Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Please set your alarms 5 minutes earlier…& bon voyage!

Dear Swimmers

A quick note to say goodbye and adios as myself and Emma leave for the UK tomorrow evening. I'm sure you'll all join me in thanking Emma for her wonderful support at the squad sessions since October and that we wish her the very best with her move back to the UK. Emma will be announced as our 6th Swim Smooth certified coach in the UK on Friday and will join us at the Triathlon Show in London this weekend where we have two seminars to deliver to 500+ people on each - no pressure! Rather than a holiday, this is going to be very much a work commitment as we'll be delivering coaching clinics and education courses all across the UK and Ireland in the next 3 weeks and also unveiling some new products too - busy, busy, busy - just how I like it ;-)

I leave you in the very capable hands of coaches Sally, Sandy, Francene, Brad and Carolyn and all have been briefed with all of the sessions for the next 3 weeks to ensure a super smooth delivery. As mentioned in my last email, despite the anticipated reduction in some of the squad attendance over the next 3 weeks, we won't be announcing any additional squad space until the end of March - so please enjoy the next 3 weeks in my absence and the refreshing difference of a different face(s) on pool deck!

Despite originally advertising a 5.35am and 6.35am start for our Tuesday and Friday squads, we have been politely asked to finish the second session by 7.30am due to another usergroup coming in immediately after us for the next month. I have requested that we try to get you through the gate asap and into the pool as soon after 5.30am as is humanly possible, so please do your best to help the coaches and the staff of the pool with this request. Many thanks.

Please note, that Thursday 28/2 and 7/3 6.30pm sessions will not be on due to carnivals and when we start back on the 14th March we'll be back in the 50m pool - wahoo!

Also, there will be no sessions on Saturday 2nd and Monday 4th March owing to the Public Holiday. Sorry for any inconvenience.

Please be aware of upcoming adjustments to the venues for the 9.30am squad at http://swimsmoothperth.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/revision-again-to-march-april-dates-for.html

Lastly, I actually depart tomorrow evening at 10.30pm - if anyone needs a new PAYG card for whilst I am away, please do your best to order that tonight / tomorrow morning at http://swimsmooth.com/perth_buycard.html and I'll have them ready for you to collect from the coaches. If you order a card whilst I am away, please ensure you print off the receipt and present it to the coaches for them to allocate you a card.

Thanks everyone and see you in just over 3 weeks!

Paul

P.S Rotto report on it's way very soon!



Monday, February 25, 2013

A reminder about Thursdays...and a "Sundowner" this Friday!

Dear Swimmers

A big congratulations to all those who bravely made their way across to Rottnest Island on Saturday in the 23rd Annual Rottnest Channel Swim. I'm still waiting on a few details (namely the full results!) before I give a report on the day, but needless to say there were some exceptionally good results - so well done all!

Just a reminder that this Thursday (28/2) and next (7/3) there will be no Thursday 6.30pm session with Coach Sally due to two carnivals that are running. Very sorry for the inconvenience. When we start back up on 14th March though, we will be back in the 50m pool then, so that'll be a nice change!

Lastly, a lot of people are asking about squad availability at the moment, now that the Rottnest Channel Swim is complete. If you are intending on taking a bit of a break now, please be so kind as to let me know so that I have a good idea on numbers and available space. Believe it or not, we have an incredible 193 people on our squad wait list waiting to come and join the squad and as such it's imperative that I know what I can and can't offer to people given the flexible nature of the PAYG card system...I think I need at least two new pools and about 10 new coaches! LOL!

I'll be away from this Thursday for just over 3 weeks coaching in the UK, so the general plan is to keep the numbers a little quieter for Coaches Sandy, Sally, Brad & Francene whilst I'm away and looking to see what the space is looking like for some new faces if necessary come the end of March.

Cheers and have a great week!

Paul



P.S a good number of the Rotto crew are planning an informal get together at The Claremont Hotel this Friday from 6.00pm if you can make it...sadly I won't be there in person, but will be in spirit! If you need a point of contact, look for the guy from page 9 of the Sunday Times yesterday ("J.T") who had "Don't eat me, eat him..." sprawled across his chest pointing to other squad member and first-time Soloist, Sean Webb - well done boys - great photo!





Thursday, February 21, 2013

Revision (AGAIN!) to March / April dates for 9.30am squad

Dear Swimmers

I am so sorry that I am having to re-issue this again owing to been mistakenly given some incorrect dates by the pool for the March / April carnival season. Please rest assured that these dates are now set:

As noted here: http://swimsmoothperth.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/dates-for-your-diaries.html - there are now two updates to these 9.30am sessions (see RED):

• Friday 8th February at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION 
• Wednesday 6th March at 9.30am = in 50m pool but lanes 1-3 (shared with a carnival) 
• Friday 8th March at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION 
• Wednesday 13th March at 9.30am = 25m pool 
• Friday 15th March at 9.30am = 25m pool
** Wednesday 20th March at 9.30am = in 50m pool but lanes 1-3 (shared with a carnival)**
• Monday 25th March at 9.30am = 25m pool 
• Wednesday 27th March at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION 
• Weekend of 29th March to Monday 1st April (inclusive) = NO SESSIONS (Easter Long Weekend) 
• Friday 5th April at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION 
** Wednesday 10th April at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION ** 
• Friday 12th April at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION

Thanks for your patience and understanding here.

Cheers

Paul


Wednesday, February 20, 2013

I say "pah!" to the bed weather forecast…let's get it on!

Dear Swimmers

Many of you will no doubt be checking www.seabreeze.com.au and www.windguru.cz every second minute right now in the vain hope that the weather forecast will somehow miraculously change before Saturday. Whilst it's definitely got better since Sunday THIS IS TOTALLY OUT OF YOUR CONTROL (so no sense worrying about it!).

I always knew that my English Channel Swim in September 2011 would come in handy sometime, so if you're feeling a little edgy right now, go and grab yourself a nice cuppa and read / watch this:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJZQ5Nlfeho (17 minutes of the psychology that went into battling a 28-35kt headwind and 3.5m swell across to France...12 hours of grim conditions - excuse the naughty words!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0SavBLTMwvE (a quick 2 minute summary of the above demonstrating the rough conditions and how to tackle it with a slightly straighter arm recovery, increased stroke rate, lots of rhythm and lots of confidence in your training).

Don't panic, you CAN do it!

Cheers

Paul

More urgent help needed!

Hi all.
 
If you, or you know of anyone who can assist two duo teams swimming to Rottnest this Saturday please email Jon below:
 
  • Catherine Ward for her duo with Heather Whitehead.
  • Jon Jessop on behalf of Heidi Gann and Simon Huitenga – they are hoping to break four hours and be the fastest on the day!
 
Even if you think you could share the load and help paddle please let them know.
Many thanks and good luck everyone participating or supporting on Saturday.
 
Regards,

Monday, February 18, 2013

Last minute request for help…??!!

Michael Gregory, one of the Melbourne Brighton Bay Ice Breakers Geoff and Andrew swam with for their Manhattan qualifier, is swimming solo to Rotto and needs a boatman to help pass drinks to the paddler.

He's fine for boat, skipper and paddler but needs a spotter / food person to help out on the day.

Michael is a very experienced OWS with a Manhattan and English Channel solo swim under his belt.

Michael will be doing a solo swim and have a boat and paddler organised (starting in first wave at 0545). His Rotto swim plan is very straightforward (courtesy of successful English Channel and Manhattan swims) and all they would need to do is pass the drinks, etc to Jon Haywood (his paddler).  

Michael's email is attached (bondispeedos@live.com) and his phone number is 0418 653 051.

Cheers

Paul


Sunday, February 17, 2013

Farewell to Emma and what to do this week...

Dear Swimmers

I cannot tell you how much I'm enjoying this cooler weather today! It's awesome! I've been melting on pool deck this last two weeks!

Ok, so following on from last week's note about tapering and getting your "Race Face" on, quite a few of you have been asking what sessions to actually do this week? Well firstly, all sessions WILL be running as normal (save for Saturday 1-2pm which THIS WEEK WILL BE CANCELLED) so there's no worries about turning up and a session not being on! Secondly, I would propose something like the following:

MONDAY: either one of the technique squads, or if you're swimming by yourself, do up to 3km mostly technique work but include some shorter intervals (50s, 100s and 200s) with a little bit of tempo to them (remember, whilst you're backing off volume this week, you still need a little intensity so that you don't feel flat or stale).

TUESDAY: either the 5.35am, 6.35am or 6.30pm sessions will be perfect.

WEDNESDAY: we will still be running the harder 5.30am session as usual, but I would encourage soloists and duo swimmers to just do up to 3-3.6km and not the whole session. Alternatively we have the 9.30am Fresh n Fruity session which will have a little more rest to it than normal but will still maintain some intensity.

THURSDAY: rest day - it's always a good idea to have the day before the day before the event as a complete rest day or a very light swim of 1.5-2.0km (max). This is a good day to sort out all your final preparations for the Big Day and get yourself sorted and confident. I will personally be swimming down at the Claremont Jetty for 4km meeting later than normal at 6.45am and starting at 7am (done by 8am) as I won't be able to swim on the Wednesday. Keen for company of course!

FRIDAY: I would encourage you to pop along on Friday to the 5.35am, 6.35am or 9.30am sessions. These will be geared towards those racing on Saturday and I would suggest that you swim 1.5-2.0km and see how you feel, and if good, complete the set which will prep you nicely for the Big Day!

SATURDAY: the big one! Good luck! You've trained hard for this, now go and have a good one and keep a smile on your face, or if not on your face, then in your heart! ;-)

It goes without saying that you should aim to stay off the grog this week, get to bed early and keep well hydrated and also to avoid any dips in blood sugar by leaving too long of a gap between meals, i.e. keep your energy stores up! Personally I don't really carbo load as such (I find it makes me bloated) but I do follow the instructions as per above and this is a real help.

Lastly, Coach Emma will be flying back to the UK with me on Thursday 28th February and returning to her coaching base in the Lake District after assisting us with the London Triathlon Show on the 1st to 3rd March where we are one of the keynote speakers in both seminar halls (exciting!!). Emma's last session will be the Wednesday 5.30am and 9.30am sessions on the 27th February so anyone who can stay after the 9.30am session for a tea / coffee and nibbles and to join me in saying thanks for all her wonderful support is kindly invited to do so! She won't be around this week as she's taken the opportunity to have a week down in Margaret River before she attempts her first Rottnest Solo as well - so some of you will see her over on Rottnest Island for a beer and a chin-wag this Saturday too!

Cheers

Paul

Saturday, February 16, 2013

Update to Dates for Your Diary!

Dear Swimmers

As noted here:http://swimsmoothperth.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/dates-for-your-diaries.html - there are now two updates to these 9.30am sessions (see RED below).

• Friday 8th February at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION 
• Wednesday 6th March at 9.30am = in 50m pool but lanes 1-3 (shared with a carnival) 
• Friday 8th March at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION 
• Wednesday 13th March at 9.30am = 25m pool 
• Friday 15th March at 9.30am = 25m pool
** Wednesday 20th March at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION **
• Monday 25th March at 9.30am = 25m pool 
• Wednesday 27th March at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION 
• Weekend of 29th March to Monday 1st April (inclusive) = NO SESSIONS (Easter Long Weekend) 
• Friday 5th April at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION 
** Wednesday 10th April at 9.30am = now a normal session in the 50m pool ** 
• Friday 12th April at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION

Please share these dates with your friends and make a note in your diaries, thanks.

Paul



Wednesday, February 13, 2013

"Hang Ten dude!" with the girls from Horizon Physio!


Dear Swimmers

Chris Lowe and Cath Fletcher from the Swim Smooth Perth Squad need your support!

They are surfing in the Surf Aid Cup at Margaret River March 17, 2013 as part of a fund raising Charity event for Surf Aid International.

SurfAid are a non-profit humanitarian organisation aimed to improve the health, wellbeing and self reliance of people living in the isolated communities of the Mentawi Islands and Nias, Indonesia.

For more information on the amazing work of SurfAid please visit:
http://vimeo.com/16677588

The event consists of 8 teams of 5 surfers (with one being an allocated pro) all surfing to tally up the highest points in order to claim the title!

The Cup dove tails in with the Drug Aware Margaret River Pro March 15 -24.

They Comprise of an all female team with an highly credible combined surfing experience of 129 years!!

Their aim is to raise a minimum of $5000.00

Please help them get the word around!!!

You can support our team by donating to SurfAid International at:

Thanks so much for your support!

Love,

The Horizon Physio Womens Surf Team


Taper time!

Dear Swimmers

There's been much talk about what you should be both doing physically and mentally now in the lead-up to the Rottnest Channel Swim on Saturday 23rd February. The key thing to remember to start with, is DON'T MAKE ANY DRASTIC CHANGES! Whatever's been working well for you in training and in all your longer swims and practice races, will stand you in good stead on race day. In the past I've been the King of Panic and changing things last minute ALWAYS detrimentally. Stick with what you know and do what you've now done many, many times over in practice, and all will be good come race day.

Now, from a physical perspective you can obviously follow the suggested program as intended here: http://swimsmoothperth.blogspot.com.au/2012/09/its-here-our-2013-rottnest-channel-swim.html - which for Solo swimmers recommends ~25km this week after a peak of about 37-40km last week and a total of about 11-12km in the final week (it shows 30km on the program, but that of course includes the 19.7km to Rottnest Island!). My key point here is to start to reduce the volume, but maintain some semblance of race-pace (or even slightly above) efforts leading into the event to avoid staleness. My own opinion of tapering has changed a lot over the last few years (in that I NOW take a lot LESS rest before an endurance event than I used to as I feel that if I rest up too much I start to lose too much feel / fitness) but each to their own...if this is your first Solo swim, my recommendation would be to start winding it down now so that you can be both physically and mentally rested / prepared for the swim.

And on that note of mental preparation, probably one of your biggest and best assets as an endurance triathlete is not your heart, legs or lungs, but your mind. Everyone can train this aspect of their race preparation (you do it sub-conciously with every session you motivate yourself to complete). Many of you racing this time around are doing so for the first time and will at this stage begin to potentially get quite nervous about the task ahead. This is perfectly normal. How we respond to this anxiety is what will determine what happens on race day. Like I mentioned last week we're also at that stage in the program (the "peak") where a lot of training has been completed and the body is now ready to rest and adapt leading into the event. This residual fatigue can play funny games with your mind and increase that feeling of apprehension and self-doubt. As we start to taper-down, this fatigue will start to diminish, but the anxiety may linger on. Here's my Top 10 Tips to beat those Taper-time "Blues" and look positively ahead to a good race:

  1. Have confidence in the training that you have completed so far. For many of you this will be more than you've ever done before, so give yourself a little pat on your back and appreciate your own efforts to have made it this far.
  2. Stay in the "now" - there's a great movie out now starring Nick Nolte called "The Peaceful Warrior" which I urge you to watch. It talks about staying in the "here and now" and not worrying about what has happened in the past or what will be the ultimate outcome of the race, but aim to give 110% at what you are currently doing...whether that be powering through the water, driving those legs through on the bike, or running as swift as a gazelle on the run! Give it a try, you'll find it works very, very well.
  3. Don't make any radical changes - we normally say this about nutrition, but the same applies to your mental focus. How often are you too nervous to do one of our hard Wednesday's or one of the longer continuous swims? Very rarely. How different are these race-specific sets to the race? Not very different at all. Our perceptions are that races are "big" and that we have to out-perform ourselves...but you've been out-performing yourself for the last 20 weeks, so why do anything different now!
  4. "PMA Paul - Postive Mental Attitude!" - thats what my Mum always used to say! Staying focussed and positive is your number 1 ally come race day. How do you do this? Even if you feel crap, tell yourself you feel good or that you'll soon start to feel good. Those who say this is "a load of old balogne" simply gave up on feeling good before they had chance to "come good". You won't feel great all day...the key is to focus on those positive times and use them to "ride through" the times when you feel less good.
  5. Break it down. Instead of being over-awed by having to swim 19.7km, think of it in chunks of 500m...I'm going to stop for fuel / drinks every 2000m, so 4 lots of 500m takes me to each brief pause and 10 stops takes me across to Rottnest! When you break it down like that, it's not too bad at all!
  6. Pace it out! If it feels "too hard" it probably is. This event is going to take you between 5h30 and 7h00+ - its not a sprint event, its a very aerobic one! Pushing too hard and then realising you've blown and in for a long day at "the office" can be devastating for even the strongest-willed athletes. There is no better feeling than hitting Phillip Rock knowing you've still got juice in the arms...but even then, don't blow it too soon!
  7. We all get "stressed" sometimes. Understand and accept that for training to have been effective we needed (need) to have periods of "over-load" followed by periods of rest and recovery. Its the recovery periods that allow your body to adapt and grow stronger...miss these crucial stages in your preparation and you're on a one-way road to "over-training's-ville". Don't forget that the stress your body goes through in any training program is not just "training stress", but work / family / social too...as such, if you're having a tough time in any of those areas right now on top of what has been a heavy training period, you're going to really feel it! Thats OK, you just need to accept it and ease-off on the throttle a little.
  8. Remember that your number 1 reason to do this type of event is for fun and the sense of satisfaction it will give you to complete it. No one ever said it was going to be easy! You're in the minority of people who even have the gusto to take on such a challenge and therefore you can be proud in what you have a achieved and will achieve on race day. DO IT BECAUSE YOU LOVE IT...AND YES, YOU DO LOVE THAT "PAIN" EVEN IN A FUNNY WAY!
  9. Just getting to the start line is a huge effort in itself and this journey is something to be savoured. Know that all the hard work has pretty much been done already...if you've got this far, the race-part is easy (well, kind of!) and something that should be enjoyed - a bit like a fine wine!
  10. Don't under-estimate the power of support and encouragement! The last tip is the most important. We've trained as a group for this event and everyone has supported each other as we've gone along. That is a great atmosphere within which to train. Soak up the encouragement from your support boat and you'll know about it on race day! Your arms will feel like pistons and your heart will surge like electricity (just keep it at 75% mind!). Do not under-estimate the power of this support. All you now have to do is get yourself to that start-line willing and motivated to do your best - it really is that simple!

Remember guys "we're not racing for sheep stations" here...the only pressure that you feel is the pressure you put on yourself. I'm personally terrible for this - but in my old age I'm starting to realise and acknowledge this! After a bad race many people say that they felt uncomfortable with so many people watching and "expecting things from them" (especially friends, family and loved ones). If this were "Little League Baseball" then maybe fair enough, but its not, its all about you and your goal to make this race something special and something worth enjoying. All I expect from you is to give it your best shot and to have a smile on your face when you pass the finish line. All's you can do on race day, is all's you can do! The only thing anyone expects from you is to enjoy yourself and have fun, and if you think thats "a bit soft" then you totally under-estimate the power of enjoyment on your overall race approach!

Cheers and good luck with these last 9-10 days...

Paul


Friday, February 8, 2013

Dates for your diaries...

Dear Swimmers

Hope you are all enjoying the beautiful weather today - just stunning!

Firstly, huge apologies to the 9.30am squad this morning - I had mistakenly over-looked a pool carnival at the pool this morning and should have notified you that due to lane restrictions, this session needed to be at Cottesloe Beach instead. As it happens, David Cox (Duty Manager) was splendid in organising a single lane in the 25m pool to take the 8 swimmers who wished to stay at the pool for a technique session with Emma, whilst I took a group of 12 to the beach (as you can see above conditions were perfect!). It all went swimmingly in the end, but I do apologise sincerely if I inconvenienced anyone with my oversight. Thanks to the staff at Claremont Pool for trying to accommodate us as best as possible.

Secondly, that then leads me on to point out a few key dates for your diary on when the March and April carnivals will affect our regular bookings (mainly the 9.30am M/W/F squad). Please see these details below. All "BEACH SESSIONS" will be run at Cottesloe Beach and will meet from 9.20am for a 9.30am start on the grass bank immediately in front of the pylon and adjacent to the north side of Indianna Tea Rooms:

9.30am SESSIONS & CARNIVALS:

• Friday 8th February at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION
• Wednesday 6th March at 9.30am = in 50m pool but lanes 1-3 (shared with a carnival)
• Friday 8th March at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION
• Wednesday 13th March at 9.30am = 25m pool
• Friday 15th March at 9.30am = 25m pool
• Monday 25th March at 9.30am = 25m pool
• Wednesday 27th March at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION
• Weekend of 29th March to Monday 1st April (inclusive) = NO SESSIONS (Easter Long Weekend)
• Friday 5th April at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION
• Wednesday 10th April at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION
• Friday 12th April at 9.30am = BEACH SESSION

LABOUR DAY / EASTER LONG WEEKEND:

• No sessions on Monday 4th March (Labour Day Long Weekend)
• Weekend of 29th March to Monday 1st April (inclusive) = NO SESSIONS (Easter Long Weekend)

THURSDAY 6.30PM SESSIONS:

• Thursdays up to and including 21st February = 25m pool (2 more weeks)
• Thursday 28th February = CANCELLED (due to a Carnival)
• Thursday 7th March = CANCELLED (due to a Carnival)
• Thursday 14th March onwards = 50m pool (lanes 6, 7 and 8)

N.B the pool's winter operating hours will commence from the week commencing Monday 6th May whereupon the Tuesday and Thursday 6.30pm sessions will start 15 minutes earlier at 6.15pm.

Finally, I shall also personally be away in the UK & Ireland running some more Coach Education courses and attending the annual Triathlon Show (to announce a very special new signing, or two, for the HUUB wetsuit range that we have developed the suits for!) from after the 9.30am session on Wednesday 27th February and re-starting on Wednesday 27th March at 5.30am. All sessions will run as normal in my absence with Sandy, Sally, Francene and Brad sharing the coaching workload once again. These coaches are simply excellent and I am super confident that you will have a great 4 weeks under their tutelage. More details on this to follow...

Cheers

Paul

P.S 14 sleeps to Rotto!