Click here to submit your question to our coaches. Any question, big or small!
Return to the Ask A Swim Coach Page
I am a 30 year old parent, and am the middle of my daughter’s first summer league swimming season. When I was younger, I swam in summer rec. leagues and was a pretty good swimmer, but didn’t stick with it through high school when I got involved in other sports. Last night, I went to the gym for a swim and felt like I was going to pass out after doing 8x50’s freestyle with 30 seconds rest in between. Is Masters the way to go? Should I try and get in swimming shape first? If so, what do you recommend? Any other guidance would be greatly appreciated.--Matt L, Houston, Tx
Response from Dan H, Swim dad, Masters swimmer--
Most Masters “teams” have members with a wide variety of swimming skills – ranging from elite competitors to triathletes trying to avoid drowning in a lake. So there is no real reason to delay joining a Masters program unless you just want to be in better shape than you are now before you swim with a group. I suggest you visit a Masters team near you. Meet the coach and watch one of their practices. If you think you would be uncomfortable either get in better shape or try another team.
I suspect that joining a Masters program will probably motivate you to get in the pool and swim. We Masters swimmers often joke that we can do anything we want because we’re old (!). We don’t have to do what the coach says if we don’t like it. That might be a slight exaggeration but the reality is that we ARE adults, with jobs, children, and complicated lives. We are used to having some control over our lives and swimming needs to fit in. If your coach or team doesn’t understand that I suggest you look elsewhere.
By the way, many of the swimmers in a Masters program never race. They are fitness swimmers or triathletes and are uninterested in getting on a starting block. So don’t worry whether or not you ever plan to race.
