BMC - SWIMMING for Physical Fitness (Mt. Apo)

I have to admit that swimming is the best exercise. It is a strength, flexibility, stamina and breathing exercise rolled into one. Plus the fact that it also one of the most effective stress reliever I know of.

Now swimming is part of our exercise routines whenever we climb mountains. Our successful attempt to climb Mt. Apo of Davao can partly be contributed to this exercise. We've swam kilometers of it and I guess it just boosted our physical endurance to a new level.

We started swimming by getting ourselves swimming goggles. Of course you can buy the chap kinds that go around for a buck or two. But eventually they will break down. So I suggest that you get yourself a pair of Speedos.

Next we come to the swim attire / swimsuit / swimming trunks. A pair of shorts and a t-shirt would do. But will your swim club allow you to wear that? If you have to exercise swimming, start it right with the proper equipment you can afford. Of course, there are a lot of brands out there. In the end it really comes down to personal choice. My experience tells me that Speedo can provide you with that. After all, swimming is also about looking good.

Let us not forget the swimming cap. It is not really that important but again I must stress out the point of using the right equipment. A swimming cap actually helps your breathing. the more your breath properly the better you swim. The better you swim the better you train your body. That is what we are after. Speedo? Of course I will suggest that you get a Speedo. Why? Because Speedo swimming caps don't crack and will fit you head just right.

So please let us not be hard headed here. OK? :-)

Now that you have the "basic" equipment. Oh did I forget to tell you that you need a swimming pool first to exercise swimming? :-)

You can also get the following gear to help you improve your swimming. There is the ear plugs. It helps you swim better by not letting water into your... guess?... EARS!!! Yep. You see sometimes too much water into your ear can cause infection and sometimes fungus to grow. you wouldn't like a mushroom sticking out of your ear do you? The training fins, kickboard, and pull buoy will help you improve your balance, swimming form and leg and upper body strength. Remember that in climbing you're going to need all the leg strength you can muster.

Our swimming routing starts with a series of warm ups. Of course, put on your swimming attire. You'll look silly in jeans or a tuxedo flapping your hands near the pool. Do at least 10 minutes of stretching. This will lessen the chances of having cramps while your're on the pool.

Then I or sometimes we do the following. Please note that a lap is 25 meters. Why? Because that is how long our pool is.

• 2 laps of kicking with the use of a kick board and the training fins
  
• 2 laps of the crawl without the kick with the help of the pull buoy and the swim paddles
• 20 laps of breaststroke
• 12 laps of freestyle
• 8 laps of sidestroke

I rest every 2 or 4 laps. I'm not Michael Phelps you know.

Why breaststroke?

Because with a breast stroke you exercise almost all your muscle groups including your breathing.

Freestyle on the other hand works on your upper body muscles and your stamina. You can go more laps on a breast stroke than a freestyle. The freestyle is more strenuous than breast stroke but it can improve your stamina and shoulder strength tremendously.

Remember, that in every climb you need a good shoulder to carry your backpack.

The sidestroke something of a combination of the breaststroke and the freestyle. It strengthens your arms and abdomen. A good exercise to complement some muscle groups that are not used that much in the two strokes above.

Here are video tutorials on the proper ways to execute a breast stroke, a freestyle and the sidestroke.