Preparing for a Successful Swim Meet

By Wayne Goldsmith | In Coaching Tips

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:

  1. Food: Fruit, sandwiches with low fat highly nutritious fillings, rice cakes, fruit muffins, pre-cooked rice or noodles.
  2. Drink: Water, sports drink, Sustagen Sport made up with Low Fat Milk or water, weak cordial, fruit juice.
  3. Goggles and Spare Parts: You never know if a strap will snap or nose bridge might break
  4. Caps and Spare Caps: Club caps for team spirit and silicon caps for low resistance, fast racing.
  5. Swimming Costumes and Spares: Racing cossies for fast swimming and sludgy, comfortable, favourite ones for warm up.
  6. Entertainment: Books, comics, CD player, Walkman, Game Boy – whatever keeps you relaxed and smiling. Remember to put your name and address on everything!
  7. Training Diary: To write down times and coach comments after each race, to record warm up details and make important notes.
  8. Bandaids: For those little mishaps and accidents.
  9. Vaseline: For rubs and chaffing.
  10. Warm Clothes: To keep warm between events, after warm up and after the meet for the journey home.
  11. Sunscreen and Hat (if an outdoor meet): Being sun smart is part of being swim smart! Best of all find some shade AND put on sunscreen and a hat!
  12. Two or Three Towels: One for after warm up and extra towels for all sorts of reasons. Keep one towel in a plastic bag (along with some warm clothes) so you always have warm, dry gear to put on. Keep the plastic bag to put your wet clothes and soggy cossies in!
  13. Money (including change for phone calls):
  14. Shoes: Ideally gym shoes or runners to keep your feet safe, dry and warm.
  15. Copy of your race entries: Just in case there is a mix up with the entries and you need evidence to support your claims.
  16. Fins, Kickboard, Pull Buoy: training gear for warm up.
  17. Watch:So you know what time it is!
  18. Pen: To mark entries and the Meet program and to write down interesting stuff about your swims in your training diary.
  19. A Copy of the Meet Program: to check your events, seeding, lane etc
  20. Water Proof Permanent Marker and Highlight Pen: Use the marker to write your race numbers on your arm or hand and the highlighter to mark your events in the program.
  21. Medications: (LEGAL!!!!) eg asthma medications, that have been checked and approved by your doctor, team manager and coach.

To help you pack the right things for your next Meet, here is a packing checklist. Copy the checklist and use it over and over again. (The blank spaces are for you to list your own special items that make you feel great at Meets).

If you pack your bag,
With what you need,
When it’s time to race,
You’ll have the speed.

The opportunity is greatest to those who have thoroughly prepared for it.

Packing Checklist

  • Food
  • Drink
  • Goggles and spare parts
  • Caps and spare caps
  • Swimming Costumes and spares
  • Entertainment
  • Training Diary
  • Bandaids
  • Vaseline
  • Warm clothes
  • Sunscreen and hat
  • Towels
  • Money (including change for phone calls)
  • Shoes
  • Copy of Race Entries
  • Fins, kickboard, pull buoy
  • Watch
  • Pen
  • A Copy of the Meet Program
  • Water proof marker and highlight pen.
  • Medications (LEGAL!)

Wayne Goldsmith

December 31, 2007

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