Swimming

When drafting for open water swimming, look for someone who is reliable and won't be aggressive, has a narrow stroke, is a good navigator, and is likely to end up on the podium.
 
Transcript: "So deciding who you want to draft off of is a very important decisions. Open water swimming in many ways is just a, it's a swimming race, but it's also a game of decisions, where the winner usually makes the best calls. So for this particular thing, it depends kind of on like how the race is unfolding, or what the scenario is, or what the context is. So in more of a pack-like setting, I would look for someone that maybe I knew personally, or that I would just, I know is less likely to kind of get aggressive, because there's going to be some bumping. You're going to kind of bump with your, to the side, or if you're behind them, you're going to touch their feet. You're someone behind, you know, like it can just get a little bit wild. So you don't want to be around someone who is going to pick fights. It's just going to waste your, it's just going to waste your energy. It's really not worth it. So there's that, and also someone who, if you're swimming next to someone particularly, that doesn't have a really wide stroke that you're going to kind of get caught up in. Some people, some people are more narrow, some people are wider, and you just need to learn that. In a situation where it's like more spread out, I would definitely pick someone who is a reliable navigator, and is going to be able to swim a mostly straight line if it's not one big group together. And also someone, whether you're breaking away from the pack or trying to catch a chase group, someone that you feel like you can work with and maybe exchange the lead a little bit and kind of work together to catch up or break away. But generally, also just someone who doesn't have a huge kick, a really big kick can just kind of push you from side to side and push you back a little bit, and it's just not fun. And last but not least, pick a winner. Pick someone who you know is likely to end up on the podium."

My family, friends, and role models have been big influences on me. Specifically, I look to my brother's example of giving back to his college, my high school coaches and teachers, and Bill Kazakawa for inspiration.
 
Transcript: "I would say I have a lot of big influences. My family's first and foremost, just how much time they dedicated to a community and to each individual. I learned throughout high school and throughout college that not everyone's family is like that. That was a hard learning curve but it was also just a dose of reality that a lot of people do not take the time, care, and compassion. Even someone like the friends I've had over time, it's been a tough dynamic to understand that people just don't give a second thought to caring as much as I may like to or I may tend to give. And really looking at my brother's example of how he's given back to his colleges as an alumni, what he did for his colleges when he was there as well, especially Queens University in Charlotte, North Carolina. And looking at my two high school coaches and teachers as well too of, you know, Jim Brower and Tim Bierman, just everything they did was for us. Everything they did was for the swimmers, the athletes, the students, and just seeing their best lives exuded. You know, St. Francis Xavier, where our school was founded after, is such an example of how every life he touched was in the name of bettering them for a greater cause than himself, to enhance the life of another human being. And to look at that is very uplifting. Recently, Bill Kazakawa, and seeing his historical pursuit of excellence is also inspiring."

Beets or beet juice can help improve blood flow, making them a useful food to eat in order to improve performance at both training and meat eating.
 
Transcript: "So I think-- and this isn't non-obvious, but a food that I do think helps a lot-- and more so even at meats than training-- is beets or beet juice. So that's a good vasodilator, opens up the veins to help your blood flow a little bit easier. So beets is a good one."

Swimmers use the loping stroke when swimming 100-200 meters because it is less demanding on power and oxygen debt. It also results in less fatigue. It is different from the sprint technique which uses a straighter arm approach.
 
Transcript: "Why do we late hundred freestylers? Use a low ping stroke? Not all of them, some do. And they're more, the Senate 100-200, guys, that breathe every stroke. You know, more than 100 200, guys, we use the lope In freestyle and more the Sprint baseball, where use more of a straighter arm, kind of technique there. The fifty hundred guys, they will use them or Sprint technique. So, yeah, there's two different types of techniques lope and stroke more straight arms. Print, based technique lope in stroke is characterized by breathing every stroke and the reason why I do it. The reason why they do it is because they got they can if they're going to feel better in their back end. So the hundred two hundred guys, using the low pinstripe will do all their damage and the second 50, like our Charmers, he'll eat up everyone going down that second 50. Debbie Popovich e will go everything on that second 50. So that's that. Two different sort of two different styles, it's also less demanding on power, you know, the loping stroke breathing every stroke. You got option coming in less oxygen debt and it's also less aggressive for the muscle system. Um so that's why they use this so they get less fatigued at the end. So if you're more of a hundred 200 swimmer and you're trying to use the Sprint style, you're going to blow up at the end because it's too much muscle in there too much power."

Tom Shields swam 50 meters in 10.1124 seconds, which is an impressive time.
 
Transcript: "Just watch this. This is Tom Shields, it is probably seven or eight days out of [INAUDIBLE] course. That was in Abu Dhabi, this is our training camp in Dubai. He's suited, this was the third of three 50s descend from the push. Decent rest, a decent rest, but just look what time this is-- like, breathe in, two, three, four, five strokes there. Let's see if I say the time. You say you pushed the other day? Listen. Phew! I filmed it as well, so you-- Not worse than the other day. 10 112 4. 22 six in the push. That's-- I can't explain that."

Sex before sporting events is a personal decision, but some athletes choose to abstain. Ultimately, it's up to you to decide if sex helps or hinders your performance.
 
Transcript: "Well, we've got two professional athletes in my house-- me, an Olympic swimmer, and my husband who played in the NFL for 13 years. He always abstained from sex. He said that it weakened your legs, and he was a punter so maybe he would know. And actually this is a trivial pursuit question, because in 2000, I believe it was, the Canadian Olympic swim team decided that they were going to abstain from sex for six months before the games. They didn't have their best Olympics. So listen, if you're feeling sassy, get down with your bad self. If you think that it hurts, then it hurts. If you think it helps, then it helps. Just enjoy. Have fun. Don't think too much about it. Cheers."