Why do competitive swimmers need to maintain swimming journal
When you learn something and want to do well, you need to track your progress. And that is why we have a swim journal or a swim log book to track your swim training.
A swim journal helps you to track your progress, and understand what worked well and what did not.
You can maintain the log in a physical document like a journal or have a digital tracker to keep track of your activities.
As kids, having a physical swim journal is better.
And also, a child should be maintaining his or her own swim journal. Though children might take the help of parents to record some details of the swim session, it is always better for the swimmer to own it.
Even if you are an intermediate or advanced swimmer and not a competitive swimmer, it is always better to maintain the swim journal.
It will amaze you to see how much you have progressed in a period of time. It will also help to understand what worked and what did not, and what you need to take care of.
What is a swimming journal?
A swimming journal is a record of a swimmer’s training and performance. It typically includes details such as the date, details of the swimming session and swim timings.
Since a swimmer’s diet and well-being or mental health play a major role in his or her performance, it is important to record this in a swim journal too.
The swim coach can understand the factors affecting the swimmer’s progress.
What are the benefits of maintaining a swimming log book?
There are many benefits to maintaining a swim journal. Here are some
Goal tracking
 The main purpose of maintaining a journal is goal tracking. Usually, the swim coach will discuss with the swimmer and help set some goals to be achieved within a certain period of time.
As a swimmer, you would track your progress and maintain the details of your actuals vs the planned goals.
The swim coach can tweak the next training plan based on this.
Remember, even if you are taking part in group swimming lessons, each swimmer will have different details to capture and the goals for each individual will be different.
Performance Analysis
A swim journal can help swimmers analyze their performance and identify areas that need improvement.
By recording details such as stroke technique, breathing patterns, and timings, swimmers can identify patterns and focus on things that need improvement.
Training Planning
A swim journal can help swimmers plan their training schedule in discussion wth the swim trainer by keeping track of the frequency and duration of their workouts.
This can help swimmers avoid overtraining and ensure that they are making considerable progress toward their goals.
Helps Improve Strokes
A correct stroke contributes a lot to the speed of the swimmer. It helps the swimmer put in less effort and swim faster.
Whether it is leg movement, arm movement, body position, or breathing technique, you need to focus on all.
Track other activities
For the overall development of the swimmer, the swimmer must also consult the nutritionist, sports doctor, and sports psychologists. You can use the same journal to keep a record of the same.
How to use your swim log book effectively?
There are some things to keep in mind when journaling. Remember, if swimmers record and track properly, this journal will make a lot of difference in the swimmer’s progress.
Since children have started young, they can easily unlearn and relearn techniques and skills as per instruction given by the coach. So it is important to understand and focus on overall improvement
You have to be regular
Swimmers need to be disciplined. Write the details of the swim session after every training.
Missing days to record can influence the overall progress of training. Make it a habit, that just after swimming and having your snack, you actually note what has happened. You will also forget what you have done incase you do not record immediately after the session
Be clear and concise
Write what matters. Do not jot down everything.
Remember, you will have to look back into the past to understand what happened.
Another great way to quickly check important parts would be to highlight sections of the journal where you want the swim coach to focus.
Use prompts or questions to guide your writing
If you’re not sure what to write about, use prompts or questions to get started. Some examples include: “what are my timings for freestyle, backstroke, IM (individual Medley) today”?
“What swim sets did we have?” What did I eat before the swim?
You should get a journal book that has these prompts to fill out. It will also give a structure to your document.
Be honest with yourself
Journaling is a space for you and here you need to be honest with yourself. You should write your feelings or experiences, and don’t be afraid to express your emotions.
Review and reflect on your journal entries
Take some time to review your journal entries and reflect on what you’ve written. This can help you gain insights about yourself, your experiences, and your progress.
Swim journal ultimately motivates a swimmer to push himself.
Remember you would need to maintain your swimming journal for many years. So keep them properly numbered with the start and end date of each book.
