We’ve all coached the swimmer who consistently puts tremendous effort into their training and their races, yet that effort is not...

In the original Nintendo video game console, there were two buttons. There was a power button and a reset button. When it wasn’t going...

5 Simple drills to fix your freestyle! This is the type of headline you might see advertised in various articles and magazines, and for...

In part I , we explored two fundamental, yet somewhat contradictory skills that coaches need to be successful in helping swimmers improve....

There are two critical coaching skills that are complementary, yet contradictory. The challenge is that both skills are critical to...

Coaches, athletes, and humans all want it all, and they all want it all right now. As a result, they try to do it all right away. This...

‘Everybody counts or nobody counts.’ -Harry Bosch Often, coaches focus their attention on the ‘best’ swimmers, or those swimmers they...

In part I , we examined the concept of race-relevant training as opposed to race-specific training with the purpose of providing a...

How we think about training, and how we conceptualize the training process, is ultimately going to influence how we choose to design...

In a previous article , I described several ways in which small changes in communication can have a major impact on behavior, often in...

In part I , the concept that excessive training intensity can compromise the training process was discussed. While this should be no...

The harder they work, the slower they get. Unfortunately, this statement characterizes some of the swimmers we coach. In some cases,...

Practice makes perfect. A well-worn performance cliché. It sounds great until you consider that it doesn’t address the quality of the...

As technology has progressed, there are more and more options available to coaches and swimmers that claim to be the answer to everyone’s...

In part I , we started with the idea that each swimmers’ needs become more specialized as their performance levels and training histories...

If distance swimmers approach training in the same manner as sprint swimmers, results are probably not going to be optimal. The opposite...

The sport of swimming has a very rich tradition of hard work. Teams and individuals pride themselves on the ability to outwork the...

In Part I , we introduced the idea of bulletproof skills. Winning races comes down to executing skills when physical and psychological...

Skills win races. Faster swimmers are better swimmers. It makes sense to work to improve these skills in training. Coaches often take...

Almost uniformly, coaches tend to drive the learning process. They have the answers and they provide swimmers with those answers. This...

In part I , we explored the vaunted high elbow catch. Heralded as technical perfection, we took a look at some of the nuance actually...

You got to have a high elbow catch. Swim like you’re wrapping your arm around a barrel. Create an early vertical forearm. These are all...

‘If I am not managing my athletes’ physiological responses, then what am I doing?’* The above is a quote from a track and field coach of...

Most attempts at facilitating technical change are inherently reactive in nature. Coaches see a problem, make a comment to the swimmer,...