Swimming Machines
Another form of resistance swimming is that in which the swimmer is unrestrained and the water is set in motion by means of mechanical devices, such as jets, propellers or paddle wheels. Such an apparatus is also known as a countercurrent swimming machine, of which a number are presently available commercially. A prototype machine was used by the Columbia University swim team in the late eighties.
Swimming machines made their appearance in the 1970s, initially in the form of jetted streams. Some of these were criticized for causing turbulence and an un-natural swimming environment. They were followed by paddle-wheel and propeller-driven machines, which were popularized by the Riverflow System. These generated a smoother stream of water. Many users find them easy to swim in.
Finally, there are exercise machines which allow a person to remain on dry land while simulating certain swimming strokes. These devices however can not compensate for the weight of the body and the limbs and thus deprive the user of the benefits of exercise in an aquatic environment.
Read more about this topic: Resistance Swimming
Famous quotes containing the words swimming and/or machines:
“Loosed betwixt eye and lid, the swimming beams
Of memory, blind school of cuttlefish,
Rise to the air, plunge to the cold streams....”
—Allen Tate (1899–1979)
“Gee, I wish we had one of them doomsday machines things.”
—Stanley Kubrick (b. 1928)