Trusting the Process
Hello ya’ll. It’s been a minute I know, but I’m back! It’s been a busy couple of weeks in my life that was topped off with being named onto the team headed to World Championships this summer in Madeira, Portugal. Exciting stuff is coming up!
I was originally going to write about how I prepare for a big meet but in the last days of preparation leading up to trials for Worlds and the first few weeks coming out of that meet I felt some emotions stirring up, so I decided I wanted to talk about the process instead… and why you need to put your trust into it.
Truthfully, my mindset towards swimming has never been the best. When it comes to my performances in the water, whether it’s in practice or at a meet, I find it hard to be satisfied with how I swim. I’m constantly wanting my times to be faster and faster. It doesn’t matter what shape I’m in, what the training block is, if I’m sore or not, I always feel like I must be on at every practice or meet I go to. I started working with a sports psychologist just over two years ago and the most important thing I’ve been able to take away from our sessions is that, simply put, it is normal to have off days.
Training is an up and down cycle. You’re going to have days where you’re on fire and then there are days that you may feel like you’re drowning. Trust me when I say I’ve had my fair share of both, but this is all a part of the process. Those days where it feels off and nothing is going right are normal to have and it does NOT mean that something is going wrong. This is something I’m still learning to accept and I’ve been internationally competing for over 10 years now. If you ask any of the coaches I’ve had throughout my career they’ll most likely all tell you the same thing about me. I am way too hard on myself, and I need to trust the work I’ve been putting in, the taper, the coach, and most importantly, myself.
As athletes it’s in our nature to be competitive. That’s what makes an athlete an athlete. The competitive “I am going to win” mindset is what keeps us going even on the hard days where all you want to do is skip practice and sleep in. I think that’s the hardest part of trusting the process of sport for me, the inability to accept that feeling good all the time is just not going to happen. Even on the days where you don’t want to show up, great athletes will always show up, and have the get after it attitude no matter how the practice or meet is going. That’s the frustrating part for me. It’s hard to put trust into something that in the end I know is going to pay off, but in the moment, it seems like it’s not working. I also know that’s how sport works and that’s something every athlete can work on.
The main point I am trying to make here is that putting trust in yourself is one of the things that will help you achieve the goals you have. Your coaches know what they’re doing, you know what you’re doing, and everything will come together at the end. Trust and belief in yourself, your ability, and your coach is what will make the process easier to manage and will ultimately help you strive to be a better version of the athlete you were yesterday.