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December, 2007
Ten Things Every New Swimming Coach Should Know
1. Learn from the guys (and girls) who have been there
The best way to learn is by doing. Next best is to learn by working with those who do the doing.
Find yourself a mentor: A senior coach who has experienced the ups and downs of coaching competitive swimmers. If you can’t find a suitable senior swimming coach, seek out a senior coach from another sport. If you want to learn how to coach from someone who knows the skills are generic across all sports.
Find a senior coach who has strengths you lack. Find one who will be honest and sincere: one who is open in sharing the benefits of their experiences. One from whom you can listen to and accept honest criticism. Look for one who disagrees with your philosophy who will challenge you, who will argue with you – someone who stimulates you to think, learn and grow.
A few hours a month with a great mentor is worth a hundred seminars, workshops and lectures.
December 31, 2007 | Leave a Comment
PB or No PB - That is the Question
PBs - Personal Bests, the best ever times that a swimmer has swum, are an important part of swimming.
PBs are an indication of the best performance of a swimmer and are often used to determine the appropriate training speeds for a swimmer. They can be part of the process of achieving qualifying standards for metropolitan, state and national championships and are a useful measuring stick to track the progress and improvement of a swimmer over time.
However, too much focus on the importance of doing a personal best rather than on the aspects of the swimming performance that lead to the personal best can be counter productive.
December 31, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Preparing for a Successful Swim Meet
Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old Swim Bag and Smile, Smile, Smile.
Part of preparing for a successful meet is to pack your swim bag with all the things you’ll need to swim well and have an enjoyable day. Here are a few ideas to help you pack for perfect powerful performances:
December 31, 2007 | Leave a Comment
When is a Swim Meet not a Swim Meet?
“Experience is not what happens to you. It’s what you do with what happens to you” - Aldous Huxley
Swim meets, swimming competitions and swim carnivals: three ways to say the same thing - opportunity!
- Opportunity for the coach to assess the effectiveness of his or her training program.
- Opportunity for parents and family to support swimmers facing the challenge of competition.
- Opportunity for swimmers to learn how to face the challenge of competition, meet and overcome that challenge and learn valuable lessons for future challenges.
December 31, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Linking Seasons - Building From one Season to the Next
It’s a fact. Most swimmers don’t link seasons.
Most swimmers look at each season as an end in itself; as a destination rather than another part of the journey.
If you were driving to New York from LA, you would find the most direct and efficient route and drive there in logical steps, each one progressively closer to your ultimate destination, resting when you needed to along the way, but always heading west.
December 30, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Kicking Kicks - Key Elements of Improving your Kick in Swimming
The role of kicking in swimming is a matter for study, research, debate and discussion but one thing we do know. Better kicking = better swimming.
So, what are the key elements of improving your kick? Read more
December 30, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Kicking Individual Challenge Killer Sets - KICKS
Yes, I know. Kicking is about as much fun as watching 30 hours of cake decorating on television, right?
Wrong.
The reason most people find kicking dull and boring is they don’t see kick sets as a challenge. Kicking is often put into a training program to fill in space or to recover between swimming sets. Because of this, swimmers don’t see kick as the critical element of swimming performance that it is.
December 30, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Swim Training Tips for the Colder Months: I know what you did this Winter!
Some of the greatest athletes in the world have come from training programs with less than ideal climates and conditions.
Athletes in the US, Canada, Europe and Great Britain often train in snow and freezing cold. Athletes in Asia and Africa have to cope with stifling heat and humidity.
Climatic extremes can be overcome with a little planning and a positive attitude.
Here’s a few ideas to help make winter a winner:
December 30, 2007 | Leave a Comment
The FFAST Principle: Fast Finshes, Aggressive Starts and Turns
The core skills of competitive swimming - starts, turns and finishes - are vital to success. However, as it is with excellence in all fields of endeavour, practice does not make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect.
December 29, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Tags: Swimming
Choosing the Right Swimming Event for You
- 100 fly?
- 200 back?
- 1500 free?
- 400 medley?
- 50 breast?
Which is the right event for you?
Read more
December 29, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Tags: Swimming
