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Water Is 800x Thicker Than Air!
Water is about 800 times denser than air! That means moving through water takes WAY more effort than moving through air. Every movement you make in the pool pushes against thick, heavy water.
This resistance is called DRAG. The more drag you create, the slower you go. The less drag, the faster you go. The entire science of competitive swimming is about REDUCING DRAG.
Fish are perfectly designed to reduce drag. Their smooth, torpedo-shaped bodies slice through water with minimal resistance. Dolphins have a special skin texture that reduces turbulence. Sharks have tiny ridges on their skin (called dermal denticles) that channel water flow.
Swimmers try to copy these natural designs to go faster!