To get better at your craft, you have to be willing to put your time and energy into improving. In the world of sports, in order to get better and achieve personal goals, preparation and conditioning is a crucial part of an athlete’s success.
East senior swimmers, Anthony Ferraro (‘22) and Sarah Teng (‘22), credit their strength in the pool to not only the endless hours practicing in the water, but also their precise focus on strengthening specific muscles out of the pool.
Since swimming is one of the few sports that only takes place underwater, it is often forgotten that there is more to swimming than just practicing different strokes and perfecting breathing methods in the pool. The strength behind every stroke and kick for each event requires dedication to the intense practice and preparation that happens on dry land.
“Whether it be lifting or stretching, dryland is whatever you do outside of the pool to prepare for being the best that you can be for the water,” said Ferraro.
Teng and Ferraro are one of three team captains on each of the boy’s and girl’s swim teams who have both been swimming for around a decade (Teng: 8-9 years and Ferraro: 14 years). Although they both swim for East in the winter, you can find Teng swimming for SJAC and Ferraro swimming for MLY Phoenix all throughout the year to prepare. With so much experience and knowledge, these two know how important dryland is in order to be a successful swimmer.
Before high school, Ferraro would have never thought he would have a spot on a collegiate swim roster. However, he was able to finally reach the next level as a swimmer when he started to focus on strengthening his body outside of his water to gain the necessary speed and agility during races.
As a swimmer, Ferraro is used to swimming everyday. He practices Monday through Friday, two hours each day and also two hours on the weekend. Although all this time practicing in the pool is very important, focusing on preparing each muscle outside of the pool is equally as important. Since Ferraro’s coach does not put as great an emphasis on dryland, Ferraro makes sure to strengthen the necessary muscles on his own by lifting at least three times a week.
Similarly, Teng also has a very demanding schedule. She practices Monday through Friday for two hours, but adds on another two hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays by practicing before school. And on the weekends, Teng is in the water for two and a half hours. On Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, Teng dedicates an hour to dryland after practice. Lucky for Teng, SJAC brings in a dryland coach who comes to their Tuesday practice every week.
“We typically do core work and dunks with medicine balls, triceps work, pushups, squats, and squat jumps,” said Teng.
Throughout their four years of hard work to succeed on East’s swim teams, Teng and Ferraro have achieved their personal records. Teng completed a 100 backstroke in 1:01.36 and Anthony’s best event, 100 freestyle, was completed in 50.1. Looking back on their time swimming for East and great achievements over the past years, both athletes feel that dryland played a major role in helping them achieve their personal records.
After all of their hard work in and out of the pool paying off, they look forward to finishing the rest of the season strong with another state championship title!