by Coach Mat | 7 Jul, 2018 | Competitive/Performance Training, Design Principles, How To Train?, Kaizen (Continual Improvement), Practice Series, Speed, Speed and Pace, SPL, Stroke Length (SL), Strength, Strength Training, Weight-lifting
The universal speed equation is… Speed = Stroke Length x Stroke Rate If you want to go faster in the water you need to make stroke length (SL) longer without losing more than a calculated amount of stroke rate, or you need to make stroke rate (SR) higher without...
by Coach Mat | 26 May, 2018 | Competitive/Performance Training, Energy Management, Speed, Speed and Pace, Streamline Skills, Swimming Physics, Triathlon Swimming
We most often think of water as a whole body or continuous substance. But really, from another viewpoint in physics, it is a soup of individual water molecules, or little electrical balls all jumbled, bumping and swirling together. And if you want to swim forward in...
by Coach Mat | 12 May, 2018 | Burn Out, Competitive/Performance Training, Motivating Swimmers, Motivation, Pain, Pleasure Swimming, Training Psychology
Do you know what’s more important than being faster? Feeling wonderful when you move. This is not really a personal preference thing. This is about universal physiology and psychology. Think about it. If you want an athletic movement art that you will want to...
by Coach Mat | 25 Feb, 2018 | Competitive/Performance Training, Design Principles, How To Train?, Martial Arts, Metabolic Training, Muscle Training, Neurological Training, Plateau (No Progress), Running, Speed and Pace, SPL, Stroke Length (SL), Tempo, Stroke Rate (SR), Training Theory, Triathlon Swimming
A member of our online training site, the Mediterra Swim Dojo, has been noticing that after a certain distance in a training set, his stroke quality deteriorates which results in his stroke count (strokes per length of the pool) going up uncontrollably. He asked a...
by Coach Mat | 14 Jan, 2018 | About Mediterra, Competitive/Performance Training, Courses, Design Principles, Fitness Training, How To Train?, New Products, Online Coaching Program, Self-Coaching, Triathlon Swimming
When I started the first version of our online training in 2012, my intention was to provide support for our camp and workshop swimmers, who traveled from afar, who were going home and had no local coach and no materials to show them what to do in the weeks and months...
by Coach Mat | 2 Dec, 2017 | About Other Perspectives, Aging and Improvement, Coaching Methods, Competitive/Performance Training, Cycling, Fitness Training, Martial Arts, Mastery Process, Physiology, Running, Stroke Analysis, Swimming Physics, Technique Theory
“Just do what works for you.” I have heard some version of this phrase spoken or written by coaches or pundits many times, in many different sports. It can be alarming to me because: I doubt the average (citizen) athlete understands the context of...
