Fwd: One arm was alright. Two arms was one too many.

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From: Coach Suzanne <coach@steelcityendurance.com>

Hi, Years ago Terry Laughlin told me something that has shaped how I coach ever since. Terry, founder of Total Immersion, one of the most original thinkers swimming has ever produced, believed that improvements don't only come from better cues. They come from better sequences. Sequence the cues or focal points well, and elite level skills become accessible for any swimmer. I've tried to pay attention to this principal for years regardless of who I'm coaching. Last Tuesday I witnessed, in real time, a combination of focuses almost assembling itself as two of us took turns assigning swim drills I volunteer with a local junior triathlon team. One of our athletes, we'll call him Peter, is a state champion runner. But his swim breathing has been one of his stubborn bad habits keeping him from joining the lead bike back during triathlon races. With Youth and Junior Nationals coming up in just seven weeks, I've got limited time to try and contribute to his race performace! During the first set of one-armed drills, his breathing was suddenly very clean. Low head, long body, the water around him was calm. He looked smoother than some of the faster swimmers, which i found fascinating. The next drill set, they got two arms back. And immediately, he lifted head, rushed recovery arm, and looked like he was fighting for every breath. He's a hard worker and has a ton of energy so he can maintain it for a long time. But it was so different from what he had just done. Now swimming with 2 arms, his recovery arm seemed to yank out of the water, throwing itself out in front like Count Dracula finishing a cape toss on Sesame Street. The weight of that swinging arm coming forward too soon, folded him into that side on every single stroke, and forced him to lift his head up and over the waves he was creating in order to breath. He'd proven he didn't need his arm recovery to breathe cleanly. But the moment it returned, his brain did what brains do and reverted straight to the pattern it already knew. I improvised by having him do a few press outs on the pool deck to feel his arms straightening against some resistance, hoping he could then straighten his arm more in the pool. With each 50 time stroke improved briefly for about 3/4 of a length, before reverting. I was wondering if we were running out of time to get him really tuned up and bombproof to keep up with the lead swimmers, not just for the swim session that morning, but for nationals. . Then I gave him one last cue: "Leave that arm behind you for just a little bit longer." He pushed off and started swimming. I folded my arms and smiled. From the next lane a college swimmer stopped at the end of his set. "Coach Suzanne, what did you have Peter do? He looks really smooth!" Peter already knew how to breathe well. We just uncovered it by taking things away, then slowly adding them back in. It wasn't the last cue that fixed things. It only worked because of everything that came before. Terry passed away in 2017. I used to love talking with him about these types of lessons after the fact. He would get just as excited about a new sequence that worked for a single athlete as he did about a tested sequence he'd used with thousands. Nationals is in seven weeks. I know Peter is going to be working hard at every practice. Will his new breathing skill survive until then? Photo: Escape from the Lake, 2005, Marblehead, Ohio. Photo Suzanne Atkinson Thanks for reading, and I'd love to hear if you have any similar experiences learning or helping someone learn about triathlon Train smart, train well, and have fun!! - Coach Suzanne Steel City Endurance, LTD www.steelcityendurance.com PS: On July 16th we'll be running our free 4 week program for newer and first time triathletes, Ready 2 Tri, in conjunction with the Mighty Moraine Man Fall Multisport Festival, but all athletes are welcome to attend at no charge. More details will be sent out soon.

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