Reply to Club swimmer plateau/mental hurdle

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I dealt with this as a swimmer, and I’m dealing with it now as a parent albeit on a smaller scale (child is/was not elite, but pretty good and now struggling in the new age group). The key as a swimmer is to ask yourself whether you still enjoy the day today of swimming. It is way too much work and time if your enjoyment of the sport is purely tied to your success. I went through one slump in early high school, and another after my freshman year of college. Both were really difficult psychologically, but my love for the sport kept me pushing through. I never truly considered quitting during those times. Changes to coaching and training also helped but I am not sure I would go that route for a 10 year old. As for the advice I’ve been giving my own child, I’ve been telling him that if he focuses on what he’s doing at practice and keeps working that things will come together eventually. He’s having to learn a lot of new things right now and it will take time for it to solidify. He was used to all of it coming easy, and he sort of had a bad attitude, thinking he could get away with being “too cool” to care about swimming and still win races. [b]In some ways the struggle has been good for him because it has helped him realize that he does want to work at his swimming and try to improve.[/b] Heading into summer I wasn’t sure if he would want to swim over the winter because he has other sports he likes more. But now he’s saying he actually wants to spend a little more time on swimming than he did this past winter because he sees how that has helped other kids.

I will say, though that you should prepare yourself for the reality that a superstar 10 year old may lose the magic so to speak. It happens all the time. It sounds like your son still has the potential to get back to the top of the ranks but you should really keep an ion whether he enjoys swimming for the sake of it or whether he likes the winning. There is no guarantee he will end up back at the top as other kids grow and catch up, etc.. [/quote]

I’m pp who posted the dressel video. This was also true of my kid, as I posted above. I now believe the most valuable thing my kids will get out of swim, other than learning a safe way to be active for life, is how to lose and deal with setbacks. My kid was crushed when he dq’d his favorite and best event at Jo’s, [b]but he learned how to deal with disappointment and stay focused.[/b] He might disagree with me, but I think it all turned out for the best. He didn’t get the win, but he gained so much more in experience. Thanks And yes it’s true that only a few kids become elite swimmers, but that’s not a reason to encourage your kid be the best they can be - you are doing it to develop their work ethic, determination, and growth mindset.[/quote]

Sometimes you win, sometimes you learn - John Maxwell (good book by the same title)[/quote]

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