Westward passage

Monday October 14, 2014 

Let's see if we can get this thing started.  As we enter into our 6th week of practice it's time to take a breath and see how we are doing.  The first few weeks were spent on getting back into SWIMMING shape, and reviewing basic techniques.  The things that we worked on and that you need to keep practicing as we move forward are:

• leaving wall from ready position every time
• holding a long wall off turns(can we make the flags)
• breathing on second stroke off walls in free and fly
• not breathing flags in at finishes
• breaststroke pull outs on EVERY turn
• explosive dives

You need to do these things at every practice, during every set, and on every repeat  to be in a good position to be successful on race day.

MAKO MEET WRAP UP

On October 5th and 6th we had a chance to race and take stock of where we are early in the season.  We had a lot of swimmers who took advantage of this meet and enter some new events for the first time.  We had a lot of good times, but more important than that was the fact that we saw a lot of sound  racing technique early in the season.  We had a few DQ's and I hope that we talked to everyone about them, if not please see us and we will try to figure it out.  During our meeting last Monday we went over both positives and negatives that each of us can take as we move forward during the season.  One of the major items was warming down right after you swim, and than seeing a coach. 
Every meet, every race you hear the same thing from your coach GO WARM DOWN!! and you say to yourself WHY ?  I swim again in a while, or WHY?  I don't feel any different whether I do or don't.  But you need to listen to us it comes from years of training and personal experiences.  According to SPLASH magazine, "Warm down gives hard-worked muscles the chance to prepare for the next race."  You don't want your muscles to tighten up on you, and this is especially true if you have another event.  "Tighter muscles make it harder for your body to flush the lactate which builds up during a race."  Hydrate with water after your done as this will aid in recovery.  It may take a good 300 to 1000 to warm down, and it will differ from person to person.
After your swim please see a coach for some tips that you can take back to practice and work on.  The important thing here is to go home write down the tips and make an honest attempt to work on them during practice.  if you don't fix them you will repeat them during your next race.
PARENTS YOU NEED TO HELP YOUR SWIMMER AND THE COACHES HERE.  do NOT ENCOURAGE THEM TO COME SEE YOU RIGHT AFTER THEY SWIM.  YOU ARE ONLY PUTTING THEM AT A DISADVANTAGE!!

 UPCOMING MEETS:

OCTOBER OPEN 10/19 and 10/20  The time line on Friday went past midnight  so we pulled our swimmers from that night.  The other time lines look good.  Our entry list will not be that large so we will be able to get some good racing and feed back during this meet.  Parents we need to provide some timers and if we take turns no one is stuck for the entire meet.  THANKS!

OCCS DUAL MEET: 11/2 AND 11/3  We should be entering this meet and we should be entering the maximum events.  Parents please do not worry about your swimmer swimming tired, we want them swimming tired at this point in the season.  Coaches will put together the relays so please do not enter your swimmers in those events.

SWIM AND AND ROCK  11/22 TO 11/24  This meet is where we should get some of our best events in.  If you are going to Lancaster   it might be better to skip Friday and attend school so we don't miss 2 days, and your better rested.

TOPIC FOR THE WEEK: " WORD POWER"  As a coach I always listen to swimmers using words that are negative during practice and even at meets.  "When swimmers state they will try to accomplish a specific task or goal it means they w  ill make an attempt to achieve it.  When swimmers state they will accomplish a specific task or goal it means they will achieve it.  All too often swimmers spend their time trying trying to achieve rather than achieving.  Choosing the  right words or train of thought  is a powerful beginning that makes that makes all the difference in the final result".  For practice it may be as simple as replacing "I don't want to practice today with it's a great day for practice."  Here are 14 affirmations to use for the next 14 days:

1. NO MATTER WHAT OTHERS SAY OR DO---MY SUCCESS IS UP TO WHAT I DO!
2. MISTAKES WILL NOT PUT YOU BEHIND, HOWEVER IGNORING THEM WILL.  LET'S GO AND FOCUS ON THE NEXT SET OR EVENT!
3. I HAVE THE ABILITY AND DESERVE TO BE IN THIS EVENT. MY RECENT TIMES PROVE I AM COMPETITIVE!
4. I AM IN CONTROL OF MY EMOTIONS AND WHAT I CHOOSE TO FOCUS ON!
5. MY PERFORMANCE TODAY WILL BE THE BEST I CAN GIVE REGARDLESS OF THE SURROUNDINGS!
6. I CHOOSE TO SEE MYSELF PERFORMING EFFORTLESSLY AS I GLIDE THROUGH THE WATER WITH CONFIDENCE AND FOCUS.!
7. I CHOOSE TO "PARK" DISTRACTIONS BY PUTTING THEM IN A SMALL BOX AND PLACE THE BOX ON A SHELF AT HOME FOR TODAY.  DISTRACTIONS HAVE NO PLACE AND WILL HAVE NO EFFECT ON MY PERFORMANCE TODAY!
8. BY SWIMMING MY OWN RACE AND STICKING TO THE PLAN THERE IS SUCCESS WITHOUT JUDGEMENT!
9. I CHOOSE TO TAKE THE SUCCESS FROM PRACTICE IN TO THE RACE WITH CONFIDENCE AND TRUST MY ABILITY TO BE A WINNER!
10. TODAY I CHOOSE TO FOCUS ONLY ON EXECUTING PERFECT TURNS DURING EACH AND EVERY REPEAT!
11. WHEN THE "STITCH"  GETS TO ME, I WILL "STOP", BREATHE DEEPLY AND RELEASE CALMLY AND CONTINUE ON!
12. MY GAME PLAN TODAY IS DESIGNED TO KEEP ME IN THE PRESENT, IN EMOTIONAL CONTROL, AND NOT LET  DISTRACTIONS GET IN THE WAY OF MY SUCCESS!
13. AS YOU SWIM YOUR RACE, REMEMBER YOUR TRAINING AND THE TRUST YOU HAVE GAINED FROM EACH AND EVERY DAYS SUCCESS!
14. WALK WITH YOUR HEAD HIGH--REMAIN SILENT--PERFORM WITH INTENSITY, COMMITMENT AND SHOW COMPETITIVE SPIRIT  

PARENTS:  I know that at times it may look  like we are only doing laps in the pool, but on most sets the swimmers have been given one or two things to work on during the set.  You also may want  your swimmer  to go faster during practice, while I am getting them to slow down to focus on what we are trying to accomplish.  If you must sit right above the lanes I ask you to please refrain from communicating with your swimmer as it will   confuse them and undermine what we are trying  to accomplish in the pool.

LET'S HAVE A GOOD WEEK IN THE POOL   MIKE