Swimming Help!!!!!!?

Question

I am on a compettitive swim team. While swimming Freestyle and butterfly , I havent been able to move my arms fast, just this one slow steady pace. Also my arms will hurt when they are bieng liffted out of the water, and they also feel really heavy. Some days it is worse than others. It is worst the longer distance we swim, everything above a 50. The pain is up the side of my arm to my shoulder.

Is this normal? What can I do about it? What is happening? Should I talk to my coach? Did I wait too long? (a month)

Answer 1

I hate to say this but a month is defintely too long to tell someone about this problem.

You may be able to fix this problem on your own but it may also come out to where you need to see a doctor about the problem.

My first fix for this is stretching. Personally I see stretching as a great thing for people (with) / (are prone to) injuries but not for a normal person who does not receive muscle-related injuries. I'd say do the pretzel stretch for both arms. Put one hand behind your head and on the opposite shoulder blade of that hand. Next, take your free hand and put it on the elbow of the hand on your shoulder and pull the hand on the elbow towards whatever side that hand is on (for example, put your left hand on right-handed shoulder blade with your elbow-wrist part of your arm behind your head. Take your right hand and grab your left arm's elbow and pull to your right. Switch these left-right directions for your other arm).

The next thing I would do is your diet may need some changing. Eat a banana at least once every 4 days but never more than 2 a day. During a practice drink Gatorade and also stretch your arms for a little while after practice as well. Also try to eat some other fruits occasionally as loading yourself up with one particular food/fruit will end up further hampering you.

If neither of these do it for you you'll have to see a doctor about the problem. They may refer you to a physical theorpy place or they may be able to give you a pill or supplement for the problem. They'll also give you more explanations after various tests that they will do on you.

Answer 2

Hi!
Well i know a ton about swimming i have been in swimming for about 10 years and I LOVE IT!But swimming has some consequinces.I went to junior olympics when i was 10 nad i was getting really good at swimming so i was practicing 6 times a week because the coaches were really pushing me like i had to swim a 4,000 every day so i could do better and get to nationals by the time i was in 6th grade but DIDNT HAPPEN!Because i developed very bad shoulder problems because i never stretched before i swam.SO here is my advice.
1.Every day in the morning stretch your arms.
2.Stretch before each time you swim.
3.If you are swimming in a meet make sure you do big arm circles really REALLY fast right when hte heat before you is swimming.BUT MAK SURE YOU DONT HIT ANYONE!lol!
4.If they dont get better tell your coach to see what they think you should do.
5.If that doesnt work then tell your parents and have them take you to a doctor to have them checked out.
NOW FOR YOUR SLOWNESS OF ARMS:
Everyday lift some 5 or 10 pound weights that will make your arms stronger so the will go faster in the water.
And your arms might be going slow becasue when you are swimming make sure your arms are streched out and your fingers are closed and Your body is stright and your head is looking down!
HOPE YA GET BETTER!

Answer 3

So do you mean you used to be able to move your arms faster?

No matter, I am a competitive swimmer myself. The worst thing that perhaps happened to is that you may be suffering from an injury. Without looking at you I cannot diagnose, but my best guess is shoulder tendonitis. It is a very common injury that swimmers who push themselves too hard get. Or your ligaments could be strained from the way you do your strokes. Or your muscles were torn badly from a very strenuos training you did and you have not allowed it enough time to rest. My advice is rest as well as consult a doctor/physio therapist.

Of course not going faster sucks for a competitive swimmer. But this speed 'plateau' could also mean you have reached a boundary in your training. This part your coach would maybe have different advice than I do, but if you do not have an injury: I suggest resistance training (hand paddles, do your strokes as fast as you can with these and when you do not have the resistance, as in take the paddles off, you will find yourself feeling 'lighter') and stroke correction. Many people under estimate the power of stroke correction, if you have had the great fortune of going through a machine (i forgot its name) that puts you through a 'water treadmil' - it determines your stroke effectiveness. However this is highly sought after in the US and non existent in the country I live in. A kinesthetist would give you advice from there.

Remember just get your shoulder looked at by a physio therapist/doctor to check for injuries.

Answer 4

you probably pulled a muscle like your tricep and instead of talking to your coach you kept agrivating it. tell your coach probbably isn't a big deal and if it is your coach will know what to do and probably know better what it is. if its both arms....how long have you been swimming? because then its most likely that your just sore seems unlikely to me the same injury would happen to both arms at the same time. anyway talk to your coach you'll probably get a little bit of a break until it heals or you find out whats wrong. Oh and is it ONLY when your swimming? if it hurts outside of swimming its almost definately an injury. if its only during swimming in those two strokes theres probably some tiny little insignificant fault in your motion that is causing you arms to work harder or something and as soon as you fix it you'll never feel it again.

Answer 5

You may have a hooked acromium. It's a little bone spur right at the top of your arm. Simple x-rays can detect it. And a simple orthoscopic procedure can correct it.
If it is not skeletal, there are many exercises you can do to improve endurance as well as explosive strength. If you can afford a personal trainer that could really help. If not and your x-rays are clear try adding light wrist weights to your training.
Improve your diet. Eat simple natural foods. Get enough protein and make sure you eat something small but nutritious one to two hours prior to training - even a banana will help. It could be a blood sugar drop. And yes, of course you should talk to your coach, your parents and doctor.

Answer 6

Talk to your coach about it. It sounds like you have a lot of lactic acid- you may be overtraining too. Lactic acid is completely normal, that's what causes the heavy feeling. Flush it out with water and rest when you can. I don't know where the pain is but it sounds like your rotator cuff (where shoulder connects the body). Do strength exercises such as working with stretch cords or resistance training in that area. Your coach will know what to do. If it persists, see an orthopedic surgeon.

Answer 7

This is totally normal, same thing happens to me and i'm not even a butterflyer. You should glide your hands through the water, I keep my hands flat and slice it through the water. I don't know why your arms hurt, but don't over work it, you may end up injuring yourself even further. Work on just stroking, strenghtens muscles!

Answer 8

talk 2 ur coach

Answer 9

you probally only have to strech it out
suck it up and swim through it...its sad that you have to ask people on yahoo what to do