Swimming performance is governed by the ability of the body to consume oxygen for energy production, and for most events increase the resistance on the propulsive surfaces, and decrease resistance on the non-propulsive surfaces of the body. It has been proposed that the abdominal and erector spinae muscles contract during swimming to decrease form resistance or drag on the swimmers' body to increase speed. We hypothesized that contracting these muscle groups would negatively impact pulmonary functions and increase oxygen consumption. Significantly lower pulmonary functions and higher resting oxygen consumption were observed while the abdominal and erector spinae muscles were contracted. We propose that contracting the abdominal and erector spinae muscles could cause decrements in crawl stroke swimming performance.
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