Swimming For a lot of us swimming is beyond being just a sport. With the amount of time that we have invested into the pool it has become something larger than a hobby or a way to stay in shape. It has become part of our identity, part of our lives, part of who we are. Swimming is a no-lie sport. You swim your butt off, look at the scoreboard and there is the result. There are no judges, no marks on technical merit or style, just the truthful, cold, digital numbers on the clock. There are no substitutions, no teammate to make up for your lackluster performance, no one to look to when things go poorly. The precise nature of the results in competition – and more notably, training – means that we can visibly see and feel progress as we improve, and can correlate the work we put in with the results we receive. I cannot count how many times coaches over the years dropped a gauntlet of a set, something that never in my wildest imagination would I think could survive, let alone complete. (We can be so melodramatic when those tough sets get scrawled up on the whiteboard.) But then what happens? You not only finish the set—but you leave the pool with a little pep in your step and a renewed sense of self-belief. …show more content…
About feeling awesome about yourself after an awesome workout? Yeah, that. When we are pounding out a hard workout, our bodies recognize this as a moment of intense stress, and in response sprinkles a protein called BDNF (brain derived neurotrophic factor) all over your noodle. What does BDNF do? Improves the function of neurons and encourages new neuron growth. Which explains why you feel clear headed and happy after a big workout. (If you want even more of that good ole BDNF, get into some interval work. Research has shown that sprinters in particular experienced a greater surge in BDNF