I'm thinking the level of anxiety I have leading up to meets, especially championships, is telling me competition is not worth it for me. I wish I could see myself improving through a season so that I can be excited to find out how fast I'm going to race at the end of it. Unfortunately, I'm at that age where I'm only getting slower, and I don't have the technical background to draw upon that some others do. I always feel relieved just after a big meet, but in the months and weeks leading up to one, I have anxiety even going to the practice pool. I dread the fact that I'm facing work, not leisure. That almost guarantees a bad practice. 'Sounds crazy doesn't it? Is it time for me to quit competing? In re-reading my first sentence I'm considering, maybe I need a therapist to help me learn what small reward keeps me going back to something so stressful, or to figure out how to give myself permission to quit. I saw a video on USA swimming in which they mention, Ryan Murphy used to puke before big events. That was a little validating. So how do you forumites manage your anxiety? Or if you don't have any, how did you achieve that serenity?
First off, Betty, I can absolutely relate. I have been a competitive swimmer practically my whole life from age 5 to now 51, with a fairly substantial (but not complete) break from age 22 to 34. I blew a lot of races in college as I let my anxiety get the better of me.
When I first came back to Masters swimming and went to my first Nationals in 2001, I went in with no expectations and just looking to have fun. I loved it. I got a little edgy behind the blocks, but nothing too distracting.
At my second Nationals in 2002, though, I went into the meet with GOALS for each race. I totally let my anxious monkey mind get the better of me in the very first race ... and then did even worse in the second race with my performance completely a function of my mind. The night before my last race, I completely took my mind off the meet with a nice meal with my family. I removed any expectations of what I wanted to achieve, had no thoughts about what I needed to achieve ... I just got on the blocks and let my body do what it knew how to do. My third race went smashingly well!
Though I can't say I always do this, I have found that the best way for me to swim well and fast is to swim relaxed. The single best way to do that is to try, in the heat of the moment of the meet, to not be attached to the outcome. Let your mind go and focus on the fundamentals.
One of the ways I practice this is completely counter to everything my coaches told me when I was growing up. I was always told to "swim my own race" and to "keep my blinders on" so as not to pay attention to the others in the pool. Now, though, I find that actually concentrating on racing the others in the pool helps keep my mind clear and far away from any expectations that otherwise might spin me into anxiety.
I will also echo that taking time away from racing can help ... especially if you are forced to take time away. I missed essentially all of 2017 due to shoulder issues, but was back at Nationals in Indianapolis this year. I soooooooo missed racing by that point that I was just happy to be there. In addition, that break also allowed me a little more mental distance from prior years' results, so I was pretty detached from comparisons.
First off, Betty, I can absolutely relate. I have been a competitive swimmer practically my whole life from age 5 to now 51, with a fairly substantial (but not complete) break from age 22 to 34. I blew a lot of races in college as I let my anxiety get the better of me.
When I first came back to Masters swimming and went to my first Nationals in 2001, I went in with no expectations and just looking to have fun. I loved it. I got a little edgy behind the blocks, but nothing too distracting.
At my second Nationals in 2002, though, I went into the meet with GOALS for each race. I totally let my anxious monkey mind get the better of me in the very first race ... and then did even worse in the second race with my performance completely a function of my mind. The night before my last race, I completely took my mind off the meet with a nice meal with my family. I removed any expectations of what I wanted to achieve, had no thoughts about what I needed to achieve ... I just got on the blocks and let my body do what it knew how to do. My third race went smashingly well!
Though I can't say I always do this, I have found that the best way for me to swim well and fast is to swim relaxed. The single best way to do that is to try, in the heat of the moment of the meet, to not be attached to the outcome. Let your mind go and focus on the fundamentals.
One of the ways I practice this is completely counter to everything my coaches told me when I was growing up. I was always told to "swim my own race" and to "keep my blinders on" so as not to pay attention to the others in the pool. Now, though, I find that actually concentrating on racing the others in the pool helps keep my mind clear and far away from any expectations that otherwise might spin me into anxiety.
I will also echo that taking time away from racing can help ... especially if you are forced to take time away. I missed essentially all of 2017 due to shoulder issues, but was back at Nationals in Indianapolis this year. I soooooooo missed racing by that point that I was just happy to be there. In addition, that break also allowed me a little more mental distance from prior years' results, so I was pretty detached from comparisons.
