JOY

As we approach the open water season, swim camp, and work toward our goals this year, I want to offer you a different thought or perspective of a training idea. Keep up the good work!

Don’t Train to Finish – Train for Joy

Most of you have chosen swims and goals that stretch you well beyond a comfort zone into a realm of the totally unknown which includes fear, doubt, anxiety, challenge, exhilaration, and triumph. The truth is we experience a wide spectrum of emotions and motivations throughout training and into the swim day.  Some that know me, know that I do not agree with the train to “just finish” philosophy. Why not put yourself into the position to excel in context to capture all the beauty of the event and feel your power from within instead of slogging through an event just to get to the finish line?

Sure, you’ve accomplished something, but possibly at the neglect of discovering more joy and awakening during an awesome opportunity. Without a doubt, there are times exhaustion or obstacles place us in the positions to bring our focus down to one more stroke, breathe, then one more stroke and so on. If we have the training tools and experience to know those places of difficulty need only to be temporary, we give ourselves a gift to adjust and return to a place of joy in the midst of struggle. In other words, the more times we create for ourselves opportunities during our training, that push us beyond what we think we can do, the more we expand our minds and bodies to adapt to the predicted and unpredicted difficult conditions that arise during our events. The training may or may not enhance our speed, it does create more “space” to enjoy, observe and celebrate the experience.

I’ve heard variations of this: “we only know what we can do because we only know what we have done.” Or, “The only pain I know is the only pain I know.”  Our outer experiences have created or bookended our known limits. By leaning into that pain and discomfort, our tolerance naturally increases over time. I believe that purposefully breaking through those limits are what make us uniquely human. Not only that, the impulse and drive to go further is what creates more personal energy to expand our horizons of consciousness.

Prepare yourself for joy, not just a finish.

When I was in my 40’s, I swam with the age group kids to prepare for my first marathon swims. At the end of practice, while the kids were taking off caps and talking, I would swim an extra 500. Keeping up with those teenagers was tough and after day of 5000-12000 yards I was beat. I knew I had a few minutes while they cleared to pool to get a some more yards in. I swam that 500 all out on the clock. I didn’t realize it back then, but I learned valuable lessons beyond building endurance.

My observations in pursuit of a fast time included: what effort was required to hold a target pace for my goal time, what does that cost in physical endurance, how did pain influence my effort and pace, if I dropped off pace what could I do to make up that time, what stroke details suffered first as I tired, how does my attitude and mental resilience influence the final time, what do I need to focus on to make my time, what does it feel like to want to quit and go home and try the next day but keep going strong, and what happens when my arms feel like 100 lbs and body says no more. Also, what slipped in was why am I doing this and am I having fun? There are hundreds of things to ask and observe within those 5-7 minutes.

Sometimes the answers are in front of us before we know the questions. Those 500s answered questions and had built in me abilities to adapt that arose during the long swims for which I trained. They created the space, mentally and physically, to experience new and greater realms. Finishing the swim was not a question or expectation. The quality and joy of the swim and finish are what waited for me to discover. Those are what I remember and what live in my DNA waiting for the next bigger goal. Those are what have added to the depth of my life, relationships and spirit.

With all this in mind, I challenge you to do your training and practices as well as possible, giving them all your attention and effort. When you’re finished do an all-out, on the clock, 300 or 500. This doesn’t need to be every practice, maybe once or twice a week. Don’t give into what holds you back. Observe everything about yourself and surroundings to learn what you can do to improve for the next day. Do it for the experience. Only let the clock be your judge (it is very impartial and righteous). Trust your effort knowing it will benefit you in unseen ways on land and in the water. When you experience similar feelings in your race, your discomfort will feel like home.  Have fun, play, it is fun to swim fast and learn. Smile when you touch the final wall and look at the clock. It’s a great day for a swim.

(Bonus Hint: Do your 300/500 after your toughest practice, feel off your game or on a day you’re rushed to get home.)

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