hello im new to usms.
I've been wanting to know about some timing help.
my friends son is 12 and he is in the 11-12 age group.
On his freestyle for 50 yds he can go 32 seconds and on 50 ***, 35 seconds. On butterfly and back even higher.
how do I help up his time?
is there any drills he can do or anything there is to help his time?
he swims 2 times a week beacuse of school
Former Member
First, make sure he is enjoying training. If it is not fun to train, he is not going to train hard and often.
This is something i always stress as well.
Depending on commitment and financial means. (Ordered from most $/Time to least sort of)
Getting on a team is a great option. Getting an occasional lesson (competitive stroke focused), swim clinics, technique videos.
Getting in the water more then 2x a week will def help, but by no means does it need to necessarily be 5x a week year round. Maybe summer/winter increase training and fall/spring lower session count.
Definately the biggest focus right now IMO should be around working on technique/"feel" of the water rather then just times or yardage. This sets up a more sustainable base for your child to grow on in the coming years.
Honestly those times are not that bad for a 12 y/o boy swimming only 2 times per week (not sure if the times are meters or yards). Naturally childhood is a great time to develop good technique and "feel" for the water, so anytime he is in the pool there should b emphasis on that. There will most likely come a point when this kid will need to determine if swimming is definitely a sport he wants to pursue, and at that point will need to be willing to devote more than 2 days per week to practice.
First, make sure he is enjoying training. If it is not fun to train, he is not going to train hard and often.
He needs to make as many practices as possible, and still enjoy swimming. Two practices a week for a 12yo seems light to me, but if that is all he can make then make the most of every practice, and never miss a practice.
At that age, it is very beneficial to train with a bunch of other kids. Training alone will not be interesting, and when you train in a group, you learn at least as much from your teammates as you do from the coach.
To get faster he needs practice, like all of us. There is no magic drill that will make him faster. Training only twice a week is going a long time between practices, especially if it is something like Tuesday Thursday. Imagine figuring out something with your stroke on Thursday, but Tuesday you might have to figure it out all over again.
Finally, make sure he is training with kids who are better than him. He doesn't need to be the slowest kid in the group, but if he is easily the fastest, he will learn more and push himself harder if he moves up to the next harder group.
