Physical Capital

In creating this series we've been privileged to speak to some incredible swimmers including; Seren Jones, Alice Dearing and Cullen Jones. All with their own stories and rich, unique relationships to swimming and the water. In a series like this, we can’t always use every part of an interview, but we felt like these interviews were too good not to be heard in full, and so, we’re releasing these as...

In creating this series we've been privileged to speak to some incredible swimmers including; Seren Jones, Alice Dearing and Cullen Jones. All with their own stories and rich, unique relationships to swimming and the water. In a series like this, we can’t always use every part of an interview, but we felt like these interviews were too good not to be heard in full, and so, we’re releasing these as...

Welcome to the final episode of this series of Physical Capital. We’ve explored the human relationship with the water. What draws us to it. How we use it, what we gain from it… and what it can take from us. We’ve looked at swimming from multiple angles and hopefully, painted a near complete picture of the sport. If you’ve made it this far, thank you so much for joining us on our journey to the hea...

You enter the pool. You front crawl, freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, or butterfly your way from one end to the other… and back again. It’s not complicated and essentially, swimming is the same for most people, right? Well, no. Like any sport there are many factors that divide how different genders enter the pool. In this episode of the podcast we explore what it's like for women in the sport...

Our Physical Capital - the physiology we have at our disposal - can only take you so far, when races are won and lost by milliseconds, small adaptations can be the difference between a place on the podium or not.  In this episode, we explore how the physiology of your body can give you an advantage in the sport of swimming and we shine a light on the impact swimming can have on your body and its d...

Open water swimming is on the rise and has been for the past few years but what’s the pull and why do people do it? In this episode we’re exploring what open water swimming is, how it makes you feel, how people can get involved and what the benefits are of swimming in open water. Episode guests:  Jack Hudson Alice Dearing Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It is a widely perpetuated stereotype that Black people can’t swim. On paper, the statistics appear to back-up this perceived notion. Sport England reports that 95% of Black adults and 80% of Black children in England don’t swim, with very similar statistics within Asian communities; and according to the World Health Organisation, people from ethnic minorities are at an increased risk of drowning....

Swimming as a sport is well and truly international. As we heard in the last episode, swimmers and teams from all over the world compete. But in order to compete at the highest level, athletes need the right resources…and the one thing about resources the world over, is that they are not equally distributed - in all areas of life, swimming being no exception. And so the question really is - how ca...

When you think of swimming, what images come to mind? It doesn’t take long to see a row of athletes, lined up on the edge of the pool - slim, long, muscular bodies, swimming caps, goggles - ready to dive into the water and RACE. Getting to this level doesn’t happen overnight, those athletes have been training - day and night - for years to get to that point. In this episode of the podcast we explo...

Why do we swim? It’s not new, we’ve been swimming for 10,000 years… apparently. But why? We don’t live in the water and so what draws us to it? In this first episode of the podcast we explore the history of humans in the water to get an idea of why we do it. Hosted by Rebecca Achieng Ajulu-Bushell.  Episode guests:  Bonnie Tsui, Why We Swim Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.co...

Welcome to Physical Capital. A series centered around the human relationship with swimming. What draws us to it. How do we use it, what do we gain from it… and what it can take from us. We’ll be looking at swimming from multiple angles to help paint a complete picture of the sport. We’re going to be exploring swimming through the prism of ‘Physical Capital' - discussing the physical attributes tha...

We find ourselves in 1810. The British heavyweight Champion, Tom Cribb, is defending his title against an American contender Tom Molyneaux. What is fascinating about this contest, is that the challenger, Tom Molyneux, has fought his way out of slavery in the US and has come over to the UK to participate in this fight. What’s even more fascinating, is that he was not the first person to do so… In P...

Why do people want to buy, sell, bet on, and invest money into human beings for entertainment purposes? How has the status of the boxer developed throughout history? In the first episode of Physical Capital, we delve into these questions and more; exploring the parallels between Roman gladiators and modern day boxers, and examining the historical commodification of the athlete’s body for other peo...

In Physical Capital we'll be exploring the origins of boxing and how it's been used for political and financial gain; as a source of national pride; a vehicle for propaganda and an expression of masculinity. We'll also look at boxing through the prism of race and sexuality and how it's often considered a way out of criminality and poverty. Physical Capital is exclusively available to Human Resourc...