Why Do Swimmers Have Wide Shoulders? The average human shoulder width is 18 inches. The average swimmer’s shoulder width is 20-22 inches. Why? Swimmers need a wide range of motion in their shoulders to be able to move around the pool with ease and flexibility. When you’re swimming freestyle, butterfly or backstroke for example, your arms are moving at different speeds and from different angles as they rotate. Your shoulder joints have to be flexible enough to allow this movement without getting damaged over time by the increased stress on them while swimming laps each day.
Does swimming make your shoulder larger?
Short answer is No. Swimming only strengthens your shoulder muscles and joints, it doesn’t make them larger.
Long answer: Muscles grow bigger when they are used. Your shoulder muscles become stronger in order to compensate for the extra stress that has been put on them over time while swimming laps each day, which strengthens your joints and protects them from injury as well of course. But these additional muscle fibers do not make your shoulders wider; just more powerful.
Why Do Swimmers Have Wide Shoulders
The average human shoulder width is 18 inches (or 45 cm). The average swimmer’s shoulder width is 20-22 inches (50-56 cm). Why? Swimmers need a wide range of motion in their shoulders to be able to move around the pool with ease and flexibility. When you’re swimming freestyle, butterfly or backstroke for example, your arms are moving at different speeds and from different angles as they rotate. Your shoulder joints have to be flexible enough to allow this movement without getting damaged over time by the increased stress on them while swimming laps each day.
Is having large shoulder a competitive edge at swimming?
Large shoulder muscles are usually advantageous at swimming competitions because of its lengthened arms technique and its powerful front crawl stroke.
However, having large shoulders can also be a disadvantage when it comes to racing in backstroke and breast-stroke competitions because swimmers with wide shoulder tend to have their hands too close together as they reach forward towards the water surface during these strokes.
Besides competitive swimming, shoulder width is an important factor for all athletes from different sports such as soccer players and baseball pitchers since wider shoulders provide better protection on contact.
Swimming is not an activity where we need as much strength (as some other sports), so having defined muscles that are strong isn’t really necessary. However maintaining flexibility through swimming can tell us about how much muscle mass someone has which will determine their ability to swim fast. You see this when you watch elite athletes compete because they often look like flexible rubber noodles while others who lack power tend to move in a more rigid way.
The shoulder muscles are used in swimming, but they’re not the primary muscle group that make up a swimmer’s power and strength. For example, when both arms come forward to push water behind them while moving their body through the water, it is typically done with triceps rather than pectoralis major or latissimus dorsi (shoulder) muscles at all.
A wide shoulders can be helpful for balance when doing strokes which require lifting your arm out of the water and turning back over again like butterfly and freestyle because those movements will shift some of your weight onto one side as you use one arm to propel yourself backward against the water then pull back on that same side before pushing off with your other arm to forward.
A wide shoulder’s can also help with stability when it comes to kicking because it helps you keep your head and torso aligned as you rotate. The wider the shoulders, the easier this will be.
The width of a swimmer’s shoulders is typically attributed to its ability for muscles in that region like pectoralis major or latissimus dorsi (shoulder) muscles which are used in swimming, to have an increased range of motion.
The wider shoulder helps keep your head more stable as you rotate. It is easier for swimmers with wide shoulders to maintain their sense of orientation or alignment during these rotations versus those who don’t have them naturally.
This width can also benefit some strokes such as freestyle and butterfly where there will be moments when both arms need to be outstretched away from each other.
Genes play at large role at having a large shoulder
Some people have large shoulder because the genes are passed down from their parents. Other athletes who do not swim also may be genetically predisposed to having wide shoulders, so it is worth noting that no one knows for sure why some swimmers have this characteristic. Some of these things can affect a person’s body shape as well – such as hormones and diet which could cause wider or more narrow shoulders
However, training also plays a large factor in the size of your shoulders. Large shoulder muscles are crucial for balance while swimming and giving support to an athlete during long-distance races.
How to build your shoulder’s muscle?
There are several workouts that focus into your shoulder muscles:
- Lateral raise: This is an exercise that will work the medial deltoid and raise up your shoulder.
- Bent-over row: this exercise works the back muscles and also will work your shoulder. You can do this workout by two ways: with barbell or dumbells.
- Dumbbell shoulder press: This workout will work your shoulder muscles and also the triceps.
- Upright row: This workout is used to work your shoulders, trapezius and also the biceps.
- Biceps curl: This workout is used to work your biceps and also the wrist flexors.
- Triceps extension: This workout will work your triceps muscles.
By doing these workouts you’ll be able to develop a strong and wide shoulder muscle. And these are just a few workouts that you can do to achieve this goal.
Supplements for large shoulder muscles
Supplements for large shoulder muscles are not necessary but they can help with the recovery process. It’s important to know that supplements should never replace a healthy diet and exercise routine. Supplements make up only part of your health regimen, which is why it’s so important to talk to your doctor before you start taking any type of supplement.
- Vitamin E: Taking 400 IU of vitamin e each day will help reduce inflammation caused by weight training or other types of physical activity while also helping prevent injury
- Omega fatty acids: These fats provide benefits such as lowering blood pressure and reducing the risk of heart disease
- Caffeine: This substance may cause an increase in muscle strength but there have been mixed reviews about its effectiveness at improving performance.
- Creatine: Taking creatine as a supplement can help you increase muscle mass and strength
- Beta alanine: This substance is the only one that has been shown to improve physical endurance, but because it can cause tingling sensations in those who use it, some people prefer not to take beta alanine supplements.
Final thoughts
Having a large & wide shoulder will give you the advantage if you’re doing strokes like butterfly or freestyle. But remember, having a wide shoulder is the key in swimming, it’s more about rhythm & breathing. So you should invest your time into master your rhythm & breathing techniques before building up your shoulder muscles.