I just got back from the SPMS meet and I am in a funk. I have talked to several of my contemporaries who share my dysphoria at getting slower. From age 50-62 I slowed down very little. Ages 63 and 64 were one injury or illness after another, but at least there was a cause and I felt I would do better. Age 65 I aged up and for most of the year was healthy. That was a great year,but my times were all significantly slower than at 62. Since then it is very unusual to have one swim that is faster than I did the previous year.At 67(almost 68) I am notably slower than at 65. I have seen the graphs of how times slow with age, intellectually, if I am staying at the same rate of decline as my peers I should accept it, but I don't like it. I know most forumites are much younger and what I am saying may seem like something natural that I should just acknowledge and go on, that is what I thought until I was 63. I know that our having age groups every 5 years is a partial solution to the problem, but there is more difference between a 65 year old and a 68 year old than between a 40 year old and a 50 year old, in my experience. How do the other older swimmers out there cope and have a good attitude? The common saying in Masters Swimming is that "you are only competing against yourself",but my slightly younger self is kicking my butt and I am tired of it.
I wanted to share my perspective, and hopefully inspire a bit of confidence, as a brand new 28 yo. swimmer in Masters. The first meet of my life was in November of last year. It was a blast, obviously, but I will tell you the two most memorable things for me at that event.
The first was watching a 18-24 competitor put on an Olympic performance in the pool, which had everyone out of their seats obviously. It was incredible, and helped me understand how much dedication, training, and technique is required to achieve that level of swimming.
But the second was far more important to me in my growth as a swimmer. My coach is 61 years old. He was a former NCAA All-American in backstroke, but I had never seen him swim. Some of my teammates were competing in the same heat as he was. Now, I knew my coach was a good swimmer, obviously, but he doesn't appear outwardly "in shape" to me. Like he maybe let himself go, or something. I didn't think about this daily, nor did I judge him for this or anything, but I just had that picture in my mind.
Watching him swim was one of the most incredible things I've ever seen in athletics. That someone of his age and body could demolish the other swimmers in his heat (all half his age), and do so while looking like he's taking a leisurely swim... I mean it blew me away. It was the most inspiring thing I've seen in a very long time.
I internalized every moment of that race. When one of my teammates congratulated me on my performance at the meet I said "Yeah, I've got a long way to go, though", and they said "You have a long stroke like Bill (the coach), you will be great". That was the greatest compliment I could've received that day. Or this entire month/year, etc. That statement, and his performance, are what continue to inspire me in the pool just as much as the Olympic level swimmers that I look up to. The difference is that my coach is with me everyday.
Why am I saying this? Because even if you feel you are not performing your best any longer, you are still setting an example in the pool. If you need another reason to perform, imagine some brand new kid to the sport sitting in the stands watching you display a complete mastery of the art of swimming. What could be more inspiring?
I like to observe my age-group peers because they help me develop realistic standards, but it is the older people in the pool that I look up to. My goal is to be a swimmer for life, not to be the fastest man in the pool for 5 years and then walk away from it.
I wanted to share my perspective, and hopefully inspire a bit of confidence, as a brand new 28 yo. swimmer in Masters. The first meet of my life was in November of last year. It was a blast, obviously, but I will tell you the two most memorable things for me at that event.
The first was watching a 18-24 competitor put on an Olympic performance in the pool, which had everyone out of their seats obviously. It was incredible, and helped me understand how much dedication, training, and technique is required to achieve that level of swimming.
But the second was far more important to me in my growth as a swimmer. My coach is 61 years old. He was a former NCAA All-American in backstroke, but I had never seen him swim. Some of my teammates were competing in the same heat as he was. Now, I knew my coach was a good swimmer, obviously, but he doesn't appear outwardly "in shape" to me. Like he maybe let himself go, or something. I didn't think about this daily, nor did I judge him for this or anything, but I just had that picture in my mind.
Watching him swim was one of the most incredible things I've ever seen in athletics. That someone of his age and body could demolish the other swimmers in his heat (all half his age), and do so while looking like he's taking a leisurely swim... I mean it blew me away. It was the most inspiring thing I've seen in a very long time.
I internalized every moment of that race. When one of my teammates congratulated me on my performance at the meet I said "Yeah, I've got a long way to go, though", and they said "You have a long stroke like Bill (the coach), you will be great". That was the greatest compliment I could've received that day. Or this entire month/year, etc. That statement, and his performance, are what continue to inspire me in the pool just as much as the Olympic level swimmers that I look up to. The difference is that my coach is with me everyday.
Why am I saying this? Because even if you feel you are not performing your best any longer, you are still setting an example in the pool. If you need another reason to perform, imagine some brand new kid to the sport sitting in the stands watching you display a complete mastery of the art of swimming. What could be more inspiring?
I like to observe my age-group peers because they help me develop realistic standards, but it is the older people in the pool that I look up to. My goal is to be a swimmer for life, not to be the fastest man in the pool for 5 years and then walk away from it.
