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Swim Fast Without the Big Suits
There's no denying that last year's fast suits made for huge
improvements in swimming performance. Every record board was
re-written last year whether it was club, high school,
college or the world's. Everyone swam fast last year but
that's the point: EVERYONE SWAM FAST!
Coach David Anderson and Sports Psychologist Dr Patric Mattek offer some ways to continue
to swim fast in the era after fast suits.
Anderson observes that although the suits actually helped
athletes swim faster, the suits did more than that. Anderson
says, "that when an athlete put on a fast suit, they 'knew' they
were going to swim fast. It was like putting on an
invincibility cloak." All athletes eliminated worry, anxiety
and negative thinking when they put on a fast suit last year and
were only wondering, "how fast am I going to go?!"
2010 will be the year when athletes who can regain that
expectation of strong performances will dominate those athletes who
can't escape the doubts.
Sports Psychologist Dr. Patric Mattek has worked with numerous
swimmers on honing their mental edge. He suggests that it is
understandable that some swimmers might have a difficult adjustment
to the ban, but that ultimately it comes down to an issue of
confidence. Dr. Mattek states: "It makes sense that swimmers might
be having a bit of 'separation anxiety' from their fast suits
because they did help athletes swim faster." Although Dr.
Mattek admits that the suits helped athletes swim faster,
he questions whether the suits helped them swim better?
"The fast suits didn't turn couch potatoes into Olympians," says
Mattek. "The swimmers that actually became better swimmers only did
so through enhanced self-confidence."
Dr. Mattek suggests that the ban will likely create a more 'even
playing field' for swimmers, making the mental aspect of the sport
an even more critical edge. He offers the following recommendations
for coaches and swimmers:
- Decrease anxieties by helping athletes understand that the
suits did not make them comparatively better swimmers.
Highlight that the change has created an 'even playing field' in
which commitment and mental approach will provide a
comparative edge over the competition.
- Encourage the athletes to "trust in themselves" and develop an
"internal" confidence, rather than relying on something external
(e.g., a suit, specific lane, second race, etc.) to "decide their
fate." The confidence to overcome the power of the suit will likely
give swimmers a competitive advantage!
- Think positively and discourage negative thoughts. Catastrophic
thoughts trigger anxiety, which results in increased muscle
tension, heart rate, and respiration. Not beneficial for
performance.
- Many athletes have used visualization to help them achieve
success. Using visualization to incorporate the "feel" of the fast
suit swims during swims without the suit might be a useful
approach. Dr. Mattek commented on the power of visualization by
discussing some recent Olympic athletes who have used visualization
to help them get to the Gold despite injury or daunting
circumstances.
- Encourage the athlete to sleep, eat well, drink plenty of
water, self-soothe, relax, and look forward to their performance.
Self-care is huge for not only physical, but also mental
performance
Athletes and coaches who, with the help of a sports
psychologist, find ways to return to that anxiety-free state of
mind that the fast suits created last year will be the big winners
going into this year's major meets.
David Anderson coaches club swimming at the Walter Schroeder
Aquatic Center in Brown Deer, WI.
Dr. Patric Mattek is a sport psychologist at Performance
Enhancement in Franklin, WI
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