The Tribulations of Returning After Summer Break
September signifies the start of the swimming season. A blank slate. Everything from the past year is forgotten as you prepare yourself for another roller-coaster year. This time can be exciting. Perhaps you had a rough year and want to move on. You might be seeking a fresh challenge, whether at a new club, via new goals or with new teammates.
However, the start of the season also presents many challenges. Rediscovering the routine of intense training can prove extremely difficult to manage, along with rebuilding your fitness to a level capable of competition.
How Does Training Differ?
If we rewind time to before the summer, athletes were priming themselves for competition during taper. Heavy workloads were reduced and, following the end-of-year meet, it was time for an extended break. These breaks are neessary, an opportunity to refresh and rejuvenate. However, once back in business, embracing hard work is a must.
No matter a swimmer’s specialty, aerobic training will increase. This tiemframe tends to be a painful experience for someone who has gone from limited swimming and heavy relaxation into demanding workouts. It is a common approach for coaches to pile on significant yardage at the start of the season to cement an aerobic base from which they can build. Much of this work can be thankless and dull, but is critical for success.
Psychological Impact
The increased distance mentioned above is the most commonly envisaged element of returning to training, stemming from the fact that it is so easily quantifiable and applies to all. That can be described as the physical side of the equation. However, there is also a mental aspect, which can be equally taxing.
Breaks taken over the summer cannot be standardized. Everyone has their own routine, their own way of relaxing and this leaves everyone in their own unique position upon resumption. Unchecked, this may cause psychological damage, especially as swimming for a team is a social activity hinging upon many group dynamics.
Social pressure to speed up your return to strength can be a lingering issue for some people. Others may have taken less time off and feel an annoyance to have to wait for others to be ready to get back up to speed. This could shuffle the pecking order in sessions and at early meets while causing problems for the coaching staff to solve.
Shuffling Personnel
Furthermore, it is possible that the group has had some key departures at the end of the season. These could have been swimmers that were well liked and embedded in the group or some of the best performers seeking a new challenge. This can further demoralize those who have lost their friends and training partners and is a troublesome task for coaches to face.
However, to pose a personnel refresh as a solely negative event is disingenuous. Sometimes a group has simply come to the end of its cycle and has gone stale. Younger, hungrier swimmers replacing older ones who have gradually lost their commitment could be exactly the refresh that a team needs.
Conclusions
While some swimmers may view that dreaded first week back through a lens of anguish, and as humans it can be easy to tilt your perspective to the negative, the challenges posed upon returning to training are not all as bad as they seem. The feeling of seeing your friends again is always one to be excited about, and while seeing old compatriots go will always be a sad feeling, it allows new faces the chance to establish themselves while new memories are created.
The physical fitness will not be where it was the first time you dive in after the break, but once you get going, everything will work itself out. Because, deep down, we all love the sport!
