How many events per day at a meet?

During mid-season I thinks it's fine to be swimming hard right up until the day of your meets. (As long as enough sleep has been gotten in.) A nice easy warm-up...with maybe one short speed set is a great way to stay limber ...and keep a good feel for the water ...on the day before a meet.

In October, I swam 4 events plus 4 25s for time (battle of the true drop dead sprinters). I was dead. Yesterday, I slept in and went to a local meet late and only swam one event, a favorite, the 100 IM. I'd never done that before. It was fabulous. I chatted with lots of masters swimmers, cheered for my teammates, watched some world record swims and counted for some crazy distance swimmers. Had the best time ... :agree:

I think racing men is a different animal than racing women. Size is the first issue that comes to mind. . . Kristina: I think it's great that you're open minded about trying lots of different events, and it seems to be paying off for you big time. It doesn't matter whether you're racing men or women though. If everyone enters a reasonable seed time, then you should have a good race no matter the gender. I don't think men are sandbagging anymore than women. Sometimes, I have found (even with myself), people might not enter their best adult times because their training has been off, they've been ill, they're older or injured or whatever. How you feel when you send off the meet entry form makes a big difference. As for size, I personally feel like many women are all towering over me. So I try to ignore size issues altogether.

Hornets - I love them! The sting feels so good. I ran over a nest once when mowing. OUCH! But I still mow!! Having been a high maintenance sprinter in high school (anything over a 100 was a marathon in my mind), I'm trying to become a middle distance and distance swimmer as a masters. Ha! To get in shape and get some base times, I did the 5 events a day for two days in a SCM meet for events I NEVER swam in the past (400 IM/ 800 FR/ 400 FR etc.) Also, I wanted to try for high point, something that I would often miss out on as I would usually swim 5 to 6 events in meets as opposed to the max of 10. It was KILLER BUT very thrilling to show up and give it my all in every race (okay - I did go moderate on 1 event). There were lots of positives and negatives throughout the meet like - I placed in the top 10 for that year in almost all events swum I did go moderately in one event b/c I was DEAD (not sandbagging but I did not give 100% on my 100 FR) Earned high point Got a top 10 world ranking in the 400 IM Lost out to 1st place (all american in the 50 fly by .04 for that year) ARG! And, there were a couple of relays (one each day) My line up for that meet was - 800 FR 200 Fly 400 IM 50 FR 200 IM Day 2 400 FR 100 FR 200 IM 50 Fly 100 Fly For me, I'm attempting to see if it's attitude that's preventing me from becoming a distance/ middle distance sprinter. . . so, perhaps it's a choice rather than , "I just can't do it. . ." We have yet to see. I'd love to do a 5:15 n the 500 yd free. . . I have a WAYS to go as my best is 5:23. But, this year, at the same meet, I'm swimming fewer events just to see if I can get some really fast times. So, I like to switch it up depending on my goals. Now here's a funny hornet story regarding seed times. I normally don't give a hoot about seed times and just make sure that I've entered my fastest adult times. BUT My first time swimming with men in a mixed meet - holy cow! They are fast! Talk about eating their wakes! It didn't help that I was usually the only woman or one of two women in the heat. I felt like a drowned rat in my 1st event 100 IM - went a 1:03 (and yea, I was used to finishing in the top of my heats) and finished like second or third to last. I remember looking at the board and thinking - where the heck am I?! I was actually happy in the end not to be dead last and to have finished the race without stopping from drowning. I had entered my fastest times as an adult and needless to say, the guys in my heats went WAY faster than what they entered. Perhaps they did not want to be beaten by a girl. . . or, they may have entered slower times, or perhaps everyone just had a heck of an amazing meet! Anyway, now, with an attitude adjustment of race whomever regardless of gender, I don't eat *as* much wake now when racing the boys. It's tough but thrilling. I usually enter my best times as an adult (unless I've been sick or not training at which point I do add in some time). And when swimming in a mixed meet, I enter my best times and just make sure I'm rested and really, really ready to race. That seems to work well. I think racing men is a different animal than racing women. Size is the first issue that comes to mind. . .

I totally see your points Fortress. Like I said, I never really paid attention to seed times (fast or slow or right on) when swimming agains women (as I have all my life except for masters mixed). I think that when you go from making the wake to being caught in the wake(s), it's just a real shocker. You get to see the same sport/ same events (100 IM/ 500 Free/ 100 Fly/ whatever) from a totally different viewpoint. My first reaction after my first mixed meet was, "(Wah!) I'm never going to swim mixed again." But, I'm glad I changed my mind. It's made me a tougher swimmer and I've earned some best adult times as a result of the more challenging experiences. Having everyone in your field who is over 6' and male is okay when we're on the blocks and a bit of a surprise when you hit the water. Yea, it bothered me the first time around. But, come the second time I swam at this mixed meet (Auburn), I ignored it and won my heat (second to last heat mixed 100 fly with a 1:00.xx) Fortress, you are my hero if you can ignore size! I'm working on size not mattering. . . it's a long journey. Ha! Pun intended?!