41 year old Dara Torres

[Bob]

She should get the gold for being old school "Fit"!

[Johnrudy]

I was wondering how long it would take for one of you guys to post her pic. She's my new hero. An amazing woman. :clap:

She said she can't see the clock when she finishes a race because she needs her glasses! :lol:

[Beach Runner]

Dara swam at The University of Florida, where she received 28 All-American honors. Go Gators!

[singinchicken]

I remember way back when she used to be on Discovery's Beyond 2000 show. That was WAY back...

Oh...that and she's a smokin' hottie! :drool:

[shakennotstirred]

She looks awesome. I heard she spends $100k yearly on her conditioning. :yikes:

[Gypsea]

She looks awesome. I heard she spends $100k yearly on her conditioning. :yikes:
For $100k she gets a strength coach, two stretchers, two massueses, a chiropractor and a nanny. I'd be happy with just the stretchers and massueses! :wub:

[Gypsea]

Here's the rest of the story: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-flsptorres09sbjul09,0,3778585.story

[beachmouse]

Respect her accomplishments, but have problems with how I've heard one too many accounts of how during her first two swim careers, she had to be the queen bee in the situation, or she tended to go rather psycho.

[TooFarTampa]

Respect her accomplishments, but have problems with how I've heard one too many accounts of how during her first two swim careers, she had to be the queen bee in the situation, or she tended to go rather psycho.

Yes. Can we just say high maintenance? :wave:

I believe that, since she is being drug tested practically every 12 hours, she probably is not on anything. Which means, to have a body like that, she is not spending very much time with her daughter. I give her credit for chasing her dream one last time, seeing how far she can push herself, and yes, setting an example for her daughter. I just hope when the Olympics are over, she can settle down and be a mom for awhile and we don't have to see a Dara The Body Tour ad nauseum.

She was in broadcasting for awhile in her 20s, and I don't doubt she will be trying to find a spot in the booth somewhere.

And no, Bob, this is NOT the new look of 40+, people just need to get over it, most of us parents don't have time to make ourselves look like that. :roll:

That said, the 50 was always her best event, and it will be fascinating to see whether she can pull it off.

[Johnrudy]

How old is her daughter?

[scooterbug44]

TFT, I know you didn't mean anything by it, but I would love it if for once a woman could achieve something and not be criticized for neglecting her kid because of her assumed schedule.

Her daughter is 2 years old and maybe her HUSBAND enjoys spending quality time w/ his daughter while his wife is training.

She swims 5x a week for 2 hours, weight trains 4x a week for 60-90 minutes and does resistance stretching for 2 hours (don't know how frequently so I'll say 5x), which adds up to 26 hours a week of training - far less than a full time job.

[shakennotstirred]

How old is her daughter?

I think around 2. She was on one of the national news programs this week at a Mommy & me swim class with her.

[TooFarTampa]

TFT, I know you didn't mean anything by it, but I would love it if for once a woman could achieve something and not be criticized for neglecting her kid because of her assumed schedule.

Her daughter is 2 years old and maybe her HUSBAND enjoys spending quality time w/ his daughter while his wife is training.

I agree with you, and perhaps I was assuming too much, but I figured he has a demanding job, since someone has to pay for all the swimming costs (and I'm sure Dara has sponsorships and is getting bigger breaks now, but I doubt it has always been so).

And I can't begrudge her one last shot, really, as long as she can do it, and I'm not saying she should stay home 24/7 after the Olympics. But there is such a thing as balance, and putting yourself aside a little bit. I know a bit about how much top athletes have to train along with other demands on their time, especially older ones, and when they have kids it is better if the dad just stays home and acts as the manager. I have seen this work very successfully.

I looked it up and it appears she is not actually married to her daughter's dad, they are in a relationship, and he is a reproductive endocrinologist. Pretty demanding job. :idontno:

[scooterbug44]

My bad, Wikipedia said they were married. :bang:

Since she was breastfeeding her daughter 15 minutes before swimming the race that qualified her for the Olympic trials I don't think she's that neglectful of a mom. ;-)

[singinchicken]

I believe that, since she is being drug tested practically every 12 hours, she probably is not on anything...

She has said publicly several times that due to her age and the sport in which she competes she voluntarily submits herself for drug testing on a regular basis so she can remain above reproach. Better to never give them a target at all...

[TooFarTampa]

My bad, Wikipedia said they were married. :bang:

Since she was breastfeeding her daughter 15 minutes before swimming the race that qualified her for the Olympic trials I don't think she's that neglectful of a mom. ;-)

Good point. I did not read that. So you're probably right.

I did not/have never known her personally, but she just never really gave me the warm fuzzies during her career, so maybe I am jumping to conclusions based on my own outlook. For the record, I am a HUGE feminist in general, and do not make it a policy to yammer on about how women should stay home etc. I believe you can have it all, but I do also know that it is really, really hard to have it all at once.

[ktschris]

My bad, Wikipedia said they were married. :bang:

Since she was breastfeeding her daughter 15 minutes before swimming the race that qualified her for the Olympic trials I don't think she's that neglectful of a mom. ;-)

:yikes:Her daughter is 2 and she's still breastfeeding? There must be a mistake somewhere.

[scooterbug44]

She was breastfeeding back when she was competing in the Masters World Championships, not currently. I think her daughter was 3-4 months old then.

[beachmouse]

I agree with you, and perhaps I was assuming too much, but I figured he has a demanding job, since someone has to pay for all the swimming costs (and I'm sure Dara has sponsorships and is getting bigger breaks now, but I doubt it has always been so).



Dara never really would have had to work a day in her life if she didn't want to, and doesn't have to work now. She's just spectacularly unsuited to the ladies who lunch and play tennis sort of lifestyle that's common in her SES peer group so she's spent her life doing things that seemed interesting and fun to her.

From what I've seen, she utterly adores her young daughter, and is going to spare nothing to see that she has a good childhood. Tessa just better not be doing something by age 16 that is seen as competing with Mommy.

[TooFarTampa]

She has said publicly several times that due to her age and the sport in which she competes she voluntarily submits herself for drug testing on a regular basis so she can remain above reproach. Better to never give them a target at all...

Well, now that we are post-BALCO, nobody really gives much credence to the testing anymore. Many if not most of the top athletes who have doped have been simply ahead of the testing. So that is why you will continue to hear the chatter during and possibly beyond the Games, about many athletes. Incredible stories are always going to generate much suspicion. Think Floyd Landis -- that may be the last "amazing story" that the American public will fully buy into for a good long time.

[scooterbug44]

Floyd Landis has a weasel face, so I always suspected him! :rofl:

[singinchicken]

Well, now that we are post-BALCO, nobody really gives much credence to the testing anymore. Many if not most of the top athletes who have doped have been simply ahead of the testing. So that is why you will continue to hear the chatter during and possibly beyond the Games, about many athletes. Incredible stories are always going to generate much suspicion. Think Floyd Landis -- that may be the last "amazing story" that the American public will fully buy into for a good long time.

There's an interesting story on MSNBC about her that pretty much lays it out there. For all practical purposes, she has made her life an open book and has said "come and get it." There's some good points in it...

http://www.nbcolympics.com/blogs/blog=alanabrahamsonsblog/postid=148601.html

[scooterbug44]

Nice to see an athlete go out of their way to volunteer for all possible (hair, urine, blood, DNA) drug tests and tell them they can keep the samples for as long as they want just in case they discover a new test or substance to test for. :clap:

[TooFarTampa]

Nice to see an athlete go out of their way to volunteer for all possible (hair, urine, blood, DNA) drug tests and tell them they can keep the samples for as long as they want just in case they discover a new test or substance to test for. :clap:

Yes, all that is a good sign. I would like to believe that she is clean. Really I would. But I am kind of cynical about all of it, just as I am cynical that the linked story was posted on nbcolympics.com. Anything on MSNBC, or even GE-owned Newsweek (which I love) should be taken with a grain of salt, simply because NBC has a LOT riding on the Torres story. Big $$$ was invested long before the Internet made covering an Olympics many time zones away inconvenient for the networks. I'm pretty sure it was NBC that persuaded the IOC to switch the swimming finals to the a.m. so they could be aired live in the U.S., a year or two ago.

[scooterbug44]

I'm cynical because of the asthma meds she's on, but like the idea of it!

[beachmouse]

I'm cynical because of the asthma meds she's on, but like the idea of it!

There have been a couple of studies lately that suggest that there is a strong link involving the long term exposure to chlorine (used to sanitize abouut 99% of swimming pools in the US) with increased likeliehood of developing asthma. It's actually far more common than it seems like it should be to see asthma in competitive swimmers.

[NotDeadYet]

I agree with you, and perhaps I was assuming too much, but I figured he has a demanding job, since someone has to pay for all the swimming costs (and I'm sure Dara has sponsorships and is getting bigger breaks now, but I doubt it has always been so).



I think you just put your foot in it, again. :blink:

[TooFarTampa]

I think you just put your foot in it, again. :blink:

In my mouth or in something else? I do both, on a fairly regular basis. :biggrin:

You are right, I did not realize that she is independently wealthy. But I remain somewhat cynical, in general, about the whole thing. :idontno:

[peapod1980]

Not to take anything away from her, but the copyright on the Maxim photo is 2000. That ain't no 41-year-old. :biggrin:

[JUL]

My bad, Wikipedia said they were married. :bang:

Since she was breastfeeding her daughter 15 minutes before swimming the race that qualified her for the Olympic trials I don't think she's that neglectful of a mom. ;-)

I just wonder how she managed to keep her breasts so "fit" if she breast fed:idontno:

[Smiling JOe]

"old-school fit?" They weren't fit like that in the old school. I'm with Gypsea, I'll take the massage therapists. Just think, that girl doesn't get to each much fun food. She probably does a can of tuna with a baked potato for lunch every day. BORING.

[NewUrbanGirl]

She swims 5x a week for 2 hours, weight trains 4x a week for 60-90 minutes and does resistance stretching for 2 hours (don't know how frequently so I'll say 5x), which adds up to 26 hours a week of training

Interesting that this is just about the same amount of time everyone else spends watching TV! I'll be thinking about that next time I watch the "Biggest Loser" instead of going out for a run! :lol:

"According to the A.C. Nielsen Co., the average American watches more than 4 hours of TV each day (or 28 hours/week, or 2 months of nonstop TV-watching per year). In a 65-year life, that person will have spent 9 years glued to the tube. Compiled by TV-Free America; 1322 18th Street, NW ; Washington, DC 20036 (202) 887-4036 "

[Smiling JOe]

Your comment reminds me of a similar thing. Not long after Hershel Walker won the Heisman, he was interviewed, and he stated that he never lifted weights in his life (though he is well-built). I was rather amazed by his remark. He continued, saying that growing up, he watched a lot of TV, and every time a commercial came on, he got off the sofa and did push ups and sit ups until the commercials were over.

Rather than working out for 3-4 hours a day, just try to the Hershel Walker method, and you should be good to go.