Investigation of the effect of regular swimming training consisting of DRY-land and water exercises on body composition, different motor abilities and swimming performance in children

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of 10 weeks of swimming training consisting of dry-land and water exercises on body composition, different motor abilities and swimming performance in 8-10-year-old children. Method: A total of 52 children, aged 8-10 years, participated in this study. Participants were assigned into three groups [control (CG), experimental-I (EG-I), experimental-II (EG-II)]. CG (n=24) did not participate any sport activities except for physical education classes, EG-I (n=16) conducted dry-land exercise program along with swimming trainings, and EG-II (n=12) only participated in swimming trainings. Body composition, grip strength, leg and back strength, vertical jump, flexibility, endurance performances, anaerobic power and capacity were evaluated through pre-, mid-and post-tests. Additionally, 25m, 50m, 100m and 200m freestyle swimming durations were recorded in experimental groups. Results: Significant intra-group differences with time were noted in physical characteristics. Both inter-group and intra-group differences with time were significant in flexibility, vertical jump and shuttle-run performance. Between EG-I and EG-II, no statistically significant differences were determined in changes of these variables for all test periods. Both intra-group differences with time and inter-group differences were also statistically significant in grip strength, leg and back strength. While absolute, relative peak and minimum power values increased significantly with time in EG-I, no significant difference was determined in absolute and relative power values between EG-I and EG-II. Lastly, significant intra-group differences with time were noted in swimming performance, yet inter-group differences were not significant. Conclusion: As a result, compared to the swimming training only, dry-land exercises with regular swimming training were determined as more effective method in 8-10- year-old children with regard to the improvement of different motor abilities and enhancement of swimming performance. Keywords: children, swimming, dry-land exercise, motor abilities