It’s Not About The Speedo

 

Let’s be honest, no one regularly cares about swimming.  Yes we love/loathe Michael Phelps but unless he is involved we just don’t pay attention. It’s like cycling, unless Lance us pedaling we don’t care.  But fortunately this week Phelps was racing and even better there was a controversy. The issue at hand was the suits.  There were claims that Phelps would be unable to win this past week because his sponsor, Speedo, did not use the new material that other teams used.  This controversial suit is expected to be outlawed next year and some thought that Phelps would even drop out of competition rather than lose to a soon to be outlawed swimsuit.

But let’s face it the suit never wins a race.  A swimmer wins a race.  And on race day not only did Phelps win he broke the record for the butterfly by racing below the 50 second mark for the first time in history.  The suit never wins the race and frankly a muscle in an arm or leg or back never wins the race.  The most important muscle in any race is your brain.  Yes you must train diligently but if you fail to train the brain you will fail to win the race.

I grew up watch Johnny Weismueller as Tarzan on the old black and white films.  When he won the Olympics in swimming people proclaimed that no one would ever swim as fast as he did.  Today a 13 year old girl would have to swim faster that Johnny to be considered a serious contender in her age bracket in the pool.  Are these girls bigger and stronger than the mighty Tarzan.  Absolutely not!  Their muscles aren’t better but their brain and the expectations set by the minds are greater.

So let’s bring this home to you.  If you are not resetting your mind for massive accomplishment and fulfillment then you are training the wrong muscles. Just doing what you have always done faster or harder or longer is not the answer. You must reset how you think, believe, expect, plan and envision.  Let me be frank, you won’t do it without a coach to force you to face and do all the things you have been avoiding with your mind.  For some of you reading this you have been bumping into the same brick wall for decades and despite the bruises, blood and unbroken barriers you have failed to change your mental approach.

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