Building up endurance - 9 year old kid

Decided to post this here instead of a new thread: My daughter is now 10 and continues to swim with her team 5 days a week, each around 2400meter. They're about 18 kids so its nothing like one on one private lessons. Her times are improving (50FR 37, 50FL 39, 50BK 41, 50BR 44) but I doubt her technique is.. and everyone around me keeps telling about the importance of technique development at this age. A coach that I've known long before has the equipment and software to do swimming analysis. He suggests that we analyze her to improve her styles. Then he adds that according to those results, he will suggest particular drills for her and she has to do them for improvement. However, I don't think her current coach will be interested about an analysis or particular drills... What would you suggest? Should I have him to do the analysis? Then how can I take care of the rest? Several private lessons? Or is it too early at this age..? Thanks! Ask her coach Ask her Remember the principle "Nobody ever changes anything unless they want to change decide to change and they keep concentrating and doing the replacement habit until they do change." I wrote a SFF Tip on Improving technique and changing habits called GRIND IT IN You could also send her to a week of swim camp like Longhorn Swim Camp Kids swim 3 times a day and 1 of the daily sessions is entirely dedicated to stroke improvement. If she wants to swim faster, it wouldn't hurt her to swim 6x per week and go further and faster in each practice. How does the next higher group in her team train? What is the criteria to make it? Also determine, maybe from talking with her coach 1st, (with out her and maybe even with out her knowing) if the suggestion to improve her technique with private technique lessons and analysis, should come from you or her coach, if you decide to pursue it. Video analysis is helpful because she can see what she is doing and get an idea of what she needs to do. (Same reason dance studio walls tend to be mirrors) The goals are for her to have fun, swim faster (which is fun) and for her to care more about her swimming than you do.

Will the coach give privates? During the summer season our daughter (and her older brother) each have a 45 minute private with the head coach, this is in addition to the 5 morning practices and one or two dual meets each weekend. This is only for two months so they don't seem burnt out by it but they do get a lot out of the sessions. Daughter just asked the other day if she will "get" to swim with her coach again this summer, so she does like the one on one time. I think she appreciates the focus that you can't get 6 deep across 6 lanes. I figure if it's him doing the one on ones, he will be reinforcing what he wants her to work on the rest of the time and have some perosnal investment in it as well. During her brief stint in year-round swimming this winter (different team) she told me she was often called out to show her teamates how to start, turn, streamline and such so she must have something working right.

At 9yo the focus of swimming should be about fun, good technique and good habits in the pool. Particularly with young swimmer the focus should be on building a solid foundation. A good swimming foundation leads to speed in the teenage and young adult years.

I think it's all about her comparing times with her friends. There we have it. It's crucial that you help her to develop a motivation and confidence that is based on how well she is improving, and how well she is applying herself, rather than comparison to others. It's irrelevant, and if she can understand that, she will be better for it in the long and short term. At that age, as has already been said, rate of physical development is so variable (and influential) and it can help to talk about this with your child. With few exceptions, the best of the best ultimately judge themselves against their own standards and not those of others - no matter how badly they want to win.

Looking at those times, I see quite a bit of progression in a year and a half so she should have a strong sense of achievement! I've personally come around to the "quality yardage matters more than total yardage" camp. But, unless you want to take over coaching the team, you kinda have to go with what's offered. 4000 yards a day, 6 days a week is not too much for a dedicated 10 year old, in my opinion; I did more than that at that age. If you're concerned about physical and/or mental burn out, pull her from one practice a week. You risk the coach holding that against her, however, when it comes time to fill in a meet roster.

Hi, Just realized I didn't post feedback, sorry. We didn't go for the swimming analysis. We thought it would be a waste of time and resources as it was not be possible to have her swim the corrective drills. It's been a month now that they started to swim 6 days a week and coach tells that they swim around 14 miles a week. It will last 10 months like this and they will have 1 month rest in summer. I've read this article: www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/.../ Mind that she's 10.5 yo right now, do you guys think the above is too much for her? (Her SC times are: 50m FR 34; 100m FR 1:20; 200m FR 2:47; 50m BK 40; 50m BR 44; 100m BR 1:37; 50m FL 39; 100m IM 1:25; 200m IM 3:06)

Thanks for the update on your daughter's progress, astro! I wouldn't completely abandon the idea of getting a private stroke analysis or lessons just yet, however. Even if your daughter would not be able to practice the drills she will learn during her team workouts, there is still the potential for her to improve with even just one private session per week...with the right coach, of course. At 10-11 years old, swimmers can still absorb new technique without requiring a tremendous amount of repetitive effort. In looking at the times progression that you submitted, you can see that your daughter hasn't dropped as much time in the butterfly as she has in the other three strokes. Butterfly is all about timing, and in this case her timing might be off, which points to technique-related issues that she can work on outside of the team-based practices. I wrote a piece on why swimmers should get their stroke analyzed, and I think the advice in the article holds true for swimmers of all ages: www.swimspire.com/get-stroke-technique-analyzed/ Now is the time for your daughter to build a good technique. Later, she will continue to increase the speed and interval work and if she builds up a solid technical foundation at this age, she will have less of a risk of injuries and more of a chance of making swimming a life-long sport. Good luck!

4000 a day, 6 days a week is absurd for a 10 year old.

4000 a day, 6 days a week is absurd for a 10 year old. I would argue it's absurd for many people, myself included. The only thing it would do is feather my orthopedic surgeon's nest.

Now is the time for your daughter to build a good technique. Later, she will continue to increase the speed and interval work and if she builds up a solid technical foundation at this age, she will have less of a risk of injuries and more of a chance of making swimming a life-long sport. Good luck! You hit the nail right on the head!