The mindset that one has when arriving for practice goes a long way in determine one’s successes or failure’s during a meet. You all know this sport well and how you are conditioned to viewing whether a race is successful or not, think about it. After getting your hand to the wall, where do you shift your attention, the clock. That clock will tell a story at that exact moment, but what I can tell you is that you start writing that story at practice and it is your story, no one else. When we scrawl something on the whiteboard or verbally communicate the focus of a set to you, do you absorb it and really work on it, or do you just flush it and go about swimming along the line
on the bottom of the pool.
We know your thinking they are on their soapboxes again, but we feel this is important if you truly would like to reach your goals and potential whatever they may be. Let’s take a step back and look at that scoreboard for a moment. It is something that all swimmers or most of them fixate their eyes on when finishing a race but is it the story. Sometimes when you allow yourself to fixate all your attention to the final result, opportunities that allow the result to happen get’s pushed to the end of your priorities. Games, matches and races are always going to be the more exhilarating and fun part for any athlete, but instead of looking at practice as something one has to endure to get to race, lets look at practice as something that is fun and that you are lucky to participate in. Yes it takes a little more effort than just physically showing up and may require you to change your mindset to something like, "I am going to improve some part of my swimming today."
Ever notice how your mindset and your attitude changes as a “BIG MEET” or “TAPER” time suddenly appears in front of you? Your walk has a little more crisp in it, your plate at meal time may even look a little different, maybe less fried foods and more color, maybe the devices get turned off a little earlier for a better night’s sleep, even your workout sessions take on a little more purpose. Why not put a little of that mindset into your workouts, after all it is during these workouts where the foundation of your races are built. How you execute your turn, streamlines and finishes in those workouts, are how you will execute them in your races. If you can’t get down and dirty and go all out when we ask you for it, what makes you think you will b e able to flip that switch during a race. Practice is where mistakes are made and corrected, its where you can test how far and hard you can push yourself and not be fixated on a time.
GOOD practice and workout sessions give you that mental confidence to step up on that block and ask yourself this question, Why not me Today? This mindset will always put you in a better position to b e successful. Without the good practices and workouts one will always question their ability and worry about doing well. After all you don’t skip homework and studying and than expect an A at the end of the semester, Do You?
“Here is what a "practice is everything” mindset produces;
- You do the best you can with what you have.
- You perform at your best no matter how tired you are, or how you are feeling that day.
- You prepare for your workouts with the same focus and consideration you prepare for competition.
- You compete at every opportunity with yourself to be better"
Talking with a lot of you big meets tend to make you nervous, but what I truly believe is that when you approach practice with a better mindset it will give you to confidence and knowledge of how good YOU are and will allow you walk onto the deck of a big meet with that confidence and be able to rest it like just another race. You may not even notice those nerves any longer.
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