Is swimming "eating its young?" Are they being burned out with mindless yardage? Do they have to do volume training for long events? Are we missing masters swimmers who were burned out as youths? As to the kids, what can we do to stop the cannabalism?
Parents
Former Member
This is an important topic. It could be a couple of things like: those parents and those coaches who have Type A personalities; you know, excel, excel, excel in both sports and academics. Many parents do live through their children when their children are inclined to be "great." And many coaches may put children through volumes of yardage so they don't have to spend as much time "coaching." Or, because they were put through the paces when they were swimmers and it is either: payback, or the thought that this is the way it is done. But I don't consider those types of people coaches. They are drill sargents.
All of us here know that coaching is a delicate balance between bettering a person physically and emotionally and knowing and seeing the differences along the way. I think that most parents who are not Type A personalities will recognize when their children have had too much for them. Our kids' body language can say a whole lot.
Also, I am not sure if a lot of age group swimmers did get burned out. I, at least, have never met any but I do hear about this through others. I also wonder if maybe they just became passionate about some other things especially as they entered adulthood and found that life IS a bowl of cherries but their interests have changed.
But if more swimmers are getting burned out and giving up the sport, then it may be that the pool time was way too much, and they did not think it was going to be worthwhile because their personal journey to "greatness" (whatever that may mean) seemed unreachable.
Just my thoughts, no facts here.
Donna
This is an important topic. It could be a couple of things like: those parents and those coaches who have Type A personalities; you know, excel, excel, excel in both sports and academics. Many parents do live through their children when their children are inclined to be "great." And many coaches may put children through volumes of yardage so they don't have to spend as much time "coaching." Or, because they were put through the paces when they were swimmers and it is either: payback, or the thought that this is the way it is done. But I don't consider those types of people coaches. They are drill sargents.
All of us here know that coaching is a delicate balance between bettering a person physically and emotionally and knowing and seeing the differences along the way. I think that most parents who are not Type A personalities will recognize when their children have had too much for them. Our kids' body language can say a whole lot.
Also, I am not sure if a lot of age group swimmers did get burned out. I, at least, have never met any but I do hear about this through others. I also wonder if maybe they just became passionate about some other things especially as they entered adulthood and found that life IS a bowl of cherries but their interests have changed.
But if more swimmers are getting burned out and giving up the sport, then it may be that the pool time was way too much, and they did not think it was going to be worthwhile because their personal journey to "greatness" (whatever that may mean) seemed unreachable.
Just my thoughts, no facts here.
Donna
