"Don't breathe off the wall!"
"How many times do I have to tell you to stop breathing every 2 after the last 100!"
"Reach your arms father in front of you on the free!!!"
This is what I constantly hear being screamed into my ear, and I know... I wouldn't be hearing this if I just did it correctly! But what can I say, I have very bad habits to break.
However that shouldn't be my excuse, I really should say my lack of motivation has caused this to be a real major setback on my swimming. That's why, it's very important to set goals to turn those habits into something that can benefit your swimming technique and your time. Here are some general tips that will hopefully turn your habit into a positive one.
How to Turn Your Habits Into Your Strengths
This is probably the hardest thing to do for a swimmer due to their stubbornness to start at ground zero. However no one can start off without any foundation, that's why we need to start at the beginning level and slowly build off from that.
Slow Down and Make Goals
Slow and steady wins the race.
Swimmers are very ambitious athletes that like to quickly fix their mistakes right then and there and move on, but that rarely works. The swimmer who paces him/herself and records his/her goals is the one who is the most successful. I learned this when I went to a swim clinic that had Meghan Jendrick and Ian Crocker as the coaches there. I remember Meghan stressing the importance of setting goals and committing to working on them. She said that in order to achieve your objective, you first have to set a sustainable and reasonable goal, then focus on it every chance you get at practice. She also added that the majority of your goals will not take a week to fix them, but rather a month to turn them into a good habit. It's a long commitment, but it will help you tremendously well.
Determination
"There's a lot to be said, but until you actually get into the water and do it, it all doesn't mean anything."
As said by 3 time Olympic God Medalist and National Record Holder of the 50 and 100 Free, Nathan Adrian emphasizes the crucial point of swimming, determination. In swimming, you must have determination to succeed your goals and push through disheartening setbacks. So you can talk as much as your want about your goals, but your true test is when you find the determination to do it. This is the hardest step for swimmers because it all comes down to commitment, and we all know how lazy we can be at times (can we all admit now that after a hard practice, we sit in front of our computers watching Netflix while eating a tub of cookies n' cream ice-cream, cause I'm guilty of that). So if this is something you truly want, you have to make sure you stick to it.
So, after reading all this, are you ready?
All you need to succeed is to be consistent and committed, if you miss a day, that's okay. As long as you can get back on your feet and remember to make it up by giving it your all the next day of practice.
Just start small, make goals, work on it every chance you get, then build up from there.
Go big or go home!
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