Hey Swimmers,
You know, there are days when I absolutely love swimming; most days in fact.
But then there are days when I really, really can’t be bothered.
I think that’s worth saying because, as a coach and active swimmer always trying to encourage you with your own swimming, it’s very easy to give the impression that motivation is something you either have or you don’t. That the people who train consistently must wake up every morning desperate to get to the pool.
They don’t.
I certainly don’t.
Some mornings the alarm goes off and the last thing I fancy is getting into cold water, staring at a black line and putting myself through a tough session. I can think of ten perfectly reasonable excuses before my feet have even touched the floor.
Create That Appointment With Yourself
What I’ve learned over the years, though, is that motivation is far less important than routine.
If you wait until you feel motivated to train, your swimming will inevitably become inconsistent. But if Tuesday morning is simply swimming morning, there’s far less negotiation involved. You get up. You grab your bag. You go.
That’s one of the great strengths of being part of a regular Swim Smooth Squad.
You’re not just booking a swimming session. You’re creating an appointment with yourself - and, importantly, with other people.
You know your lane mates will be there. You know the coach will have something planned. You don’t need to decide what session to do, how hard to swim, or whether today should be technique, threshold or endurance. That decision has already been made for you.
Your only job is to turn up.
And very often, turning up is the hardest part.
I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve arrived at the pool feeling flat, tired or completely uninspired, only to walk away an hour later thinking, I’m so glad I did that.
That’s because motivation doesn’t always come before action.
Quite often, action creates motivation.
You start swimming. You chat to somebody in your lane. You get through the warm-up. You find a little rhythm. Perhaps you hit a pace you weren’t expecting. Before long, the person who really couldn’t be bothered getting out of bed has disappeared.
This is also why I’m a big believer in making swimming enjoyable and social, not simply another obligation on your weekly schedule.
A good squad should challenge you, absolutely. But it should also be somewhere you enjoy being. Somewhere you feel welcome regardless of whether you’re flying or struggling. Somewhere that makes a difficult morning just that little bit easier.
Of course, there are times when genuine fatigue means you need to rest. Good training requires knowing the difference between I need recovery and I just don’t fancy it today.
But on those ordinary low-motivation days, my advice is simple:
Don’t ask yourself whether you feel like swimming…
Stick to the routine. Get yourself to the pool. Give yourself permission to have an average session if that’s all you’ve got.
Because consistency isn’t built from hundreds of brilliant, highly motivated days.
It’s built from all those perfectly ordinary days when you turned up anyway.
And strangely enough, they’re often the sessions you end up being most pleased you did.
Thanks for reading,
Your Coach, Paul
