To Breathe or Not to Breathe: Is Swim Sprint Time Faster with Normal or Reduced Breathing?

Overview

Objectives/Goals This study investigated whether the time saved by reducing the number of breaths in a 100 yard freestyle sprint is offset by the physiological effects of the reduced oxygen available for energy production and the clearing of anaerobically produced lactic acid in the aerobic energy producing system. Methods/Materials Eight A-B level competitive swimmers between ten and twelve years of age were randomly selected. Each swam four 100 yard freestyle sets at race pace with a uniform reduction in the number of breaths taken. Swimmers rested three minutes after each set so fatigue would not be a factor. The results were then compared to their personal best times from 100 yard freestyle races breathing normally. Results The results showed that none of the swimmers beat their personal best time, adding an average of 4.77 seconds. This indicates that normal breathing provides faster times, and that the number of breaths in a 100 yd. freestyle race is offset by the physiological effects of the reduced oxygen available for energy production and lactate clearance in the aerobic energy producing system. Conclusions/Discussion A closer look, however, shows that four of the swimmers got consistently faster across all four trials with reduced breathing. This suggests that, with training, further physiological adaptation and times faster than their best normal breathing times might be possible. To test this, I would use a larger number of swimmers, categorize the swimmers by size, speed, age, gender, and VO2 max, and make the training period longer. This would show whether certain groups better adapt to reduced breathing, and would explain the variability in my current experiment. If reduced breathing is faster, it could be a deciding factor for whether elite swimmers, when fractions of a second make a difference, win first place.

Awards (1)

• First Place

Competition history

• CSEF 2008 Mammalian Biology · Entry J1122

Resources

• CSEF project summary ↗

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