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Posts Tagged ‘Swimming Training Tips’

How much training is right for me (or how cake baking can help you swim faster!!!)

Without doubt the toughest question in swimming to answer is “How much training is right for me?”

Coming up with the right swimming training program has often been described as being a bit like making a cake.

When you make a cake, you follow a recipe which specifies how much flour, how much butter, how much milk, how many eggs, how long to bake in the oven, what temperature to set the oven for – yummy I can almost taste it now!

If you add too much butter, no eggs and five pounds of flour more than the recipe needs, then cook it for three hours at a high temperature, you get a mess more like a brick than a dessert!

Training is a mix of the right things done at the right time in the right quantities.

It all starts with your training plan – your “recipe” for success. Read more

Energy Systems: 1-2-3 – let’s take a new look at an old (but still hot) topic.

OK, OK – another article about energy systems and training zones in swimming.

No – this is not just another energy systems article – this one is different…. Read more

Message to Swimming – you still don’t get it!

Six years ago I wrote an article called “Changing Times” about the Sport of Swimming and the challenges it faced all over the world.

You can find the full article at numerous sites (or just email me for a copy).

In short, I challenged the swimming community to work together, to strive to create new, exciting, interesting training and competition environments, to put away petty political and personality conflicts and work together in the best interest of kids, athletes, families, coaches, Clubs and the sport.

Now, Six years later…..You still don’t get it do you! Read more

Questions you always wanted to ask your coach but were afraid to ask.

• Did you ever want to ask your coach a question but couldn’t find the right way of asking the question?
• Did you ever have something you wanted to say to your coach but couldn’t find the right moment?
• Did you ever want to sit down with your coach and discuss some stuff you have been wondering about but never had the chance?

Well – here’s your chance!

Questions you always wanted to ask your coach but were afraid to ask! Read more

Swimming Psyche Outs. How to be in control, confident and composed when faced with psyche outs (and how to use them to your advantage!!). Part Two.

Ten things you can do to respond to a psyche out-er:

• Smile;
• Say “thanks”;
• Shake their hand and say “I really appreciate your support”;
• Laugh and say “is that the best you can come up with?”;
• Tell them, “I am sorry. I really wasn’t listening to you”;
• Tell them an even bigger “exaggeration”;
• Walk away;
• Say, “wow – I am really lucky to be racing someone as talented and gifted as you”;
• Keep chatting with family and friends.

But the best thing of all is to……………ignore them and swim your best.

Psyche out practice – dealing with Dirty Downers. Read more

Swimming Psyche Outs. How to be in control, confident and composed when faced with psyche outs (and how to use them to your advantage!!). Part One.

“The highest reward for a person’s toil is not what they get for it but what they become by it.” John ruskin

How many times do you hear a football player or baseballer or basketballer say something like “It was tough out there today. The other team really psyched us out”.

Sportspeople talk about the psyche out as something someone else did to them – that someone somehow did something mystical or magical that impacted on their performance.

Lots of people talk about psyching out…………..so what is it?

What is a psyche out? Read more

Creating a Winning Swimming Club Culture – excellence, environment, everything, everyday, everybody.

Every swimming team has a unique culture.

Some teams have a culture of fun, enjoyment, family and friends.

Some teams have a culture of hard work, discipline, dedication and training.

Some teams are based at schools, colleges and universities and their culture is a reflection of the culture of the institution.

The culture of some teams comes from their location, the ethnic background of the people in the team, the climate or the city they live and train in.

Every team is unique and every culture is special.

But for many teams, there comes a time when the coaches, swimmers, families and supporters decide they want to become a winning team. They decide to set some serious competitive goals and work together as a team to achieve them.

And to become a winning team requires the development of a winning culture. Read more

Five Breaststroke Essentials for all Swimmers and Coaches

1. If you want to swim breaststroke – you have to swim breaststroke

We have all been there – sitting behind a breaststroker, trying to overtake them, trying to get around their wide kicks and slow speed. Frustrating!!!

However, to get good at breaststroke – you have to swim breaststroke! That is to say, if you want to swim fast breaststroke in competition you have to train to swim fast breaststroke.

Many swimmers wonder why their breaststroke does not improve. Often the reason is simple…they don’t swim it enough in training. Read more

Flying into Fly: Five Tips for Swimming Brilliant Butterfly.

Peaking and Tapering Strategies–Getting it right the first time.

There’s Harry Potter.

There’s Star Wars.

There’s Disneyland.

And there’s one other magic and mystery experience……………Peaking and Tapering swimmers.

But what is peaking and tapering?

• PEAK – Preparing Each Athlete’s Kapacity (capacity) to perform at their best.
• TAPER – Training Activities that Provide Excellence after Rest.

Peaking is about training swimmers to swim at their best.

Tapering is ensuring that the swimmer’s can produce their best on a specific day following a period of rest, recovery and regeneration.

Let’s try to unlock the magic and mystery of coaching swimmers to perform at their best……when it matters most. Read more

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• About this Blog

  Expert advice, ideas, innovation and inspiration for all sports coaches and team managers - from 'grass roots' through to elite and high performance levels. All posts are written by Wayne Goldsmith, AKA the "Sports Coaching Brain". If you have a question or comment about any post, please add it to the comments section.

• Recent Posts

  • How much training is right for me (or how cake baking can help you swim faster!!!)
  • Energy Systems: 1-2-3 – let’s take a new look at an old (but still hot) topic.
  • Message to Swimming – you still don’t get it!
  • The Swimming Coach Score Card – a must for all coaches (and swimmers and parents).
  • Questions you always wanted to ask your coach but were afraid to ask.

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