A Swimmer’s
Guide to Mental Toughness
Research done by Louise Eling 2006
Make your practices important!
Most swimmers spend the same amount of time practicing weekly. However only a small fraction of athletes improve to their potential. The reason behind this lies in your practices. Practice does not make perfect, perfect practice makes perfect. Too many swimmers go through the motions in practice. They put their time in but not their minds or their emotions. They daydream during sets or which they were elsewhere. During difficult sets they look for ways to dog it. You will compete the way you practice. Practice just like meets, mentally as well as physically, that is, make your practices important! Take a few of those long boring sets and pretend you’re actually competing. Practice race turns, finishing fast, getting your pain to work for you. The more important you can make your practices and the more similar to actual meets, the more you’ll get out of them. Every chance you get set-up race-scenarios in your head and then swim as if everything was on the line. If you consistently practice this way, the way champions do, you will find your meet times dropping.
Why not try technology to help you ensure your practices are important?
By monitoring heart rate, the simple observation
that the harder we exercise, the faster our heart beats is put to good
use. Professional athletes and amateurs alike have for decades been
relying on the information provided by their heart rate monitor for the
following reasons:
1. A heart rate monitor is like a rev counter, giving a precise measurement of exercise intensity.
2. Training at your own ideal pace is made possible with a heart rate monitor.
3. Direct measurement of heart rate during exercise is the most accurate way to gauge performance.
4. Progress can be monitored and measured, increasing motivation.
5. It maximizes the benefits of exercise in a limited amount of time.
6. It introduces objective observation. Are you on the right track? Are you improving?
7. It is a tool for regulating frequency and intensity of workouts.
8. Because of the immediate feedback it provides, heart rate monitoring is an ideal training partner.
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Click to find out how the heart functions