5 Tips That Helped Me As A Competitive Swimmer

Heya’ll!

Summer is basically in full swing now and I know most of you have switched into summer training mode… Which means increased yardage and doubles in the pool.

With more yardage, you’ll have to become more mindful.

Here are 5 tips that have helped me as a swimmer that will also help you too:

Tip #1: Get ahead of your injuries by doing a strength program.

If I had known that lifting and getting on a proper strength program would’ve saved me from years of pain and surgeries, I would’ve done it in a heartbeat. Instead, I learned it the hard way by getting injured (so many injuries), then having to rehab those injuries before I could properly improve my strength.

Tip #2: Swimming more yardage doesn’t always make you faster.

There were days when I swam 10K+ as a sprinter. While it sometimes felt like a badge of honor and bragging rights, it ultimately just led me to burnout and injuries. While repetition is important and increasing yardage has a place in programming and improving aerobic capacities, I would’ve benefitted from tailored training programs specific to my strengths and events.

Tip #3: You can’t just hydrate with water.

Water alone simply isn’t enough. I used to pound liters of water every day and still felt thirsty. I didn’t realize that all I was doing was further diluting whatever electrolytes were left in my body, making me more dehydrated. I felt groggy, had headaches, had difficulty focusing in class, and was always exhausted.

As soon as I added electrolytes to my water, it felt as if my fatigue evaporated instantly. I swam faster for longer, I focused in school, my headaches went away, and I was no longer tired all the time.

Tip #4: Nutrition has everything to do with your performance.

I understood nutrition had an important role in training. I didn’t know that it was pivotal to success. I didn’t know what I was supposed to eat and when I was supposed to eat. I didn’t know that I was supposed to prioritize protein for muscle building and carbohydrates for fuel. All I knew was that I needed to “fuel my body” without any guidance or direction. It wasn’t until I sought out nutrition coaching that I realized I was doing it all wrong during my entire swimming career.

Tip #5: Don’t forget to have fun.

Swimming is fun. Isn’t that why you started doing it in the first place? Yet somewhere down the line, you forgot that’s why you swam.

I stopped having fun during my last few seasons in college. I was anxious, stressed, and constantly worried about getting my cuts. It didn’t help that I was also overtrained, undernourished, dehydrated, injured, and burned out. But mainly, I lost sight of why I started swimming. I focused too much on wanting to PR every year that swimming became a job instead of a passion. I fell out of love with the sport and I wish I reminded myself to have fun and not take it so seriously.

Want to say injury-free?

I’ve developed an in-app full body performance program for youth swimmers and I’m excited to share this with you!

Junior Prep Strength & Mobility For Swimmers is now available and here’s what you’ll get:

• Prescribed strength, conditioning, hypertrophy, power, mobility, and prehab programming

• Programming 5 days a week

• 100% in-app with easy personal strength tracking

• Personalized readiness scores to determine overtraining and burnout

• Video demos with every exercise

• Form checks

• 24/7 coaching support and direct messaging

• Daily check-ins

• Recovery tips that include general nutrition, hydration, sleep, injury prevention, and MORE

As always, leave feedback by replying to this email. I love sharing the wealth of knowledge and I’m glad I get to share it with you!

Have a FANTASTIC weekend.

Until next time,

Sandra

PS - Need customized strength coaching or swim coaching from someone who’s personally recovered from 10+ injuries and surgeries, and helped many others recover from the same? Sign up for 1:1 coaching with me.

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