The Fun of a Menu

When our team closes in on an important meet and we hit taper phase we often have a Saturday work out that is done Menu style. Basically it involves a warm up of some predetermined amount and then the rest of the session happens according to whatever time plan the swimmer wants. Sometimes we have them do a meet warm up; other times – like today – we lead them through it. Below is an example. This is what we are doing today 2-25-12. We have a meet in Clovis, CA next weekend which is the shave and taper meet for the winter racing block. It is also the last chance qualifier for the NCSA Junior National meet in Orlando March 20-24.

These work outs are extremely popular. When we announced last night that we had a menu work out for today there were whoops of joy. We sometimes time the swims and sometimes don’t. We often will look at our watch and make remarks of glee, impressed with the times, but not tell them the times. It drives them crazy. They all want to know what the watch says but we don’t place to much value on it ourselves, especially as each person is different in the transition from training to taper. We call it “checking the oil”…you don’t check the oil every time you get in your car. Unless there is a pool of goop under the car you pretty much know the oil is fine. After all you drove it yesterday. Same thing with speed in work outs; look good, feel good, done.

2-25-12 MENU OPTIONS – Clovis in 1 week; Orlando in 3 weeks

Wmp 2000/40

Meat and potatoes – Orlando

Fast eaters: all from blocks

1x150 broken .10/100, last 50 fast

1x100 broken .10/50, last 50 fast with legs

1x100 broken .10/25 and 75…build middle 50 with legs

3x35 - one like your 50, one like your 100, one your choice

Bigger eaters: all from blocks

1x200 broken .10/100 fast cruz to leg build up

1x200 broken .10/50 each 50 gets faster and has more leg power

1x150 broken .10/50 building leg power

1x100 broken .10/25 and 75 – your chance to be a sprinter!

3x35 – one like your 50, one like your 100, one your choice

The light eaters and dessert lovers: Clovis

See the maître d for options from today’s organic garden of earthly delights…we know you will be so happy that you will tell all your friends and relatives about our fine cuisine and excellent service!

Your total cost will not exceed 200 yards – oops, calories!

Find us on the web at www.bestchoicesforfastswimming.tuna

True Story

A couple of weeks ago at a mutual friend’s birthday party I reconnected with a former Masters swimmer from the 1970’s. Tom asked me what it was like coaching at this point in time vs. in the 60’s and 70’s. What had changed, if anything? I replied that some technique issues had been refined and racing strategies had been clarified to some extent. I said that belief systems still ruled the day when all was said and done. He asked me if the kids were any different. I said I thought there was less ability to connect the dots between responsibility and accountability. I also believe that parents are reluctant to allow their children to fail thereby robbing them of one of the great teaching experiences of all time.

He proceeded to tell me the story of his daughter Sydney (not her real name). A handful of years ago when she was 14 years old in 8th grade she declared that she wanted to attend a local private school that is very exclusive. They only admit 85 students each year. Hundreds apply.

She decided that in addition to her outstanding grades, test scores and letters of recommendation from various folks that she would sweeten her chances by expanding her resume by competing in a speaking contest. She entered with the idea of being a finalist, maybe even winning and felt if she did this it would really help her chances of gaining a spot at this school.

She decided to reprise Doris Day’s role of Annie Oakley. She got her outfit together and practiced her lines for weeks. As the contest neared the excitement in the home began to build. Tom was extremely proud of her and she was growing more confident by the day.

The evening of the contest Tom and Sydney drove to Sonoma County where the contest was being held. She took the stage looking sharp; he stood in the wings, the proud parent. As she wowed the crowd and the judges he beamed.

Part way through, she stopped. She had momentarily forgotten her lines. She looked at him for help. He smiled encouragingly. Unable to remember she turned her back on the judges and audience, closed her eyes and took a deep calming breath. For nearly a minute she stood there motionless, and then looked at him asking for help. He shrugged his shoulders and smiled willing her to remember, to go on.

She took another deep breath and turned back to the audience. She said “I am unable to continue. I have forgotten my lines. I thank all of you for this opportunity and while I am disappointed in myself I can tell you I practiced hard and have done my best. Unfortunately today I cannot go forward.” With her head held high she walked down through the crowd and out the front door with Tom following closely behind.

They got in the car and she burst into tears, sobbing mightily. He comforted her as best he could. He had mixed feelings of course;he felt badly for her and proud of her at the same time.

The next morning as they ate breakfast together they reread the contest rules. There in the fine print at the bottom it stated that “no contestant shall be penalized for being prompted.” He felt extremely disappointed in himself for not reading the rules more carefully. She said it didn’t matter all that much that she had prepared as well as she could and it simply didn’t work for her that night.

Tom told me that it has been 5 years since the incident and several times over those years his daughter has told him that she learned more about success, perseverance, dignity under pressure, handling disappointment and keeping things in perspective from that one incident than she ever would have had she been able to complete her speech that night.

She was accepted into the school anyway. She decided not to attend. She is a freshman in college today, doing well.

Risk Taking

Wow! Everywhere we turn we find articles and mentions of the value of risk taking. The latest to come across our bow wave is an article in the San Francisco Chronicle with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. He states that the five "core values" of his firm are:

Focus on Impact; Move Fast; Be Bold; Be Open; Build Social Value.

Under his comment about being bold..."Building great things means taking risks. This can be scary and prevents most companies from doing the bold things they should. However, in a world that's changing so quickly, you're guaranteed to fail if you don't take any risks. We have another saying: 'the riskiest thing to do is to take no risks.' We encourage everyone to make bold decisions, even if that means being wrong some of the time."

We read a recently submitted goal sheet from one of our swimmers. The main theme was embarrassment. The swimmer was concerned that if "I fail, I will be embarrassed. Everyone will see my failure." Our response to that was 1- without taking a chance you will never know where you are in the development curve of your career (life etc.) and 2 - it is time to "get over yourself". Not that many people are actually watching you. They are too busy watching themselves.

It is interesting to watch youngsters (and oldsters) wanting to test their limits (risk taking) while simultaneously being concerned about their "rating" (how well they think they are measuring up to peer review).

As coaches, one of our main responsibilities is to free our athletes from this "judgment" process. A little more of "living in the present" goes a long way to future successes.

Continuing From Last Week...

All kinds of interesting things have happened this week, which is just the way we like it!

Our swimmer who was the focus of our discussions last week spoke to the team in our weekly meeting discussing the emotions and reactions that she/he had after the experience of “bailing” in the 100 freestyle event. Apology was made and accepted and we are all moving forward with an increased awareness of what is needed to excel at this sport, indeed at any activity of our choice.

We had a frank and open discussion with the Dad involved and learned that there is a lot of pressure at home to get good grades and hit the proverbial “4.0”. In the swim as soon as the swimmer figured out it wasn’t going to be a 4.0 the plug was pulled and therein lays the problem.

We have just finished a lengthy and what some would call an arduous state wide examination on the Fundamentals of Coaching. Putting aside our personal biases, one of several things that caught our eye was the discussion of how different folks view success.

The point made was that some look at it through an “ego” driven viewpoint whereas others a “task” perspective. The athlete who views his/her participation in sport from the “ego” side is preoccupied with the adequacy of their abilities compared to others and is focused on the outcome of the contest. The athlete who looks at her/his participation in sport from the “task” viewpoint feels successful when they gain skill knowledge. They try hard to perform to the best of their abilities, experience personal improvement and are focused on what they are doing at the moment.

As coaches, we are clearer now on our swimmer from last week who waved the white flag in the 100 free. It is a mark of an athlete who is more ego driven than task driven.

It is critical, in our viewpoint, that all coaches – from developmental to the elite level – understand that task/process orientation is much more likely to achieve greater results than simple ego/result orientation. Yes, every athlete and coach has a goal in mind. The more sustainable path is through the process…in our occasionally humble opinion!