Here's a provocative post about what makes activities (esp sports) enjoyable and the pursuit of excellence.
You gotta love the title "Barry Sanders, Matt Biondi, and the Tiger Mom"
www.theatlantic.com/.../
Here's a provocative post about what makes activities (esp sports) enjoyable and the pursuit of excellence.
You gotta love the title "Barry Sanders, Matt Biondi, and the Tiger Mom"
www.theatlantic.com/.../Given that there's little in the way of extrinsic rewards in Masters swimming (Top Ten really is not all that matters!), I think Masters swimmers are prime examples of people pursuing something for the fun of it. I think we can all delight in the little outcomes (e.g., best times), but at the core many of us must delight in the process, in the simple act of swimming to continue to do it.
Though I never reached the heights of a Biondi, I certainly reached a period of burnout as a younger swimmer. A wise coach reminded me to focus on the fun and gave me a changeup in my workouts for a summer and really encouraged me to chill out for a summer to regain the joy. Even though I did regain the joy and finished out my senior year at college loving swimming again, I still felt like, at 22, even though I was well aware of Masters, I'd probably not compete again. I was dabbling again in competition by the time I was 24 and then kept coming back to the sport over the years ... because it's just so fun.
Here's a provocative post about what makes activities (esp sports) enjoyable and the pursuit of excellence.
You gotta love the title "Barry Sanders, Matt Biondi, and the Tiger Mom"
www.theatlantic.com/.../Given that there's little in the way of extrinsic rewards in Masters swimming (Top Ten really is not all that matters!), I think Masters swimmers are prime examples of people pursuing something for the fun of it. I think we can all delight in the little outcomes (e.g., best times), but at the core many of us must delight in the process, in the simple act of swimming to continue to do it.
Though I never reached the heights of a Biondi, I certainly reached a period of burnout as a younger swimmer. A wise coach reminded me to focus on the fun and gave me a changeup in my workouts for a summer and really encouraged me to chill out for a summer to regain the joy. Even though I did regain the joy and finished out my senior year at college loving swimming again, I still felt like, at 22, even though I was well aware of Masters, I'd probably not compete again. I was dabbling again in competition by the time I was 24 and then kept coming back to the sport over the years ... because it's just so fun.
