Most athletic?

[archangel]

How long did you swim for? There's definitely a hump you need to get over and then it becomes much easier. It's good because it's so low-impact on your joints.

tis low impact on the joints...but plays havoc on the muscles...only swam one season as a Junior in HS...I'm a sprinter as in in track and the coach kept putting me in long distance swims...won the sprints but lost in distance....some have it and others don't!

 

[GotZoom]

I'm thinking Formula One Race Car Drivers.


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Note: 1 kg = 2.2 pounds.
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Imagine driving the fastest cars on earth. Imagine the strain this puts on your body. We find out why Formula One drivers are the fittest athletes on earth.

Fitter than footballers and leaner than athletes: the word on the Formula One circuit is that racing car drivers possess the most finely tuned bodies on earth.

Medical studies consent. During a race a driver must remain calm, focused and in constant communication with a technical team whilst perfectly manoeuvring a highly complex vehicle around an unfamiliar track alongside competitors travelling at speeds of up to 300 kilometres per hour.

All this in an environment where one wrong move can cost lives calls for a sportsman at the very peak of physical – and mental – strength. Fifteen years ago drivers achieved this by visiting the gym twice a week. These days they know better.

The Heart

A fit human being has a resting heart rate of around 60 beats per minute, rising to around 150 during a run on the treadmill.

David Coulthard has a resting heart rate of 40 beats per minute rising to 198 beats per minute during a two hour race, a figure - roughly the same as that of a Marathon runner crossing the finishing line – which initially stunned medical researchers.

Dr Riccardo Ceccarelli, from Italian sports medicine clinic Formula Medicine explains why a high speed drive can be as challenging as a 26 mile run: "The difference is one of mental stress. There is no sport that demands such intense concentration. A huge amount of adrenalin is being pumped, and this - as well as the physical strain - causes the high heart rate.”

The body’s ability to cope with such extremes is a result of intensive workout, and so drivers undergo cardiovascular exercise for up to four hours a day – jogging, cycling, even rollerblading.

This also helps to keep weight in check - drivers such as Heinz-Harald Frentzen and David Coulthard maintain a body fat ratio of 7%, similar to that of a runner at the start of a race.

The Neck

"I know of no other sport that places such big demands on the neck muscles,” says Riccardo Ceccarelli. “A head and F1 helmet together weigh about 6kg. Add about 4G-Force as experienced when cornering in a Grand Prix, and the neck has to support 24kg."

The neck, then, is a driver’s most important muscle. During training, large elastic bands are used to simulate the demands of high G-Force. Drivers also incorporate resistance work into their exercise regime – rowing and weight lifting.

But they have to be careful not to go overboard: Formula One cockpits are very small and don’t accommodate someone with the physique of a weight lifter.

Diet

Formula One drivers eat much like track and field athletes – carefully regulating their carbohydrate and protein intake. In the lead up to a big race they’ll gorge on carbs – pasta and bread – for energy.

Immediately before the race and sometimes throughout, drivers absorb huge amounts of water. Failure to do so could bring on dehydration through sweating – the extreme heat found in a Formula One cockpit means drivers can sweat off up to 3kg of their body weight during the course of a race.

Mental health

Racing car drivers don’t just take pristine care of their bodies; they look after their mental health too. Many teams work with sports psychologists to ensure that a driver can exert unwavering mind control during a race.

Methods include reviewing track maps, visualising a route and a perfect lap, in order for the driver to feel he has driven the course many times before he even arrives there.

Drivers also learn breathing techniques to stay calm at crucial moments, and techniques for shutting out the outside world – a driver getting into a car surrounded by a medical team, technical staff and thousands of screaming fans and members of the press may use the click of the seat belt as a trigger to block these distractions and get to work.

http://www.channel4.com/life/microsites/0-9/4realvolvo/features/june/health_racingcar.html

More:

http://www.atlasf1.com/99/feb10/fitness.html

 

[The ClayTaurus]

tis low impact on the joints...but plays havoc on the muscles...only swam one season as a Junior in HS...I'm a sprinter as in in track and the coach kept putting me in long distance swims...won the sprints but lost in distance....some have it and others don't!

I was a sprinter in High School as well. Every season it took about a month before that set of muscles got reconditioned. You're right, you use a whole slew of them that otherwise sit dormant. Most people who try swimming give up after a week or two, and they don't even give their body a chance to adjust. Sounds like, however long ago you tried swimming, you tried longer than a month. I haven't swam in a couple years, but eventually I want to get back into it. It's so good for you.

 

[Annie]

I was a sprinter in High School as well. Every season it took about a month before that set of muscles got reconditioned. You're right, you use a whole slew of them that otherwise sit dormant. Most people who try swimming give up after a week or two, and they don't even give their body a chance to adjust. Sounds like, however long ago you tried swimming, you tried longer than a month. I haven't swam in a couple years, but eventually I want to get back into it. It's so good for you.

Yup. I was on swim team, gymnastics, and speed skating in high school. Just recently was able to return to gym. Going for swimming, easiest on the old bod. It's easy on the joints, good way to burn calories, resistent and cardio excercise. I'm up to 30 laps.

 

[Mr. P]

I was a sprinter in High School as well. Every season it took about a month before that set of muscles got reconditioned. You're right, you use a whole slew of them that otherwise sit dormant. Most people who try swimming give up after a week or two, and they don't even give their body a chance to adjust. Sounds like, however long ago you tried swimming, you tried longer than a month. I haven't swam in a couple years, but eventually I want to get back into it. It's so good for you.

You know the bigger swim clubs have competitive adult teams if yer interested. Just wanted to toss that out.

 

[LOki]

Motorcross.

 

[Said1]

Motorcross.

That's what my ex-husband has argued for years.

 

[The ClayTaurus]

You know the bigger swim clubs have competitive adult teams if yer interested. Just wanted to toss that out.

Of course. I'd join a masters program if I was that motivated. I want to play basketball while my joints will let me. Swimming is going to be my tennis. Thanks though