Swim League

Every swimmer is looking for an advantage over the rest of the pack. One source which remains untapped for many people is the swim league. They view a league as a team effort and would prefer to swim on their own. The thing to keep in mind here is unless you have the money to hire your own coach, this is the best way to get the kind of instruction which will help you improve. You will also be able be in constant competition with those you are in a league with.

Choosing a Good League

Most cities will have more than one swim league you can join. This is true no matter what age you are. Take the time to find a league which has a good reputation. This is important because the better the team is, you better instruction you will receive. You can practice all day every day, but unless you are practicing correctly you will not improve. The old adage of practice makes perfect should be changed to “perfect practice makes perfect.” What makes a good league includes those which produce good swimmers with good swim times.

Swimming is Mental

If you are worried about joining a swim league because you do not want to be held back, it is important to remember how individualized swimming is. Even when you are swimming in a relay event, you have to swim for you. You can only ever swim to the best of your ability. This means when you train with a group, you will gain the ability to swim better as an individual. While you will learn as a group, what you can only do as good as you allow yourself to. This is why in a league setting, you will still have stand out performers.

Leagues Have the Right Training Equipment

Another advantage you will have when training with a swim league is equipment. Leagues will possess the kick boards, floaters, paddle boards and flippers you can use to train with. You will not only have access to the equipment which will make you a better swimmer, you will receive the instructions on how best to use the equipment you are training with. This will make you a better overall swimmer as well as help you in training individually after you decide to train on your own.

Challenges in Training

Another advantage you get in joining a swim league is the constant challenges you get from the other members. You will swim against each other to practice what you have learned. While you should always challenge yourself, it is always fun to mark your performance against others. The better the people you train with, the more of a challenge you can create for yourself. Challenging yourself mentally and as a member of a team will allow your performance level to be the best it can possibly be. Even if you will eventually leave the league, you will learn training skills which will improve your performance for the rest of your life.

Photo Credits: kenoncjones

Originally posted 2010-04-01 03:18:28. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Swimming Drills to Improve Speed and Endurance

One thing most any person who was on a swim team will lament is swimming drills. They will tell you tales of torturous coaches who created long drills. They will tell tales of practices which seemed to last all day and left them drained. All will admit in the end the drills made a difference in their ability to swim strong and outlast the competition. These are drills which you can complete yourself with the same stellar results. The important thing to remember is you may not enjoy the drills while you are doing them. Stick with it and you will see undeniable results.

Pyramid Drills

One of the swimming drills which are done by most coaches is the pyramid drill. This drill involves starting with a short sprint of about 50 yards and then building gradually to 500 yards. You then go back down to 50 yards. The trick is to allow only a certain amount of time for each interval as you go up and down. You will notice a difference in your ability to complete the intervals as your strength and skill improves. You will crave the breaks as well as the increased speed this drill will help to create.

Timed Drills

This is a drill which is similar in nature to the pyramid drills. The difference in the timed swimming drills is you maintain a certain length of swimming. The amount of total time in which you have to complete the length will remain constant. What will change is the length of the intervals. A normal overall length for these drills is 500 yards. You will start with 25 x 50 yard drills. Increase to 1 x 500 yard drill with either 25 or 50 yard increases. The goal is to increase your endurance by increasing the speed at which you can complete the sections.

Drag Drills

Creating drag is one of the swimming drills every coach seems to like to use. This means using kick boards, floaters or weights to create drag and resistance. The object is to complete increasing lengths every time you work out. This will help to develop the strength in upper and lower body strength. You will train your muscles to pull an even heavier load than your body weight. This way when you are swimming without the resistance you will be able to glide through the water. This is also a good opportunity to concentrate on your swim stroke.

Closed Fist Drill

There are many variations on swimming drills which do not occur normally to people. Closed fist drill is a drill which teaches you to use your forearm as a mechanism to pull you through the water. By not being able to use your hand to pull you through the water, you have to use the forearm to pull you. The drill is completed by completing 10 x 25 yard sets. Start out with untimed sets with a one minute rest between. Gradually work in time restrictions with less rest in between swims.

Photo Credits: kenoncjones

Originally posted 2010-03-31 10:15:35. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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