LIFE UNDERWATER

 

"Talk doesn't cook rice."  Chinese Proverb

It's easy to say things especially in today's world the real work starts bye going out and doing!

For the past two weeks we have given you all a huge amount of sets to try and help each group with their UNDERWATER DOLPHINS off the walls or as we like to say using your fifth stroke.

Adapting the strong underwater dolphin kick to human bodies isn't easy, but it is very effective.  Swimmers are limited by our "bow wave",  that little wave in front of us that travels down the pool with us.  Unlike dolphins who can literally jump over that wave 🌊 swimmers aren't capable of getting over or around it, but we can get under it and the longer we can stay under it the better off we are.  

The debate for swimmers is whether the mastery of this stroke comes with a loss of speed.  That is the question,  at what point does using that kick affect your speed and thus your time.  Luckily rules are in place that you cannot travel more than 15Meters (except breaststroke) down the pool.  

Swimmers tend to overlook working on this fifth stroke and I believe the reason is twofold; the first being that it is hard and makes them tired and the second is that they feel they can move faster on top of the surface.  Unfortunately with either of those mindsets swimmers will give up on the mastery of these skills before they have a chance to become comfortable and proficient, and thus no matter what the boards says they always leave something out of their races.  CHAMPIONS DON'T TRAIN OR RACE LIKE THAT.

Master this fifth stroke and you will start to rocket off your walls and you just might surprise yourself.

SET OF THE WEEK

8 rounds

4x25 @30 fast fly dolphin kick.  Work the up motion 

1x50 @1:00 strong fly/back with all UWD past the 10M mark

2 rounds 

25 fly from start (strong UWD to 15m mark

50 fly to back from a push UWD past 12.5 strong

50 back to breast (strong UWD past 12.5. double pull out for breast)

CLIMB OUT

25 FREE NO BREATH

FEEDING THAT MONSTER

APPLE PANCAKES

INGREDIENTS:

• applesauce
• 2 eggs
• oats
• 
  any type of milk
• baking powder
• any spices (I used cinnamon) 
• olive oil or butter

Blend all ingredients in a blender and then using pan cook your pancakes. don't forget to add the topping.

14 and under Championship

We now have the team established for the 2024 14 and under championships and are in the process of putting together our relays.  If you are asked to participate in a relay we expect you to be there for the team.  We are hoping to put them out by next week.  Stay tuned

ISCA ELITE MEET

 

FOR ALL SWIMMERS TRAVELING TO SAINT PETERSBURG FOR THIS MEET THE COACHES ARE ASKING YOU TO PRINT OUT THE 4 days of the meet and bring it in to your coaches so that we can help you choose your bonus events.   We expect you to have at least one event a day to swim as everyone will be going to he meet regardless of whether you are swimming or not.  This is a team travel meet.

IF NOT NOW, WHEN?

 

“WIN”  WHAT’S IMPORTANT NOW

So maybe that streamline or UW dolphin kick aren’t important to you in training today.  Maybe today isn’t the day you want to really work hard.  You’ve made up your mind that today isn’t the day but someday it will be.

I only have one question for you which is, Where is someday on this calendar and where does it fall into the week?  I’ve checked all my calendar’s at the house at the pool and I can’t find one that has someday in it.

If your putting off something today waiting for someday it’s going to be a long…long wait.

Looking for a healthy snack for that appetite after a swimming session?  After that training session or meet you need to feed that monster with some healthy food.   Remember you need to fuel your body with "high octane food" if you want it to perform at high level.  Don't forget junk in = junk out.  

It is important for swimmers to refuel after every 90 minutes of swimming g activity.  It is also important to snack before during and after training sessions to keep energy levels steady and replenish your muscles.

CARBOHYDRATE CHOICES

• Sandwich with chicken, turkey, and nut butter and jam on whole wheat bread
• Whole grain crackers with cheese
• Whole grain cereals
• Bran muffins
• Energy bars
• Fresh fruit
• Vegetables and cheese pizza 🍕 on whole wheat crest
• Whole grain bagel
• Yogurt with fresh fruit

PROTEIN

• Chocolate 🍫 milk
• chicken/tuna /turkey sandwich with spinach 

HYDRATION

•  drink/drink/drink
• 💧 water/water/water/water

SET OF THE WEEK

• 4x25 fly @30 +1x50 kick fast @1:15
• 4x25 back @30 +1x50 kick fast @1:15
• 4x25 breast @30 +1x50 kick fast @1:15
• 4x50 free fast @ 40/45/50/55 + 1x100 kick fast for time (can you break a 1:00)

Focus on all 25's is to hit between the 10m mark and 12.5 on hall of them with 3 fast breakout strokes 

on 50's kick it is ALL OUT SPRINT

Get up and Line UP for a 200 IM

2x25 of each stroke walk around

Focus is explosive starts/ great streamline ands UW to a fast finish

YOU HAVE TO HAVE A VISION

 "If January is the month of change, February is the month of lasting change."

Always swim tall, swim fast in and out of your turns and always finish to the hand on the wall.

Without a vision you are swimming blind not much different than swimming with water in your goggles.

Although swimmers have the vision of "big races, fast times and ultimate success" their vision often becomes blurred and hard to see.  I truly believe that most swimmers look at swimming as "swimming practice" and they think by attending practice and just swim that they will get the results they want.  This may be true in a young swimmers development but with each birthday those results become harder to attain especially as your times get faster.  

So what can you do? The first thing is to have a vision of where you are headed and a plan on how to get there.  (Certainly you want to have a better plan than Coach Heather and I or else you never know where you'll end up")  The first thing you need to do is look no further than you daily swimming, and instead of thinking of it as "swimming practice" think of this as "swim training" which is what we are doing at all levels, Junior Blue, Junior Gold, and Senior Prep.  Depending on which level your at we are trying to train you and give you techniques that will help you with your races.  It could be something as simple as repeating your streamlines over and over again, it could be repeating a set over and over again until it is performed successfully.  You may not like it but if we can not do it in practice, what makes you think you can do it in race conditions.

Once you buy into this and start approaching each day of swimming as a training session you will be one step closer to realizing your vision. 

NUTRITIONAL TIP THIS WEEK

The watermelon popsicle.  This is an easy way to keep you hydrated during competitions and is really easy to make.  It also is a different and cool way to have a watermelon treat.

PRESIDENT DAY PRACTICE

This week we had 2 different types of practices in honor of presidents day.  The first was with the Gold Group who had the following set 46x25 and on each of the 25 they had to give us the name of a president. Parents, you will be happy to know that they named 41 of the 46 which Jackson and I were surprised to see.  A shout out to Ella Kim who named the most on the list.

With the senior prep group each person of the lane got a index card with a statement on it and they had the choice of picking which one they wanted to answer with the name of the president.  If right they got the easier of the two sets.  Of the 5 games they played they answered all 5 correctly.  We did go through the rest of them and they got all but 14 of them.  

SET OF THE WEEK

4x25 IMO (ready position, strong first 3 first strokes)

4x50 free @40/45/50/55 (intervals different for gold and blue). no breath out no breath in

3x100 IM (walk arounds) looking for streamlines off starts fast 25 to a fast finish)

FUN FACTS EVERY SWIMMERS HAVE IN TRAINING

 

THE BAKERS DOZEN

How many sound like you?

1. Can we do relays? 
2. When did I start singing this song?
3. I wonder what's  for dinner?
4. Wait, who was the 16 th president? 
5. What ifs I said this instead....?
6. What number Arte we on?What time is it?
7. I wonder if I could fall asleep while swimming?
8. What are we leaving on?
9. I wish I was a diver?
10. Who invented swimming?
11. I wonder if the coach saw that?
12. Why?
13. Please stay off my feet...

ARE WE LEARNING

 

SENIOR PREP

So, yesterday Dude and Anna had their birthday swims where they were ask to guess their times in a 50 free within 1.0 seconds up or down.  The reason I like doing this is twofold, first to see what your confidence level is and second to show you what it takes to swim fast.

This 50 took place at the end of practice and after we did those 6x100 and 6x50 all out at a tight interval.  Forward to the guess (Dude 27.7 and Anna 27.9) and at first thought I wanted them to think about it, because at first thought I knew they were probably guessing high and being safe.  Let me repeat that “being safe”.

THE RESULTS ARE IN—-The two of them finished in a dead heat coming in at 25.90 on my watch.  Compensating for human error let’s say 26.3 and so by playing safe they were outside of that 1.0 second of their guess.

What’s your point coach?  It’s simple CONFIDENCE. The swimmer who is confident will have a much easier path towards their goals and it starts with how you talk to yourself in your head.  It’s nearly impossible to not get into your head before a race but with practice YOU can master it just like everything else you do.  What won’t work is to worry about results, not doing well or what you may feel like during your race.  Control that uncontrollable stuff  by knowing that you have put in the work and are in control of your destiny.

The next point is that it is possible to swim very fast after a hard set and much easier than when you’re sitting around which brings us to your second or specific warm up before a race.

THE SECOND WARMUP

That first warmup (early swim) is important as it lets you get settled in, and stretch out and get in some

easy swimming.  depending on the event your swimming it is important to get in again to make sure your muscles are warmed and your heart beat i.e. elevated a little.  If your doing a 50 you should allow yourself about 15 minutes from the end of your warmup to the start of your race.  Longer events give yourself 20 to 30 minutes.

First estimate what time you need veto get in.  Swim a 100 easy than a couple of 50's a little faster.  Next swim some 12.5 fast with good breakouts and 3-5 fast strokes and easy free back to wall. Do anywhere from 4 to 8 of these with about 30 seconds between each.  When finished hop out, hydrate and put a parka or sweatshirt on and your ready to roll with confidence.

THE PEN, THE PAPER

"If you're scared to lose rather than excited to win, then that's the wrong way to approach a race." CATE CAMPBELL...

That one quote says a lot about what we as coaches observe while watching swimmers walk around the deck during a swim meet.  I venture to guess that the elephant in the room that most scares you is that final result that appears on the scoreboard be it the place, the time or both.  In your fantasy world you may think you can control that board but in reality all you can do is believe in yourself and the work you have put in and just race.  That’s how you control that board.  Put the pen to the paper and write your story.  

We've talked about controllable and uncontrollable in previous sessions and now I want to put this question out there, Can you control the uncontrollable?  To an extent I would says but it takes practice just like anything else.  Swimming like life moves fast.  Situations happen, things go wrong and your ability to manage those situations will determine what happens next.

All athletes are rarely presented with a perfect set of circumstances and swimming is no different.  One thing that always happens in swimming is the dreaded warmup where it is crowded with a small time frame.  Instead of getting all worked up let's find a way to maximize what you have.  The same could be said for practices where you don't get to write the workout but what you do get to do is swim the workout so, let's try to find a way to maximize what you can get out of the practice and come out as a better version of yourself on the other side.

In summary when things don't work out like you wanted always go back to these three things;

WORK ETHIC-- Make being good a habit.  This means doing the things in practice the right way which includes streamlines, turns, pull outs, pacing, kick sets, finishes.  You need to always strive to get better in these areas all the time not just when you feel like it.  Good Habits = Good Races.

ATTITUDE---Don't create negative thoughts in your head.  Don't make excuses.  Don't play the blame game.  BE COACHABLE.

FOCUS--- "WIN" focus on watts in front of you.  One thing at a time.

SET OF THE WEEK-- WORKING THE IM

25 fly from a start--find that opening speed off your start

50 back from a push.  work on building off that wall to find that fast tempo on the 2nd 25.

25 breast from a push.  strong pullout and work good body (head position) work on driving shoulders up and forward on extension.

50 free from a push. no breath out no breath in.  finish with good speed no excuses

We did 4 rounds of this set at high intensity throughout.

WEEKLY NUTRITIONAL TIPS

EAT PROTEIN--swimmers need protein.  Not only does it help build muscle but it also aids in repair of muscles after workouts..

STAYING HYDRATED--- so many of your uncomfortable feelings during your workouts could be avoided  by drinking water before during and after consistently.

Begin your workout well hydrated.  Drink 2 glasses about two hours before workout.  drink another glasses of water 15 minutes before.

During practice take sips b between repeats.  Your water bottle should be empty as you walk off the deck.

Prevent yourself from getting thirsty because once you are thirsty it becomes a fight to catch up.

LISTEN TO YOUR BODY--everyones body is different so listen

 

SMELL THE ROSES

Valentines Day, Roses and swimming.  Do they have anything in common?  Roses and Valentines Day go together.   Have you ever heard the phrase, Slow down and Smell the roses?

This thought came up during our meet in Greensboro a few days ago and the reason for that is simple, we had talked about warmup and warm down during the meet and I always wonder if you all hear the message, I know you hear the noise but do you really hear the message? 

First up was warmups the first day of the meet when what to my Astonishment some swimmers said they were finished warmup after 15 minutes and all I could do is shake my head.   You are about to ask your body to be ready to race when you make that call but you fail to prepare it and get it ready for the grueling task ahead.

Second we talked about getting a long warm down after your last event (300-600 depending on your level and age).  I actually had to sit at a swimmers lane and keep them going because after a 50 this swimmer said I'm done, so we continued on foe another 450 although almost at every wall the swimmer asks, Am I done?  To the swimmers credit when getting out I heard these words, I feel better now.

The point is that there are times when you just need to slow your roll a little bit in order to get yourself to a better place.  I get that this sport is all about speed and sometimes we get so wrapped up in it that we fail to slow down and enjoy the other things that this sport has to offer.  

the phrase "stop and smell the roses" as it is applied to swimming is an encouragement to enjoy this sport with a deeper degree of gratefulness for what surrounds you beyond the times.  It is a reminder to take notice of the things that surround you, chlorine smells, the facilities, the teammates, the moments outside the pool, its the reminder to be present in every moment and to enjoy that moment to its's fulfillment.  Be present in that moment and to do that you need to put the phone down once a while. 

Just a thought1

GOOD-TEAMMATES

"The most important single in the formula of success is knowing how to get along with people". THEODORE ROOSEVELT

How important is it to be a good teammate?  By being an awesome teammate you help create a culture that will go a long way in how successful the group including yourself will be.  When you walk around with a positive mindset it can be very infectious with everyone in the group, but on the other hand you can sabotage the group with innuendos, gossip and exclusion.  Instead of being part of the problem, BE part of the solution.

Swimmers come in all types and have been blessed with different talents an regardless where you are on the spectrum everyone of you can be a great group mate.

EFFORT-- A great group mate will always give relentless effort regardless, no excuses.  We always talk about focusing in on the things you can control and effort is the one thing that you can control every day. No excuses.  An athlete who always has an excuse will always have a built in excuse for failure and that is all an excuse is, a valid reas=on for failure.  The only way to get better is to give your maximum effort.  This will not only make you better but it will push the whole group to nbc better.

HONEST--A great group mate is honest.  The group dynamics is based on honesty and your coach and teammates need too know that they can trust you during the ups and downs of the season.  By being honest you refrain from using social media for spreading gossip and innuendos about teammates.  If you have issues go to the source and talk through it and respect each other and don't repeat it to others.  You don't always have to agree with each other but you should talk and listen.

UNSELFISH--  It's not always easy but you need to put the group first and by doing so you, yourself are in a better position to be successful.  Find happiness for your teammates success and be there when they need a hand and in turn they will be there for you hopefully.  Cheer your group mates on during practice through a sprint set or a hard set it will make the practice must more fun and isn't that what it's all about.

HUMBLE--  Be humble for you never know when you will be on the other end.  Enjoy your accomplishments but be humble and be sure to give praise to your teammates.  Our success will come when no one cares who gets the credit.

ACCOUNTABLE-- To be a great group mate you need to hold yourself and your group mates accountable.  Set high standards for yourself and the group and then hold each other accountable through support and encouragement.  If someone is not meeting the standards you can't be afraid to face them (not through social media) but through face to face communication you just might be able to help them work through an issue and get them back on track.  Don't accept a negative attitude, reach out and help them work through the issue.  You never know when you may be on the other end.

IMPROVE-- You should always be striving to improve. Every time you walk onto deck you should have the attitude that you will walk out a better swimmer and person.  Work to improve yourself through great effort and you will lift your teammates up.

OPTIMISTIC--Don't be that swimmer who is always complaining or coming up with excuses for not doing something the right way.  Look for the positives in thatchers and the workout in front of you.  Always look for the positives in your races.

RESPECT--Respect your family.  Respect your teachers.  Respect your coaches.  Respect your teammates.  Respect your facilities.  Put your phones down and LOOK people in the eye when communicating.  Nod and acknowledge people when they talk to you.  Encourage and cheer on your teammates and create an environment of mutual respect for each other.

LEADER--A leader does not have to be the best swimmer, they don't even need to be the most vocal. They leave by their actions on a daily basis.  They bring energy to the deck every day.  They challenge teammates during practice.  They are always setting a good example.  They don't talk bad about teammates or coaches behind their backs.  They put a stop to gossip.

RESILIENT-- A good teammate does not play the blame game.  They take setbacks or losses as an opportunity to grow as a person and a swimmer.  They don't make excuses.  They look for solutions. They help their teammates do the same.  Your ability to bounce back will be infectious to the entire group and will help them bounce back also.  A positive outlook will make a difference.  Be that teammate.

RESPONSIBILITY--The season as life will always have ups and downs and regardless of any outcome always take responsibility for YOUR actions.  You never know who is watching for cues on how to behave.  Be the better person and the first step is always taking responsibility.

SET OF THE WEEK  senior prep 4 rounds. junior gold 2 rounds

• 2x25 fly (breathe chin on surface drop chin before arms come over)
• 2x100 (50 back/50 breast) (building speed on first 25 faster tempo on 2nd 25)
• 1x100 free fast (25 strong/ middle 50 racing/25 finish it off)
• 50 recovery kick on back

Intervals are set for each groups appropriate levels.

SNOW DAY

Hope everyone enjoyed your snow days last week.  Great effort from those of you who made the effort to get to practice especially the ones who made it to the St. James on Friday and the ones who braved the cold on Saturday morning.  We had a great turnout.

Have you ever wondered what your summer pools might look like after a snow storm.  It might resemble something like the picture on the right.  Ever wonder who makes this foot prints.  I personally like to go down and try to figure which critters make what foot prints.  I think this past weekend we had deer, birds, and maybe a bear 🐻  , on no those were my foot prints.

NUTRITIONAL TREAT FOR SNOW DAY

APPLE TOAST 

1 tablespoon butter

4 slices of white or whole wheat bread

1 tablespoon cinnamon

1 large apple, cored and thinly sliced

Set oven ton boiling spread butter on one side of bread.  Place apple slices on buttered side and sprinkle cinnamon on top.  Place bread on a baking sheet. Place in a preheated oven until toasted. (about 2 minutes)

Enjoy.