Professor studies swimming, aging

Sophomore Emily Schmitt reluctantly awakens at 6 a.m., four times a week during water polo season and goes to the Student Recreational Sports Center pool for practice. \nBetween water polo practices four times a week while in season and lifeguarding some evenings, Schmitt averages 11 hours lap swimming a week. With all these hours spent in the pool, Schmitt said she was receiving some health benefits from it, but never thought it could reduce aging. \nUntil now, that is.\n"I knew a person's activity level helps keep them younger, but I never really directly thought of swimming in that way," Schmitt said.\nIU professor of Kinesiology Joel Stager, along with his research team from the IUB Human Performance Lab, are trying to answer just that question -- whether or not swimming can lead to a reduction in aging.\n"The big question is whether or not there are positive outcomes to habitual, physical activity," Stager said.\nAs part of their research, Stager and his team examined swimmers at the United States Masters Swimming Short Course National Championship April 22 through 25 in Indianapolis. Of the roughly 1,200 swimmers competing, all of whom were 19 years old or above, Stager's team was only able to assess 200 to 300 swimmers because of time constraints.\nStager said he selected the USMS for research because of the participant's varying ages and overall commitment to daily swimming as a form of recreation or physical activity. \nThe examination consisted of two parts. First, participants answered a questionnaire pertaining to activity patterns such as daily routines and the distance swim. The second part was a physiological screening that looked for biological markings of aging. This part included testing of blood pressure and chemistry, height, weight, strength and lung functions -- all of which have been shown to decline with age, Stager said.\nThrough these tests, Stager hopes to answer whether or not the common signs of aging are actually a result of becoming older, or just signs of inactivity. \nSchmitt hopes Stager's research proves to be true.\n"My mom swims a lot for physical exercise -- she has had a lot of back problems," Schmitt said. "I know it makes her feel better."\nThe occasional swimmer could also gain some benefits from swimming, Stager said.\nAccording to an IU press release about the study, a swimmer "might be 45 but have the physical capacity of a 35-year-old." \nStager said the age gap "might be even bigger than that."\nFunding for Stager's research this past weekend came from a number of sources. Because some of the members of his team are graduate students, Stager received funds from the IU Graduate School and also from USMS. If more funding becomes available Stager said he would like to continue his research at the USMS Course National Championship annually, according to the press release.\n"I'd like to do some more further, extensive research with them," Stager said. "While it was great fun … I'm ready for a nice long nap."\n-- Contact staff writer Chris Jesse at cejesse@indiana.edu.