Be Curious About Your Swimming: A Mindset Shift for Triathletes
Inspired by a conversation from TSC Podcast Episode #150: Swim With Curiosity
🎧 Listen to the full episode on:
👉 Spotify
👉 Apple Podcasts
Let’s get something straight: swimming isn’t just splashing around until you hit a wall and pretend it was on purpose. It's not just “go hard, bro.” It’s not “grind until you PR.” It’s… actually kind of thoughtful?
Gross, I know.
But here's the deal: if you want to get better in the water, stop trying to be the Hulk. Be curious. Ask questions. Poke the stroke. Figure out what the hell your body is doing down there. Because spoiler alert: if you’re just swimming more without thinking, all you’re doing is perfecting your bad habits.
Curiosity Is the Cheat Code You Didn’t Know You Had 🧠🔍
You ever meet that swimmer who’s not the strongest, not the fastest, but somehow keeps getting better like they’re on a secret plan? Yeah. That person’s not magic. They’re curious.
They’re out here trying stuff. Testing stroke rates. Adjusting their head position. Asking “What happens if I breathe every three instead of every two?” (and not dying, hopefully).
Meanwhile, you’re still over here hammering out 3,000 yards like your Garmin is going to bake you a cake afterward.
You’re Not Aware of Your Body. It’s Okay. None of Us Are. 🔗
Let’s talk about body awareness. Or rather, your lack of it.
In running and biking, your limbs are connected to the ground. You feel stuff. In swimming? You’re floating in a sensory deprivation tank hoping for a miracle.
That’s why adult swimmers often move through the water like haunted mannequins. You’re not broken—you just haven’t trained awareness. Enter: Pilates. Strength work. Mobility. Stuff that makes you go, “Wait, that’s what a lat is?”
The more you feel your body on land, the more you’ll know what the hell it’s doing in the water.
Swimming More ≠ Swimming Better 🏊♂️🙃
Let’s kill a myth right now: more yards does not equal progress.
You can’t just swim your way to perfection. That's like trying to fix your golf swing by hitting 400 balls while blindfolded.
Real progress comes from deliberate practice. Meaning:
Break stuff down.
Fix the thing you break.
Swim with intention.
Repeat until it doesn’t suck.
Otherwise, you're just working harder at staying mediocre. And listen, mediocrity is fine for brunch orders—not your stroke.
Pace Isn’t Everything. Neither Is Distance. Relax. 📉📈
I know, I know. Your watch says you’re slower than usual. Boo hoo.
Swimming is not a race. Well, unless you’re racing. But your Tuesday morning pool session? That’s practice. Stop trying to impress the lifeguard with your split times and start focusing on how you move.
Progress happens when you treat your swim like a skill. Not a punishment. Not cardio torture. A skill.
Final Thoughts: Become a Swim Scientist, You Nerd 🧪🧑🔬
Here’s your permission slip: mess around with your stroke.
Try weird stuff. Change your breathing. Play with stroke tempo. Kick harder. Kick less. Kick like you mean it. See what actually feels efficient instead of just traditional.
Because swimming isn’t just a workout—it’s an experiment. And you’re the test subject.
If you want real-time feedback from actual humans (not just your angry Garmin), come see us at SwimBox. Dominic and Lissa will tweak your stroke so gently you won’t even realize you’re getting better—until you are.
Check out more coaching content, swim nerd goodness, and upcoming camps at triswimcoach.com, and don’t forget to listen to the TSC Podcast wherever you pretend to be productive.
