results please visit:

    http://divingkyiv2019.microplustiming.com/index_web.php

    Press release from LEN, photos courtesy of Deepbluemedia / Giorgio Scala

  • A Washington state woman landed in the emergency room after she posed with a venomous octopus on her face to win a photo competition, according to a report.

    Jamie Bisceglia said she thought the risky photo op might win her a prize at a fishing derby Friday in Tacoma Narrows, news station KIRO reported.

    “It was a photo contest in the derby. So, crazy me, hindsight now and looking back, I probably made a big mistake,” Bisceglia said.

    Read New York Post and see KIRO

     

  • It’s 2.30 in the morning when I arrive at Dover Harbour. The orange lights of the docks guide me down onto the harbour walkway. The Viking Princess stands out boldly against the rest of the boats with its floodlights bathing it in white light. It is a 9.8 meter steel commercial fishing vessel with a blue hull and a white cabin located towards the back of the boat. Up close you can see and feel the uneven surfaces showing the pitted scars of a long and hard life in The English Channel, freshly painted and cared for to maintain its function for many years to come. The long deck of the boat is black and not designed for passengers, with only a few posts designated for perching while pulling in fish. This is my home for the next 15 hours…

  • After nearly two weeks, Nickel Plate Beach in Huron is back open to swimmers.The city made changes in light of two recent drownings. There are now larger signs warning visitors that they swim at their own risk.

  • School Sport Australia Swimming Championships were held last week. Here is a short highlights package of the Team Vic team.