Over the past few years, Excel has had the opportunity to work with many different athletes in the competitive swim world of Albany NY, including age group, senior, college, and masters swimmers. Like in any sport, there is a common thread among those who truly enjoy and excel (no pun intended) within the sport of swimming. Here are 3 key attributes that are worth noting-
- Strong work ethic-this first point is somewhat obvious, but certainly worth mentioning. Whether you are training with a group, by yourself, or with a coach, swimming provides a lot of ‘personal’ time, where you are surrounded by your own thoughts. Having a goal/plan, and sticking with it throughout any training cycle requires a significant amount of focus in the form of work ethic.
- Open to changes-Often overlooked but hugely important, any successful swimmer must always always be open to making changes, which can come in the form of stroke corrections, training methodology/schedule, or even their approach to practices or races. Looking at any successful program, all of them continuously marry the concepts of physiological training along with continual technical changes that are applied to the full stroke. Being extremely meticulous with potential training changes, and appreciating any feedback provided is extremely important. Not every change is going to lead to improvement, but if an athlete is resistant to change, they will never find out whether or not the change could have helped in a major way.
- Not being afraid to fail-very closely related to point number 2, but is more specific to the quantifiable aspects of swimming (ie times). Simply put, if you are putting forth the effort to make changes in your life, whether it is swimming, school, work, etc, don’t be afraid of not reaching the desired outcome. If you are not afraid to fail, you allow yourself the opportunity to be successful. This does not ensure success 100% of the time, but if you are constantly fearful and focusing on undesirable results, chances are you will place limitations on whatever results you are looking for, and severely limit your improvement. Instead, focusing on the process will allow you to break free of those self imposed limitations, and enjoy everything the sport of swimming has to offer.
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