The component muscular endurance is a strength in my performance because, it is proven that in fitness testing my level is excellent. Muscular endurance is important because it involves stamina, where the heart and lungs supply the working muscles for an extended period of time. This shows I have a high lung capacity. Swimming is a cardiovascular sport, where your arms and legs are moving, at the same time it co-ordinates with your breathing. My video footage proves that I can sustain hard training sessions involving incessant swimming where I co-ordinate my breathing well. This involves when swimming continuously through long distances such as 400m, 800m.
In these swims your muscles are able to sustain maximum effort through out the race, this is an essential part to swimming. It is proven in swimming races I can maintain my highest effort because I have excellent muscular endurance. Also I know that the fitness component flexibility plays an exceptional part in my performance, because it is proven that in fitness testing my flexibility is above excellent. In swimming suppleness benefits the swimmer of having a good range of movement at the joints especially at the shoulders and hips. My coach informs me I have flexible shoulders because I extend and stretch into every stoke. This allows me to reach further into my strokes and enhancing a more efficient performance. Other benefits of having supple muscles include reducing the chance of injury.
Body composition is the technical term used to describe the different components that, when taken together, make up a persons body size/ weight. The body composition of an elite swimmer description has usually got wide shoulders, long legs, small waist and overall a lot of muscle and very little amount of fat. I know that this component of fitness is a strength in my performance because I have seen I picture of my physique and it matches the description of a swimmer. I have also calculated my body mass index (BMI) and it shows I am at a normal weight for my height.
Agility is the ability to perform a series of explosive power movements in rapid succession in opposing directions. It is also the ability to move quickly whilst maintaining control and balance. In swimming I perform agility by doing fast tumble turns in and out of the wall, whilst changing direction. Agility is a combination of speed and power, but the movement also needs to be fluent. I know that the fitness component agility is an important strength in my performance because I have had video analysis of my freestyle tumble turns. It shows that I change direction fast and carry out a quick, swift tumble turns.
Another fitness component that is a strength in my performance is co-ordination. Co-ordination is all about how well my body parts can work together at the same time e.g. hand eye co-ordination. Co-ordination is important in individual sports such as swimming. My video analysis shows I co-ordinate my arms and legs together and move through the water as smoothly and efficiently as I can. Swimming, can improve co-ordination because you must move your legs and your arms together, this is core muscle movement. When I swim I have no choice but to be breath control-oriented which translates my swimming strokes directly to greater efficiency. I know this is a strength in my performance because I have had video footage, and it shows that my swimming strokes are very co-ordinated and fluent, this improves my performance.