Relaxation | Mediterra Swim & Run

Relax Your Shoulders!

by Coach Mat | 10 Dec, 2016

In addendum to the previous post on What Is Relaxation? I recall another experience I had in running where a specific “Relax!” instruction worked. You certainly know about the global athletics company Nike. It started in Eugene Oregon, my home state, and...

What Is Relaxation?

by Coach Mat | 3 Dec, 2016

A couple weeks ago I participated in a Chi Running workshop led by Master Coach Alice Diffely in Portland, Oregon USA. To prepare for the workshop I was reviewing some chapters in the Chi Running book to refresh my memory of the principles, drills and focal points. I...

Relaxation Paradox

by Coach Mat | 12 Dec, 2015

Sometimes it seems like we have a paradox with relaxation in swimming – a dissonance between the understanding that speed requires power and power requires muscle tension, yet speed is restricted unless there is relaxation in the muscles. In Easy Strength the...

Rest Days

by Coach Mat | 29 Apr, 2013

At a recent workshop a swimmer showed me his extensive record (on a long computer print out) of all the practices he has completed this year – it appeared to cover every day of the last 4 months. He was quick to acknowledge the impression it made by noting that...

Tune-Up Quick Guide

by Coach Mat | 12 Mar, 2013

Here is a more simplified guide on how a Tune-Up could be constructed: Distance/Duration: It could be from 10 minutes to 15 minutes for an already well-tuned swimmer, to the entire practice for an out-of-tune swimmer. I am very reluctant to lay out actual distance or...

Smooth The Jerk

by Coach Mat | 23 Feb, 2013

I want to share a few observations from my cool water swimming experiment this winter. You might appreciate some of this for your own swim training journey… If you’ve been following me this winter you know I have set out to swim in the Mediterranean Sea on...