#Tmacswims 'Links of The Week' May 4th

Another Monday, another Links of The Week with Tyson MacDonald.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ul9t_K88TGo

An excellent inspirational video I first saw on SwimSwam regarding the 2015 Pan Am Games. These Games will electrify the GTA and enhance sports in Ontario as well Canada. Thanks to the Pan Am and Para Pan Am Games many facilities have underwent extensive renovation or brand new facilities have been built which will serve different sports for years to come.  It’s going to an exciting summer to watch sports on TV, don’t miss a second of it!

http://swimming.about.com/od/swimworkoutsandskills/tp/4-Tips-for-a-Better-Swimming-Start.htm

We can all benefit from a faster start in a race. The worst thing is looking at results and finding out your reaction time off the blocks was over 0.75 and you think if I was 0.65 or even 0.70 I could have went a best time in the 50. Here are some tips on how to have a faster start. The most important goal is to be working on race quality starts often in practice, because whatever you do in practice reflects your performance in a meet.

http://swimming.about.com/od/swimworkoutsandskills/tp/4-Elite-Freestyle-Flip-Turn-Tips.htm

Here is another technical link for everyone to consider. Flip turns are another excellent spot to save time and clean up technique and like starts it’s a technical unit that is overlooked by 95+% of clubs because meters take place of technical work. Another one is coaches will argue swimmers do hundreds of turns a practice. My question to those coaches is “Are all your swimmers doing international quality turns on every single wall during a workout?” The answer is likely no. The next time your coach wants to work on turns make sure they are fast and efficient as well try to work on them often, even if it means taking 2-5 minutes out of warm up to practice fast spins in the mid pool.

 http://swimswam.com/6-questions-to-ask-to-make-yourself-a-mentally-tough-swimmer/

As the season continues on and some people are finding it tougher and tougher to get in the pool or the weight room here are some tips to help put things into perspective. We all have to understand whatever we put into performance in practice is what shows in a meet. If you’re holding 30 seconds for pace 200 50s then it’s likely you will go 2:00 in a meet. It’s important to think about your performance before reacting to it. I’ve scene a lot of swimmers over the years have meltdowns and arguments with coaches (I’m included in this) and it’s unfortunate it has to happen. I’ve learned to take the performance into consideration, where I’m at in the season, and how it lines up with my goals. This has helped me a lot this season as I’ve been dealing with shoulder injuries.

http://swimming.about.com/od/swimworkoutsandskills/tp/5-Tips-for-Massive-Time-Drop-and-a-Faster-50-Freestyle.htm

Looking for a massive time drop in your sprint 50s? This link gives you 5 tips on how to take time off. A 50 is a race where you can’t think about anything and if something goes wrong like a start, under water, turn if it’s short course, or a finish can put you first or tenth.

http://swimswam.com/11-reasons-to-love-swimming-outside/

The weather is finally getting warmer and it will soon be time to train outside. I love training outside, you get sun, you can breathe fresh air, and it’s just all around better than inside. Many championship meets today are outside and having the opportunity to train outside makes competing easier as you are used to it. Training outside allows for different types of training, you may train in sun, cloud, rain, wind, fog, or yes even snow. Next time you swim outside work hard but enjoy the change in venue. 

#Tmacswims 'Links of The Week' for April 27th

It's Monday, which means it's time for another round of #Tmacswims 'Links of The Week'
Have a cool link you've found and want me to share? Send it to me and I'll post it on 'Links of The Week.'

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-18366/top-5-foods-to-eat-before-yoga.html

After taking part in a Yoga class on Friday I came across this link on foods you should eat before going to a yoga class. Yoga is a great way to relax the body and loosen out all the muscles in your body after a hard week in the gym and pool and now thanks to this link we add great foods into our pre yoga workout.

http://swimswam.com/5-ways-swimming-is-like-dating/

Swimming is such a demanding sport on the mind and body and sometimes during the year we need to take a break from the water. If you recall I took 5 days off over March break and it was one of the best decisions I made for myself and swimming as now I feel well rested and rejuvenated starting off my LC season. Sometimes taking time off or trying new things in the water or weight room is the best thing you can do for your swimming!

http://olympictalk.nbcsports.com/2015/04/24/bob-bowman-arizona-state-michael-phelps-swimming-olympics/?utm_network=twitter&utm_post=3622966&utm_source=TW%20%40NBCOlympics&utm_tags=srm%5Bolympics%2Carticle%5D

The greatest Olympian of all time is following his coach’s footsteps and moving to Arizona where he will continue to train under long-time coach Bob Bowman. I have always loved Michael and supported him through thick and thin and this decision will only better his career moving forward. I’m excited to see what Michael will be up to over the next several months with a new swim wear line coming, he’s engaged, and now this move in clubs, it’s never a quiet moment for the most decorated Olympian of all time.

 http://swimswam.com/3-steps-to-maximize-your-endurance-for-long-course/

With Long Course in full swing it’s time to dig deep and prep for major meets coming within the next couple months for many. Make sure you are attending every single workout per week and putting in your best effort so you can improve and achieve your goals going forward. Always make sure you’re keeping up with school work, sleep, eating, and drinking to ensure maximum performance in the pool as well the classroom. 

http://www.yourswimlog.com/16-ways-motivate-train-butt-youd-rather-anything-else/

Training can rewarding and hell for all athletes and being able to control our environments allows for maximum performance and outcome in a meet. Now I don’t think doing 10x200 fly LC is a way to prove a point but doing something you haven’t done before or something that your teammates or lane mates aren't doing to improve your swimming will make a world of a difference. I had a swimmer ask me once why he had to do 200 fly for time during workout while another swimmer didn't have to do a 200 fly or 200 back for time. I simply responded by the coach wants you to do a 200 fly to see how you attack the swim and to practice for your 100 fly. It’s not a punishment and it’s only going to make you a faster sprinter at the end of the day. The most important thing is you always want to try and be one step ahead of your biggest competitor.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsDmgu-ZR-w&feature=youtu.be

Katie Ledecky has been on fire since the London Olympics and continues to dominate in the pool. Here’s her 200 free final from Mesa where she went an impressive 1:56 in season swim and this happened to be the 6^th fastest time in the world this year. This young lady can swim events from 100 free all the way to the 1500 free and hold World Records in the 400, 800, & 1500 free. She will be one to watch this summer at the World Championships as well next summer in Rio at the Olympics. 

2015-2016 Provincial Meet Hosts

Swim Ontario has now posted the hosts for the 2015-2016 Provincial meets for most of the competitions and surprisingly a lot of my picks  that I made about a month ago were bang on. Below I have included the full list that Swim Ontario posted.

All and all not overly shocked by these results, all though a couple of clubs aren't on this list that I thought would be, all though a couple of meets are still up for grabs. Congratulations to the clubs on successful bids for the 2015-2016 swim season. Running Provincial meets takes a strong team of fair officials and a state of the art pool to run the meet in. Most of these clubs listed here are able to provide those important qualities for swimmers success.

2015-2016 Provincial Competitions Hosting Information

Update Friday April 24th,

2015-2016 Provincial Competition Hosts

Ontario Winter SC Championships - December 10-13, 2015 - Etobicoke Swimming - ESWIM

Eastern Cup January 15-17, 2016 - Toronto Swim Club - TSC

Ontario Winter Festival - February 20-21, 2016 - Markham Aquatic Club - MAC

Ontario Spring LC Championships - March 3-6, 2016 - Nepean Kanata Barracudas - NKB

Division I Team Championships - April 29 - May 1, 2016 - Etobicoke Swimming - ESWIM 

Division II Team Championships - April 29 - May 1, 2016 - Brantford Aquatic Club - BRANT

*Division III - April 29 - May 1, 2016 - TBD

Ontario Summer Festival - June 18 - 20, 2016 - Mississauga Aquatic Club - MSSAC

**Ontario Summer LC Championships - June 30 - July 3, 2016 - TBD

*There were no bids on hosting Division III Team Championships.  The bid will remain open until June 1st, 2015.  At this time if there are no hosts, the meet will not be offered in the 2015-2016 season.

**Swim Ontario is still in the process of determining the 2016 Ontario Summer LC Championships.  An announcement will be made at such time as a hosting decision has been made.

#Tmacswims 1st 'Links of the Week'

As promised last week I have been working on a new bit for my blog and I've been thinking about doing this for a while now. If you follow me close on Facebook or Twitter you'll know I share A LOT of cool swim posts from sites like SwimSwam, Swimming World, Swimming Science and today I'm launching a new weekly segment where I'm posting my favorite links with a short bit on what I think of the topic. My goal is to have between 5-7 links for each week, now some may have less (like this 1st post for example) and my goal is to have this 'Links of the Week' posted every Monday to help kick start your week.

1. What I Learned on my way to Swimming 35,000 Meters Last Week

More and more swimmers need to start having fun and enjoying themselves more in workout as well at meets. As an 18 year old I know that the days of 'a best time' in every race are over, heck if I swim a 0.01 best time it's huge. The important thing here is to have a plan and stick to the plan, if your falling off your path you need to figure out how to get back on the path by conferencing with your parents, and as well talking to your coach, but most importantly having faith in you that everything will be alright.

2. Tech Suits Tech Suits Everywhere

Every meet I attend it's obvious nearly all swimmers are in $300 + suits for guys and $450 + suits for girls and I always wonder where is the line crossed? Is it really worth all the money for these expensive suits? I'm a true believer in certain suits really should only be worn by certain swimmers. For example, athletes that haven't made a 'National level time' (Eastern's Western's Olympic Trials Summer Nationals or Canadian Age Group Champs) then they really don't need a suit over $300 BUT of course if the athlete or the athlete's parents is willing to fork out the money for these expensive tech suits then be my guest and go for it but really it won't make you faster, instead boost your confidence.

3. Records Records Records

I always love reading and watching Canadian, Ontario, or Meet Records fall. It gives me as a swimmer motivation to swim faster and faster. Currently Swim ON has a lot of FAST up and coming swimmers that could very well be one's to keep our eyes on heading into the 2016 Olympic Trials.  Penny Oleksiak at just 14 years of age is on fire breaking Canadian Records nearly every time she dives into a race. Javier Acevedo he may only have the 50 free 13-14 SCM National Age Group Record but this dude is getting closer and closer to those 15-17 National Age Group Records. I watched him swim at the Ontario Age Group Champs in Brantford back in March and his strokes are beautiful to sum them up in one word. This dude is a tough swimmer training through many meets most swimmers in this country would 'taper' for. With his Bronze medal performance at the 2015 Canadian Swimming Trials in the 100 free with a time of 49:85 and cracking the 50 second mark for the first time, like Oleksiak, Acevedo is one to watch this summer at the World Junior Championships as well next spring at the 2016 Canadian Olympic Trials. Finally, we have the 13-14 boys quad from the Markham Aquatic Club where they are breaking both Canadian Age Group Records and Ontario Records for relays. Now back in a previous blog post I talked about Time Trials being a waste for swimmers, BUT these four 13-14 year old boys are stepping up EVERY TIME they dive into the water trying to chase down a record and it's paying off for these four boys. Congrats to all these swimmers mentioned in this blog post. Swimmers like Oleksiak, Acevedo, and the Markham quad are what's shaping Ontario and Canadian swimming. Good luck at future meets and I look forward to reading about more record breaking swims in the months to come.

Something NEW is coming....

Stay tuned for a brand NEW segment coming soon on my blog. It's going to be big, insightful and hopefully educational for swimmers, coaches, and parents to review. Watch for this new segment coming Monday April 20, 2015.

March Break 2015

With March Break in full swing it's time for clubs to train insane and prepare for LC but more importantly prepare for the 2015 Canadian Swimming Trials. This time last year I was in sunny Fort Lauderdale swimming crazy mileage which eventually lead to injury upon return from the 2014 Canadian Swimming Trials in Victoria. Reviewing the 2014 Trials 'Best Time Present' of only 22% for the country made me realize something is wrong with this picture. Well the first thing that's wrong is swimmers competing at this meet are being run into the ground with heavy training over the March Break which is leading to failure at Trials. Smart coaches will begin the descend in mileage during the March Break if they are known for high mileage. Coaches doing USRPT don't have to worry about descending the mileage, instead increasing the race specific work and technical work to ensure attention to detail is perfect.

My 2015 March Break is quite. I've decided to take the week off. Well that's a lie I'm taking 5 days off from the pool, but still maintaining some dryland work on my own. I plan to do some runs, bike rides and walks to keep moving. A good rule of thumb for taking time off is knowing you won't get out of shape, especially when it's only 5 days. Now if you sit on your tush and watch TV and eat all week, then yes you will feel off heading into your first practice back, but maintaining some movement and doing some conditioning will really help your body regenerate and grow. The swim season is a long one with most swimmers going 11 months of the year at full tilt! So taking a few days off won't make or break your season. ALWAYS listen to your body, and rest if you need it. If are car needs fixing we take it to a body shop and fix it, if are body is crashing we should be taking time off and resting so we can get back stronger.

For those training through March Break, make sure to take time for yourself and spend time with your friends and family. Enjoy the March Break.

2015-2016 Provincial Competition List (Tyson’s Picks)

Now that SC is done (for the most part) and LC is ramping up clubs are looking ahead to the 2015-2016 swim season in terms of bidding for swim meets that are classified as a ‘Provincial Champ’ meet. Reading through the detailed package of information and dates I came across some exciting changes to the schedule as well layout of swim meets. Having said the excitement comes some confusion inside this package. The main part is incorrect dates as well reading through regulations clubs are to meet when hosting ‘Provincial Champ’ meets, many clubs haven’t met the criteria in PAST ‘Provincial Champs’ meets. Now I’m not about to call out any particular ‘Provincial Champ’ meet because there is nothing that can be done now as these meets are completed and there’s no point in reopening a debate over history.

2015-2016 Provincial Competitions Hosting Information

Swim ON Page 2015-2016 Provincial Competitions

The dates that made me take a triple look started right on the hosting information page. Below are some dates that aren't making any sense.

Deadline to submit competition host bids (KINDA OF A BIG DEAL…..) Monday March 27, 2015

No such date… Could it be Friday March 27, 2015? That’s the actual day of the week the 27^th falls on.

2015-2016 Provincial Competition Hosts will be announced (Swim ON community finds out where we get to travel next season for ‘Provincial Champ’ meets) Monday April 5, 2015

No such date… Could it be Sunday April 5, 2015? That’s the actual day of the week the 5^th falls on. (Note the 5^th just so happens to be Easter Sunday….)

Ontario Summer Short Course Festival June 18-20, 2016 (Winter Festival still 2 days…)

In an email to Swim ON I raised the question of Summer Festival and why it was 3 days instead of 2. I didn't think it was a different format or meet because winter was still scheduled for 2 days. In an email response from Swim ON the meet is in fact 2 days NOT 3 days and is an error on the schedule. (Note the schedule on Swim ON as of the writing of this blog post has yet to be corrected).

The final error or inconsistency I found with the report was Division III Team Champs. On the Appendix B titled 2015 Division Team Championships, the document shows in the fifth section on team sizes Division III is 30 athletes but on the 2015 Team Championship Placement page the chart is showing Division III allowing 25 athletes. At the 2014 Team Championships Division III was allowed to take a maximum of 30 athletes. My assumption is 2015 will remain the same as 2014 but one can never assume.    

Ok enough about the errors in the package, time to reveal my 2015-2016 picks for Provincial Competitions!!!!

Date	Competition	TOP PICK	TOP PICK VENUE	SECONDARY PICK
December 4-6, 2015	Ontario Junior International Short Course	Swim ON hosted meet	Pan Am Pool Scarborough	-
December 10-13, 2015	Ontario Winter Short Course Champs	Etobicoke Swim Club (ESWIM)	Etobicoke Olympium	London Aquatic Club (LAC)  @ (CGAC)
January 15-17, 2015	Eastern Cup Long Course	North York Aquatic Club (NYAC)	Pan Am Pool Scarborough	Swim ON host @ Pan Am Pool Scarborough
February 20-21, 2016	Ontario Winter Short Course Festivals	Brantford Aquatic Club (BRANT)	Wayne Gretzky Sports Center	Toronto Swim Club (TSC) @ U of T
March 3-6, 2016	Ontario Spring Long Course Championships	Nepean Kanata Barracudas (NKB)	Nepean Sportsplex	Windsor Aquatic Club (WAC) @ WIATC
March 7-27, 2016	No Sanctioned meets in ON unless Swim Canada National level meet	-	-	-
April 29-May 1, 2016	Ontario Team Champs Short Course Prelims & Long Course Finals	Division I Nepean Kanata Barracudas (NKB) Division II Brantford Aquatic Club (BRANT) Division III Leamington Lasers Swim Team (LLST)	Nepean Sportsplex Wayne Gretzky Sports Center Windsor International Aquatic and Training Center	(Not making second picks for Team Champs as I've based the hosts on teams in receptive divisions)
June 18-20, 2016 June 18-19, 2016 the actual dates	Ontario Summer Short Course Festival	London Aquatic Club (LAC)	Canada Games Aquatic Center	Etobicoke Swim Club (ESWIM) @ Etobicoke Olympium
June 30-July 3, 2016	Ontario Summer Long Course Championships	Windsor Aquatic Club (WAC)	Windsor International Aquatic and Training Center	Brantford Aquatic Club (BRANT) @ WGSC

There you have it my picks for Swim Ontario Provincial Competitions for the 2015-2016 swim season. The locations are based on clubs have an 8 lane 50 meter pool as well I tried to take into consideration the need of a warm down tank. With only a few locations in Ontario meeting the full requirements this is what I came up with. Some clubs and venues will get multiple Provincial Competitions in a season because they have the space for swimmers, parents, as well have adequate warm up/down space. I’m looking forward to the release of the club hosts as well venue locations for the 2015-2016 swim season.