Celebration of Scholars
VO2 Max in Collegiate Sprint and Long Distance Swimmers
Name:
Amanda Grigsby
Major: PE Sport and Fitness
Hometown: Orland Park, IL
Faculty Sponsor:
Other Sponsors:
Type of research: Course project
Name:
Natalia Bialecka
Major: Exercise and Sport Science
Hometown: Des Plaines, IL
Faculty Sponsor:
Other Sponsors:
Type of research: Course project
Name:
Noel DeLaMar
Major: Exercise and Sports Science
Hometown: Lake Villa, IL
Faculty Sponsor:
Other Sponsors:
Type of research: Course project
Abstract
VO2 max is the gold standard for
measuring aerobic capacity. Aerobic Capacity is the maximal amount of oxygen an
athlete can utilize for exercise. The purpose of this research project was to
compare the VO2 max of
female, collegiate distance (500 -1000 yards) and sprint (less than 200 yards)
swimmers. Since sprint swimmers train and compete using primarily the anaerobic
system we hypothesized that their VO2 max would be lower than the
distance (aerobic system) swimmers. The VO2 max was estimated by averaging two
separate trials using the Queens College Step Test. Our results concluded that
female distance swimmers had a significantly higher (p < .01) average VO2 max of 38.48 ml/kg/min compared
to 36.63 ml/kg/min for sprinters. Our hypothesis was confirmed; however we
expected a greater difference in VO2 max between long and short distance
swimmers. There is currently no method
of testing VO2 max in the
water, and it is possible our measure was not sensitive enough to pick up true
differences that existed between the
groups. It is also possible that the training used by the swimmers does not
place enough emphasis on the energy systems of the body that are utilized by
the different distances.
Submit date: March 16, 2014, 9:53 p.m.