Swimmer Stories | Mediterra Swim & Run

Artificial Versus Real Hardship

by Coach Mat | 9 Apr, 2017

Three Kinds Of Hardship Like you, I love to hear stories of those who have accomplished amazing things in the realm of sports and adventure. I recently listened to Rich Roll’s interview with Kimberly Chambers, ultra-distance open water swimmer, who, in 2014, was...

Questioning Advice

by Coach Mat | 11 Mar, 2017

Recently a swimmer in our Dojo wrote about encountering his former swim coach at the pool. She happened to observe his latest stroke, admired a few points and then began to give him some advice, urging him to change certain things. Upon reflection this advice caused...

The Discipline Of Restraint

by Coach Mat | 28 Jan, 2017

One of the ways you can detect truly elite coaches is by the emphasis in their teaching and marketing on ‘going-smarter’ rather than ‘going-harder’ (though this is required also). Mature coaches seem to echo the refrain: listen to your body. If...

Just Listen To My Body

by Coach Mat | 14 Jan, 2017

Hungry For Knowledge Like many of you I have quite an appetite for knowledge. I make time in my week for reading, listening, studying, and for writing (which includes drawing diagrams since I think mostly in pictures) to process the treasures I find. Part of my...

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...

There Is A Better Way

by Coach Mat | 8 Oct, 2016

I happened to see some triathletes link to this article on Facebook a couple months ago. The title caught my attention because, clearly, this was such a contrast to our approach to swimming. I would have just ignored an article like this, but was curious to see what...