SUNDAY FEBRUARY 28

UPDATES FOR WEEK:  All practices this week will be held at normal times.  Please attend your proper workouts as each group's planning is a little different.  A MISSED WORKOUT IS A LOST OPPORTUNITY TO GET BETTER.  Although it is good to make the workout up it is not the same as your regular workout.  This sport is a long process to help you get to your goals!

 

MEET UPDATES:    All entries for the last three short course meets which are our CHAMPIONSHIP meets should be in. If you are swimming more than 3 events at JO's you SHOULD NOT BE SWIMMING IN THE MAKO INVITATIONAL CHAMP MEET at the end of the month.  If you only have 3 or less events it is your choice BUT DO NOT swim the events you swam at JO's

 

MAKO/SNOW MEET WRAP UP:    I want to congratulate all of you for a tremendous effort yesterday, yes I know it was  a long afternoon. WE accomplished what was needed.  We a lot of swimmers from our groups swimming personnel bests, and a lot of swimmers making JO cuts.  I know that some of you came away disappointed having not made any JO cuts, but do not let that take away from the effort that you have put in up to this point in the season.  I too am disappointed (not in the effort) that we could not have every swimmer achieve a cut, but it doesn't always work out the way we plan. 

 

As I have said we now  know which meet will be your CHAMPIONSHIP MEET and this is where WE need to turn our focus now for the next 3 weeks.  LET'S CHALLENGE OURSELVES AND GET AFTER IT!

 

WEEKLY QUOTE:  "IF THE ELEVATOR TO A BEST TIME IS BROKEN, GET THERE ONE STEP AT A TIME". C.D.

 2010    JUNIOR OLYMPIC QUALIFIERS:                                       

MAEVE

 

MARYBETH

 

FLETCHER

                                              Congratulations to all of you for making the cut, but remember DO NOT be satisfied with just making the meet.  Now WE need to show up and perform and have a great weekend both INDIVIDUALLY AND AS A TEAM.  I AM STILL WORKING THROUGH THE RELAYS AND i WILL POST THEM LATER THIS WEEK.

 

 

WEEKLY TOPIC:  "I want to   WIN, but I am AFRAID to lose" 

 

Every athlete wants to win every competition that they are in, and while that is a great goal, it is also an unrealistic one for ALL athletes. In swimming this is even harder because you get instant feedback with a place and time, and while everyone wants a best time, this is one promise that I can make to EACH of you, it is not going to happen.  As you get older this will happen more often than you would like, but you need to stay the course and understand the process. In swimming  the best swimmer doesn't always win the race!

 

"This is often due to the swimmer being too emotionally attached to the outcome-- which means that instead of swimming with an AGGRESSIVE, POSITIVE   outlook, the swimmer competes with more of a defensive mindset, similar to that fatal attitude some swimmers develop when they begin protecting a lead in a race, instead of moving further ahead.

 

ANTICIPATION or FEAR-  -that's the choice you have before every race, and this choice also chooses your results.  Fear contracts the muscles and prevents the blood circulating efficiently.  Fear prevents you thinking clearly before and during a race, causes poor tactical decisions, PREVENTS QUICK RECOVERY  , and contracts the muscles causing poor blood circulation and bodily restriction.

 

There are several ways to tackle fear.  One way is to emotionally pull back from the race.  Being "too emotionally attached" basically means that you are simply thinking about the race too much when your not at the pool.

 

Instead, whenever you are away from the pool, focus a little more on some other aspects of your life (such as school,friends, family etc.), and know that this meet is simply a part of your life, not all of it.  This helps to put he meet into it's true perspective, and shows that the race isn't life or death!  This takes some pressure off you mentally, and allows you to swim more relaxed and aggressively in the meet--and this brings PERSONAL BEST'S.

 

Swimming in a state of frenzy is NOT the way to win.  You need to be motivated, but not over-motivated (or under-motivated)-- and both are brought on by fear.  So if you feel fear about a race, you need to work on this issue before the race arrives.

 

Bending your reality a little can also take some pressure off -- such as mentally pretending (depending upon which approach takes the most pressure off you)  that you are either the favorite to win, or the underdog.  By instructing your subconscious mind that your role has suddenly changed, it can release the current stress from your system and allow you to relax mentally and physically.

 

Focusing upon the fun aspects of a meet can also help, rather than worrying about all the things which can go wrong.  For instance, focus upon the positives such as the friends you will see, the laughs you will have between races, and the very reason why you swim in the first place --    BECAUSE YOU ENJOY IT!  Make your meets a fun and enjoyable occasion rather than an ordeal -- because humans generally succeed at things they enjoy, and fail at things they dislike, it's the very nature of success.

 

Turn fear into anticipation, the scary ordeals into "FUN CHALLENGES TO BE CONQUERED", bend your reality to better suit yourself, and put the meet into it's true perspective --  and your results will steadily begin to show the difference." C. Townsend

 

As you see there is a lot more to being a GREAT ATHLETE than the physical side.  You can have all the talent in the world and put in all the necessary training needed to become great, but without the proper mental training and attitude you may always find yourself on the short side of the race.  In the end YOU have the power to choose, so it is time to step up and just "GET IT DONE".

 

Let's have a good week, and get ahead in your school work.  MIKE