Let me tell you one of the biggest surprises I had doing this project.
Confidence. Plain and simple Confidence. Once I started to really use the program within our workouts, I learned quickly that I was just being too demanding on some of my athletes. When I started to hit their numbers right on with SwiftDuck, they could do it… and they appreciated it!
I would give the set, give the goals, and then follow up timing throughout the set. I would ask, "Are you making your goal pace"? Person after person, replied, "this is perfect", I am "right on the edge but making it…now leave me alone".
Day after day what we were getting was SUCCESS! Oh, it is amazing to see the difference in confidence when there is ongoing success. Not just for the stud of the group, but everyone. This was because they were being coached as individuals. We better knew their limits and you know what, :03 seconds one way or another makes a huge difference in how the body responds to a stimulus like swimming, with your face in the water, plowing down the pool at great effort potentially for an extended period of time.
They were finding achievable challenges daily and mastering them, moving on to better challenges later on in the season as they improved.
Lets look closer to home. I wanted to know how well SwiftDuck worked, not just theory, so I try some of their workouts, my swimmers workouts. I had to swallow my pride and recognize that I am no longer a Division I athlete, I am a working father of more than most, who stopped racing triathlons after a brutal Ironman in the heat with insufficient training, most of which happening in the garage during nap time.
I plug in my baseline times for my …fitness level. You know what, I did just fine. I had been in the water times before and usually petered out early and got the heck out. Lets go running I would think to myself, I have no expectations there (I actually do, so I don't run much anymore either). But these practices were different. Everything fell into place and I could do it all just fine. I needed to get a clearer view of my real capabilities and embrace them, not look back at what I used to be. I could do it all, and do it well. I exited the pool each time thinking, " I can do this again, that wasn't too bad and I made everything spot on".
The one thing I had lacked in the pool for years…Confidence. And what did it do for me? It made me enjoy what I was doing and not mind doing it again the next time.
Powerful it is. Do not underestimate the physical, mental, and emotional impact of Confidence.
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