How To Get Prepared for Your Big Swim Event

If you haven't heard the old phrase, "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail", this would be a great time to heed these words. Getting prepared and planning for your big swim event is just as important as your nutrition plan, your sleep regimen, and your focused workouts. Take these steps to ensure that you have a great performance on race day and plan for success!

Don't wait until the last minute

Once you've signed up and committed to the event, begin the planning immediately. Set your workout routine, compile your nutrition plan, and have some goals for the meet. At about 6-8 weeks before your event, sit down with your coach and chart a course for your training. This is the time to make adjustments and small tweaks to your technique so that you can improve your time and achieve your personal best.

Outlining a nutrition plan is also important so you can see how certain foods are impacting your performance. You can hone in on whether or not you feel better after eating a certain food, or whether or not you are sore the next day after drinking a bedtime protein shake. Making small adjustments as far ahead as you can will result in a better performance the day of the race.

Planned meals & snacks

You won't want to surprise your body on the day of the big event with any foods that you may find intolerable. There's nothing worse than trying to swim on an upset stomach or finding out that you have a slight allergy to something you ate the morning of the race. Instead, plan your meals out a few weeks before and get into the habit of eating healthy nutrition for swimmers. Include the proper mix of carbohydrates, protein, and any supplements that are missing from your diet.

Get enough sleep

Often underestimated by swimmers, coaches, and parents, high quality sleep is critical to preparing for your big swim event. While we sleep, our bodies recover from the strenuous training that are part of an effective swimmer's regimen. Not only are muscle fibers repaired, but there are important nutritional processes happening while you sleep.

Slow absorbing casein protein is preserving and building muscle while you rest at night, but it also helps your body burn more fat. Studies from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that subjects who were on a high protein diet, with all of the protein being casein, burned more calories during the day and reported less hunger the following day than those subjects who were on a low protein diet. Our Nutriboost shake has a proper mix of casein protein so that your body can get all of these benefits while you sleep. 

Now that you have some recommendations on the preparation needed for your next swim event, you'll feel confident that you're ready to give it your best on race day! For more articles on nutrition and optimal performance for swimmers, check out our P2Life blog here!

Sources:

https://swimswam.com/7-tips-help-get-ready-big-meet/

https://www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/news/tips-successful-swim-meet-performance/

http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/103/3/766.full?sid=bc366fdd-dbd4-4e5a-9be8-6df75582599d