News For
SWIM PARENTS
Published by The
American Swimming Coaches Association
5101 NW 21 Ave.,
___________________________________________________________________
Training Aids:
Legitimate Tools Or
Frivolous Fads?
If
you talk to parents of swimmers from other teams, if you read swim
publications, or if you watch swimmers during warm ups at swim meets, you will
notice a variety of training aids that swimmers lug around. Let's see,
there are kick boards in every size and shape imaginable; there are tire tubes;
there are paddles -- boy are there paddles!, round ones, rectangular ones,
contoured ones, ones with holes, incredibly large ones, ones that cover the forearms,
ones that inflate around the whole lower arm, etc, etc.; there are webbed
gloves made out of lycra or latex rubber; there are
fins - standard department store types, expensive scuba shop types, short
stubby ones, monofins, and fins cut in a variety of
shapes; there are ankle weights, wrist weights, and even head weights; there
are fiberglass rods velcroed to the legs; there are
suits with pockets in them; there are plain old sneakers used on kick sets;
there are plain old t-shirts; there are plain old, really old, swim suits - two
or three or four worn at the same time; there is tubing; there are stretch
cords; there are short pull buoys, long pull buoys, and pull buoys that can be
filled with water; and on and on and on.
When
you notice a 10 year old star swimmer from another team lugging around a
training bag with surgical tubing exploding from the torn end of the bag, you
ask, "Could this be the reason she always wins?" Do you want to
go out and buy surgical tubing for your young swimmer?
Or,
between long course and short course season you are contemplating your child's
swimming successes and short comings of the past season while you read an ad
about a "revolutionary new" buoyancy device. Do you want to
equip your child with it in time for the start of the season?
Who
invents these things? What things really work and what things are
commercial contrivances of questionable value? Can some of these devices
do more harm than good? Should your child use some of these devices?
Most
training aids are invented by coaches. There are hundreds, maybe
thousands of training aids invented by coaches but only a few make it to
commercial production. Most coaches do not invent a training aid for the
profit potential but rather they are invented for the sake of improving an
individual's or team's strength, speed, endurance, and/or technique.
Many
coaches would add that training aids can do more than improve strength,
endurance, and/or technique. They also add variety to a workout and help
motivate swimmers.
What
things really work? There are very few published independent studies done
on
specific
training aids to test their effectiveness in speed, strength, endurance, or
technique enhancing qualities. (Actually, I could not find any published
independent studies -- but there might be some out there.)
But
good coaches do not need studies to know that some things really do work.
Most coaches use kickboards. Most coaches use pull buoys. Many
coaches, but I'm not sure most coaches, use paddles. Same
for fins. Fewer coaches use surgical tubing. Almost all
coaches try nearly every training aid at least once but almost no one uses all
the training aids all the time.
So
what things really work? The answer is: most training aids, whether
commercially produced or coach/home made, are effective to some degree when the
coach and swimmer properly use them with respect to the developmental age of
the swimmer, the psychological needs of the swimmer, the appropriate time
during workout, and the appropriate time during the season. The answer
also is: no training aid will work if not used properly.
Can
some of these devices do more harm than good? The answer is a definite
yes. No training aid is safe when improperly used. Most training
aids are designed to increase resistance or to increase training speed.
Excessive workloads with training aids can lead to overuse syndromes and
injuries especially in younger children not physically mature.
Should
your child use some of these devices? Who decides IF they should use
training aids and if so, which aids to use? Questions like these are the
reasons you and your Board of Directors hire a qualified professional
coach. The coach makes these decisions based upon his or her experience
and coaching education. If your coach is having your child use a training
aid and you are concerned that use of that training aid may cause an injury, then speak directly to the coach about the extent and
intensity of use for that training aid. If your coach is not using various training
aids that you've seen or heard about and you are curious about, then once again
speak with the coach.
When
speaking with the coach keep these things in mind:
1.
Approach the coach after practice or during office hours quietly and sincerely
with an attitude of "Could you help me understand...".
Many of the communication problems between coach and parent arise from abrupt
challenges to coaches judgment calls.
2.
Coaches have selected favorite training aids and don't like to be told they
should be using additional or different methods. There is more than one
way to accomplish a desired training effect and it is the coaches
area of responsibility and authority to select that method.
3.
There is a limited amount of workout time in the water and a coach must make
decisions about the type of training aids to use and the amount of work using
training aids. These things must fit in with an overall daily, weekly,
and seasonal workout plan.
4.
Smart coaches are not quick to jump on the bandwagon when a revolutionary new
training device comes along. They want to speak with other coaches,
observe its use, perhaps try it themselves, begin using it on a limited trial
basis, and evaluate its effectiveness before using it on a regular basis with
the whole team.
5.
One of the great strengths of American Swimming is in the diversity of
approaches coaches use to develop young swimmers. From this diversity comes great new ideas. Your coach may be a future
Olympic coach and her use, limited use, or lack of use of a training device is
her special approach to training your young swimmer.
6.
Many training aids are not designed for young age groupers to use.
Coaches like to introduce various training aids in a progression following the
swimmer's developmental age and ability to handle greater workloads.
7.
Some training aids have a dual purpose, they can be used at low resistance for
stroke development, and they can be used at high intensity for speed, strength,
and endurance development. A coach may use this type of training aid
primarily for skill development with younger ages and gradually use it for more
intense work as the swimmer grows.
8.
Motivation is a large factor in the use of training aids. If a swimmer
gets to use all the "toys" at an early age they will become bored in
years to come as they keep using the same "toys". Smart coaches
use this as a reason for the gradual introduction of training aids.
These
are not easy issues for coaches, athletes, and parents. Questions about
"how much", "how hard", and "what type" are part
of the sport. Coaches will make decisions based on firsthand experience,
information from other coaches, and published reports. Whatever the
decisions are, one thing stands out, there are no
quick answers and no short cuts. A new super duper revolutionary training
aid will not transform your age group swimmer into a superstar. And even
if there was such a thing, what would it mean? In age group swimming we
want steady growth, a sound aerobic base, excellent stroke development, and an
appreciation for the relationship between day to day effort and the realization
of goals.