Wednesday, March 13, 2019

IT’s TIME








Time for what you may ask your coach.  If you need to ask than maybe you and I have a small communication problem and you have not been paying attention over the last few weeks.  It’s time to grab those caps and goggles, prepare your senses for that glorious smell of chlorine over the next few days, put away all of your demons in a box, get ready to race and have fun.  All of your other races have been little checkpoints along the way, it is now time to have fun, put the 
pedal to the medal and see where we will end up.

 Up to now your job in practice has been to prepare to be the best that you could be in order to go out at this moment in time and be the best that you can be at this
 moment and with the understanding that your best may not be good enough every time.  That does not mean your a failure or that you should stop putting 
your best effort out there every time you step onto that block.  Don’t forget to approach these next 2 weekends with a little attitude and make it a positive one because attitude is a little thing that will make a big difference and with a little attitude the possibilities are endless.  That is all you can ask of yourself.
A lot of your races are like the game Win, Lose. or Draw and that is you may win, 
you may lose or it mind end in a draw, but you have to choose to swim the race. 

 The senior prep group was asked to write down all the things that worry them at a swim meet on a index card yesterday after practice (Junior Gold/Blue will do it today) and place them in our demon box. Now you can relax because all of your demons are locked in a box and now you can let your coaches shoulder those 
worries for you.  All you need to do is Race!  No matter how you feel, “you are far tougher than you give yourself credit for.  Although you may feel like your body doesn’t want to perform, you’d be surprised at what you are capable of.” 
 What to do if you get overly excited, first thing is slow down kiddo, don’t forget our fall back slow down and breathe, “Right Foot, Left Foot, Breathe, keep it simple don’t over think it.
You should have your race day routine down by now.  Don't overthink this.  As 
coaches we have prepared your set warmup that you have been doing at practice for the last two weeks so you should be comfortable doing this on your own.  The coaches are there to help if needed, but our job is to keep you relaxed and not to be traffic cops.  As we discussed you may need to be somewhat aggressive (but 
be nice and polite) during warmup to get what you need to do done.
RACE DAY CHECKLIST
  • Meals you are going to eat
  • Time you go too bed
  • Time you wake up
  • Equipment checklist
  • Warmup and warm down routines

  • Stretching 
  • When you head over to blocks
Don’t forget that second warmup about 20 minutes before you swim to get those 
juices flowing again, get the heart pumping and then flip that “ON” switch!

For our parents out there, I would remind you that regardless of your swimmers 
results, remember that they are “physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted” so try to make that car ride home as enjoyable as possible. This comes from a parent who not only had twin girls that swim, but also had the unique opportunity to coach them until the age of 15.  With that said if I as a paren/coach could put 
the races behind us I know you all will do a great job.  Three keys to having a successful ride home;
  1.  Let the child drive the conversation, let them lead
  2.  Don’t force the conversation.  Remember they just finished a long day on the deck and are physically mentally and emotionally drained.  
  3.  Always let them know you love them and are proud of them no matter the outcome of their races."
Let them come to terms with their performance and results from their races on 
their own.

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