Hi: I'm new to this forum, but it looks like a great place to get information.
I have an 8 year old girl who was in a VERY relaxed semi-competitive program for a couple of years with volunteer lifeguard coaches. This season she joined a competitive club - we thought this would be a good place for her to get her technique improved while she was still young.
Unfortunately, this club's junior coach has never swum competitively, has only coached one year, and has yet to finish her level 1 certification. None of those 3 is a killer, but together they scare me! Also, the coach seems very reluctant to discuss anything with parents, so we're feeling a little uneasy.
I'm not a pushy crazy parent, and I don't want to interfere with the coach. I do want to help my daughter's technique, however, especially her breastroke. She's clearly got some potential there, and I want to ensure things progress. She's swimming 3 times a week, 90mins each tme.
Any suggestions? Should I get a book (any recommended) and try to work with her myself a little (I'm an ex - very ex - competitive breastroker). Should I video her and seek out a coach who can comment? Should I just butt out, hope and pray? I can't pull her and go elsewhere (and I'm not sure I would, as she likes it there, and that's very important).
She also has a very rigid straightleg freestyle kick that causes her legs to tire very easily - combined with her high head position this complicates things for her freestyle. I want to work on that too, so any suggestions?
Any comments appreciated.
Parents
Former Member
Unfortunately, I can't shop around till this time next year. Every other competitive program in the city has a waiting list (we're in Canada and swimming resources are probably not as plentiful as in the States). If I'd known what she was getting into, I probably would have put her into a different club, or re-registered her with the "fun racing only" program. At least I can get back to that in January, but she has to wait until next September to get in somewhere else.
As for her lead, she's the one that's conflicted. She has a good friend swimming with her that moved with her to this club. Her friend is quite restless about the swimming she's getting (her friend is a serious future talent), but desperately wants to race. (she's very competitive) My daughter is very competitive once a race starts, but would be fine with more relaxed swimming if her friend joined her. My daughter feels, however, that no-one is helping her with some of her strokes, and I've been reluctant to step in and help her.
I taught her to swim, and felt comfortable working the kinks out of her strokes at a more rudimentary level, but at this point I wanted to bow out. So when she followed her friend to this club, I was thrilled. Now I'm not.
Unfortunately, I can't shop around till this time next year. Every other competitive program in the city has a waiting list (we're in Canada and swimming resources are probably not as plentiful as in the States). If I'd known what she was getting into, I probably would have put her into a different club, or re-registered her with the "fun racing only" program. At least I can get back to that in January, but she has to wait until next September to get in somewhere else.
As for her lead, she's the one that's conflicted. She has a good friend swimming with her that moved with her to this club. Her friend is quite restless about the swimming she's getting (her friend is a serious future talent), but desperately wants to race. (she's very competitive) My daughter is very competitive once a race starts, but would be fine with more relaxed swimming if her friend joined her. My daughter feels, however, that no-one is helping her with some of her strokes, and I've been reluctant to step in and help her.
I taught her to swim, and felt comfortable working the kinks out of her strokes at a more rudimentary level, but at this point I wanted to bow out. So when she followed her friend to this club, I was thrilled. Now I'm not.
