Hi All!
i have a 14 yr old daughter who has been swimming with a USA swimming club for about 1.5yrs now. She is the only person in our family to swim, so naturally I feel in a bit over my head at times, though she seems to fit in well in the swimming world. I’m not sure how my daughter ranks against her peers, or her just others in her age group for that matter, nor what is a “good time” or “bad time”. So I’m wondering what I can do to be a “good swim parent”, how far do I go when she adds time and how happy should I be when she drops a little time? Thanks for all your help! I’ve put a couple of her short course times below.
200 freestyle: 2:03.11
100 freestyle: 57.51
50 Freestyle: 26.19
100 backstroke: 1:04.03
200 backstroke: 2:15.90
100 Butterfly: 1:03.13
200 butterfly: 2:22.78
100 ***: 1:17.66
200 IM: 2:20.12
Parents should definitely educate and inform themselves on swimming principles, particularly on swimming technique. Basing yourself on times alone can be deceiving since, as another forumite mentioned, your daughter's times may not always descend. What is most important is to ensure that your daughter has a solid technical foundation from the beginning of her swimming career - you can get away with good times for awhile, but if you don't work on developing your stroke, those times may not always continue to improve. There are many different stroke clinics or camps out there that help age group swimmers improve their technique. Having good technique will remain with your daughter throughout her entire swimming experience. Once again, good luck!
Parents should definitely educate and inform themselves on swimming principles, particularly on swimming technique. Basing yourself on times alone can be deceiving since, as another forumite mentioned, your daughter's times may not always descend. What is most important is to ensure that your daughter has a solid technical foundation from the beginning of her swimming career - you can get away with good times for awhile, but if you don't work on developing your stroke, those times may not always continue to improve. There are many different stroke clinics or camps out there that help age group swimmers improve their technique. Having good technique will remain with your daughter throughout her entire swimming experience. Once again, good luck!
