Sprint diagnostics in swimming were long either very simple or technically demanding. A recent approach seeks to combine force and speed directly in the water.
Twenty-six trained or developing swimmers completed five maximal 25-metre freestyle sprints with different external resistances in each of two test sessions.
Load and speed create a profile
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Speed was measured over a five-metre section in the middle of the pool. From several load levels, the researchers calculated individual load-velocity relationships.
These can be used to derive theoretical variables such as maximum speed without additional load and maximum load.
Repeatability was good to excellent in both women and men. Agreement between different evaluators was also high.
Why this is more interesting than a 25-metre time alone
Two sprinters can have the same personal best but very different profiles. One may lose speed very quickly under additional resistance, while the other remains relatively force-stable.
This can provide clues as to whether speed capacity or swimming-specific force is the greater limitation.
Not a magic performance number
A load-velocity profile replaces neither race time nor technical observation. The study also did not examine world-class swimmers.
The practical advance is that diagnostics that previously required considerable effort can now be performed with relatively portable equipment. If these tests are used regularly and in a standardised way, they may help link dry-land strength more effectively with actual transfer into the water.
Particularly interesting for regular monitoring
Because the device is portable, the profile could be assessed more frequently than complex laboratory diagnostics. That is exactly when reliability becomes important: only repeatable tests allow small seasonal changes to be interpreted. One profile is a snapshot; a series of profiles becomes training information.
SCIENTIFIC SOURCE
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42747830/