The Third 50

Glenn Mills and Wayne Goldsmith discuss the importance of starting to teach data and swimming fundamentals early, emphasizing that teaching kids concepts like length and tempo at a young age makes their learning easier and more effective. They highlight the benefits of using technology to enhance coaching, such as providing personalized feedback and making stroke mechanics more understandable. Glenn shares his experience with a new software that gathers data from 3,000 races, showing how understanding length, tempo, and duration can improve performance. They also touch on the need for coaches to adapt to new technologies and methods to better engage and develop young athletes.Check out a segment from Wayne's new Substack:https://swimminggold.substack.com/p/training-zone-insanitySubscribe to get more great content from Wayne:https://swimminggold.substack.comHere's a short explainer video of the GoSwim app - https://vimeo.com/goswim/app If you'd like to set up a demo with Glenn about the GoSwim app, follow this link:https://tidycal.com/glenn/30-minute-goswim-demo

Glenn Mills and Wayne discuss the impact of the new 50-meter sprint events on swimming, particularly at the Olympics. Wayne shares insights from a meeting with Bill Sweetenham, emphasizing the positive opportunities for coaches to engage more athletes. They highlight the increased competitiveness and the need for better skills, timing, and technique. The conversation also touches on the broader implications of sport changes, citing examples from triathlon, cricket, and lacrosse. They stress the importance of adapting to attract more participants and improve the sport's accessibility, particularly for young athletes and their families.

Swim Parents - Partners in Potential and Performance Every swimming coach in the world has to find a way to work effectively with the parents / carers of the kids they coach. The concept of Partnership is important. In essence, what are coaches, parents / carers and swimmers all chasing? Answer: To help the swimmer be all they choose to be - to help them realize their potential in and out of the water. The beautiful thing about that is that when it comes down to it - coaches, parents / carers and swimmers - ALL WANT THE SAME THING! - we all want to see the swimmer learn to love the water, enjoy the experience of swimming, improve and to be all they choose to be. In any partnership, each of the partners, need to do their "job" - they need to understand what it is they need to do to help achieve their collective goal - in this case - the realization of the potential of the swimmer. So what's the "job" of a coach? To teach skills, help swimmers prepare for Meets, to improve their speed and fitness, to help them perform when and where it matters, etc. And swimmers - what's their "job"? It is simply - to do the best they can - every time they train and race - to do their best. Swimming Parents and carers - what's their "job"? To teach values like respect, honesty, integrity, humility, courage, discipline and a work-ethic. To help build independence, self-responsibility and self-accountability To love, accept and value their children unconditionally for who they are. To help their kids learn important life skills like time management. To teach them the importance of taking ownership and responsibility for their day to day needs like cleaning their rooms, preparing for training, packing their swim bags, hanging out wet swim suits and towels etc. If you think about the coach, parent / carer and swimmer relationship as a partnership - as a team - where every member of the team is committed to and focused on helping the swimmer to be the best they can be - there's no limits to what you can achieve together. Is it always easy? NO!!! - of course not. Stories about the difficulties of dealing with over zealous and overly "invested" swimming parents / carers are common place in coaching all over the world. But, it is vital that coaches look to find ways of building and sustaining strong, positive contructive relationships with swimming parents / carers and to strive to work closely together as the swimmer progresses.

The Third 50 - E11 - Brent Rutemiller - Swimming in Legacy It's difficult to describe Brent Rutemiller. He's a swimmer. There's a good start. He's been a coach. OK - you sort of get the picture but.... He also has been - (and in some cases still is): A marketing manager A CEO A publisher An editor An author A manager A cartoon artist An influencer and thought leader in the sport A TV host A script writer A sales manager A presenter A global force for change in the sport of swimming A dad of three remarkable kids A loving and devoted husband to a truly amazing woman - Ellen A leader A wonderful friend and colleague and... Someone who's been fighting and beating the heck out of cancer for almost three years. We asked Brent a few months ago about his mental attitude to fighting the greatest fight of his life - his battle with cancer - and he said the most inspiring words we've ever heard from a human being, "Every morning I tell myself today things will be better". In this THE THIRD 50 Episode, the first of series 2 - we talk to Brent about his life in swimming. We discuss how he fell in love with the sport and how he's seen and experienced the sport change and evolve - not always for the better - over his life in swimming. We ask him about his time leading Swimming World and we invite him to share his views on the sport and how it's likely to develop in the years to come. And we talk with Brent about his family, his philosophies and views on life and on how he's remained positive, powerful and strong as he refuses to allow the disease to define his attitudes or his existence. This is an Episode not to be missed! You will be inspired. You will be informed. You will laugh a little at some terrible jokes but mostly you'll gain some personal insights into the life of one of the sport's most influential and intelligent figures. Why The Third 50? Because it's the third 50 of a 200 that matters. (We could have called this The Third 100 because it's the same principle!) * The 1st 50 is fast because you're fresh and fired up, ready to race. * The 2nd 50 flows because you're trying to relax and keep it smooth. * The 4th 50 is about fighting and staying strong to the finish. But the 3rd 50 is where the magic happens. It's where the integration of your mind and body, your skills and technique, your stroke mechanics, and your hard training all come together. The 3rd 50 is the "championship" lap, where the great swimmers take control of themselves and the race and power away to victory. We want to share our almost 80 years of experience with coaches, swimming teachers, swimmers, triathletes, and people who love being in and around the water worldwide. Who Are Wayne and Glenn? Wayne Goldsmith is an Australian coach, mentor, writer, speaker, and presenter. He's worked in swimming for over 30 years and is an internationally respected sports performance professional. He's been recognized for his contribution to the sport of swimming with the Outstanding Contribution to Swimming in Australia Award and been recently received the Al Schoenfield Award from the International Swimming Hall of Fame. Visit Wayne's Website - https://wgcoaching.com/ Glenn Mills is an American coach, writer, and video producer. He's been involved in swimming for over 55 years. He's competed at every level of the sport, from winning the US Olympic Trials and NCAA Championships and even setting a few Masters World Records. For over 25 years, he's produced swimming technique content as the Co-Founder of GoSwim.tv, the Official Technique Partner with USA Swimming. He has also won the Paragon Award from the International Swimming Hall of Fame for his contribution to competitive swimming. Visit Glenn's Website - https://www.goswim.tv/

The Third 50 - E9 - Getting Better at Getting Better! Some coaches have been coaching for 20 years. The question is - do you really have 20 years of experience - or do you have 1 year of experience….20 times over. Humans have a tendency to fall into routines and repeat things. In coaching this can mean you end up doing the same things, the same way, over and over and over. Life is changing rapidly. Kids are learning faster and they learn differently! Kids communicate differently. Kids are looking for more real, more connected, more genuine relationships from teachers, coaches, etc And at the same time - the sport is getting FASTER!!! In this episode Glenn and Wayne discuss coaching. They talk about coaching from the perspective of getting better at coaching - and getting better at getting better! They consider: Creativity in coaching - finding new and more engaging ways to coach skills and other capabilities; Building and growing relationships with kids - with other coaches - with parents / carers; Coaching coaches - how can coaches continue to learn, to grow and to improve over time; Reflection - how can coaches review / reflect on their own coaching and accelerate their own learning - and why this is important; Communication with kids - how to connect, engage and inspire kids; Empowerment - empowering swimmers to take ownership and responsibility for their destiny! Sometimes...ya just gotta stop - and think and ask WHY: Why do we need to keep doing long warm ups for young swimmers? They train in a warm, body weight supported environment….. Why do we do repeats over full lengths? Why always 25 / 50 / 100 / 200 etc. Why do we separate DRILLS from SETS? Why can’t we integrate them? Why do we long main sets, accepting poor technique and skills as the swimmers get tired in the interest of keeping “heart-rate” up in a target zone? Why do we do “speed development” sets at the end of a long, hard workout - the second workout of the day? Why do we make sprinters do long, grinding threshold work - when it doesn’t help them get faster or stronger or better at sprinting? Why The Third 50? Because it's the third 50 of a 200 that matters. (We could have called this The Third 100 because it's the same principle!) The 1st 50 is fast because you're fresh and fired up, ready to race. The 2nd 50 flows because you're trying to relax and keep it smooth. The 4th 50 is about fighting and staying strong to the finish. But the 3rd 50 is where the magic happens. It's where the integration of your mind and body, your skills and technique, your stroke mechanics, and your hard training all come together. The 3rd 50 is the "championship" lap, where the great swimmers take control of themselves and the race and power away to victory. We want to share our almost 80 years of experience with coaches, swimming teachers, swimmers, triathletes, and people who love being in and around the water worldwide. Who Are Wayne and Glenn? Wayne Goldsmith is an Australian coach, mentor, writer, speaker, and presenter. He's worked in swimming for over 30 years and is an internationally respected sports performance professional. He's been recognized for his contribution to the sport of swimming with the Outstanding Contribution to Swimming in Australia Award and been recently received the Al Schoenfield Award from the International Swimming Hall of Fame. Visit Wayne's Website - https://wgcoaching.com/ Glenn Mills is an American coach, writer, and video producer. He's been involved in swimming for over 55 years. He's competed at every level of the sport, from winning the US Olympic Trials and NCAA Championships and even setting a few Masters World Records. For over 25 years, he's produced swimming technique content as the Co-Founder of GoSwim.tv, the Official Technique Partner with USA Swimming. He has also won the Paragon Award from the International Swimming Hall of Fame for his contribution to competitive swimming. Visit Glenn's Website - https://www.goswim.tv/

EPISODE 7 - Mind Body Connections: The Holistic Approach to Peak Swimming Performance Traditional models of mental skills training are mostly inefficient - i.e. developing mental skills in lectures and classrooms in the days prior to a big Meet. The integration of mental skills into all training, all practices and every workout is the key - MIND AND BODY - holistic training and coaching is critical! Every set / every session / every workout - has mental and emotional elements - the body can’t swim without the head! Every coach will know that mental skills are incredibly important at all levels of swimming. Just as you wouldn’t leave the development of stroke technique to the day before a Meet, you wouldn’t leave the development of mental skills to the day before a Meet then hope the swimmer can deal with the challenges of the emotional environment of the competitive battlefield! In Episode 7 of The Third 50, Wayne and Glenn put their heads together and look at the importance mental skills development in swimming and triathlon. We discuss some of the critically important elements of mental skills development including: CONFIDENCE OVER-THINKING NEGATIVE SELF TALK’ SELF-DOUBT RESILIENCE / MENTAL TOUGHNESS COMMITMENT UNREALISTIC EXPECTATIONS - of the swimmer and others Perhaps most importantly we present ways that coaches can integrate the development of mental skills directly through their workout design and practice sessions. Three Takeaways: Mental skills need to be practiced daily - in all practices, training sessions and activities. Coaches should look to add a mental skills element to all sets and sessions. Workouts are mostly written from a physiological perspective, i.e. VOLUME, INTENSITY AND FREQUENCY. Try adding another column - a mental skills aspect to everything you do. The name of the game ISN'T just to swim fast or to swim with great skills....It's coaching swimmers to swim fast with great skills when and where it matters - regardless of the situation or challenges - and that means coaching their heads as much as preparing their bodies! Why The Third 50? Because it's the third 50 of a 200 that matters. (We could have called this The Third 100 because it's the same principle!) The 1st 50 is fast because you're fresh and fired up, ready to race. The 2nd 50 flows because you're trying to relax and keep it smooth. The 4th 50 is about fighting and staying strong to the finish. But the 3rd 50 is where the magic happens. It's where the integration of your mind and body, your skills and technique, your stroke mechanics and your hard training all come together. The 3rd 50 is the "championship" lap, where the great swimmers take control of themselves and the race and power away to victory. We want to share our almost 80 years of experience with coaches, swimming teachers, swimmers, triathletes, and people who love being in and around the water worldwide. Who Are Wayne and Glenn? Wayne Goldsmith is an Australian coach, mentor, writer, speaker, and presenter. He's worked in swimming for more than 30 years and is an internationally respected sports performance professional. He's been recognized for his contribution to the sport of swimming with the Outstanding Contribution to Swimming in Australia Award and been recently received the Al Schoenfield award from the International Swimming Hall of Fame. Visit Wayne's Website - https://wgcoaching.com/ Glenn Mills is an American coach, writer, and video producer. He's been involved in swimming for over 55 years. He's competed at every level of the sport, from winning the US Olympic Trials and NCAA Championships and even setting a few Masters World Records. For over 25 years, he's produced swimming technique content as the Co-Founder of GoSwim.tv, the Official Technique Partner with USA Swimming. He has also won the Paragon Award from the International Swimming Hall of Fame for his contribution to competitive swimming. Visit Glenn's Website - https://www.goswim.tv/

Welcome to The Third 50! EPISODE 5 - WE HAVE A NEED - A NEED FOR SPEEEEEEEEEEEED! Speed is the most precious thing in swimming. It's what it's all about! The training, the sets, the repeats, the workouts, the dryland sessions, the mental skills practices, the equipment...everything we do in this sport is about the achievement of one, clear, simple thing - to go faster! In Episode 5 of The Third 50, Wayne and Glenn look at the development of swimming speed through the context of our TEN SWIMMING SPEED LAWS! SWIMMING SPEED LAW 1 - The faster you want to go, the more relaxed you have to be. SWIMMING SPEED LAW 2 - There’s a big difference between speed and effort. SWIMMING SPEED LAW 3 - Technique and Speed are inseparable! SWIMMING SPEED LAW 4 - Train Speed – fast!!! Not at the end of an endurance workout SWIMMING SPEED LAW 5 - 100% is Speed – less than 100% isn’t. SWIMMING SPEED LAW 6 - Underwater kicking is vital. SWIMMING SPEED LAW 7 - Long rest, short duration. SWIMMING SPEED LAW 8 - Excellence repeated – not just repeats. SWIMMING SPEED LAW 9 - TEACH, TRAIN, TEST – REPEAT! SWIMMING SPEED LAW 10 - It’s’ about speed – not the length of the repeat. Three Takeaways: Speed is everything! The search for ways to help swimmers, triathletes, masters swimmers, surf-athletes and fitness swimmers to swim faster is never ending. There are some important principles to understand in the development of swimming speed that apply to everyone who is trying to identify ways of swimming faster - our TEN SWIMMING SPEED "LAWS". The sport is getting faster! This means that training for speed has become by necessity more deliberate, more purposeful and more precise. Just throwing in a set of 25s at the end of workout and hoping this will help athletes swim faster is not an efficient or effective way to develop real speed. Why The Third 50? Because it's the third 50 of a 200 that matters. (We could have called this The Third 100 because it's the same principle!) The 1st 50 is fast because you're fresh and fired up, ready to race. The 2nd 50 flows because you're trying to relax and keep it smooth. The 4th 50 is about fighting and staying strong to the finish. But the 3rd 50 is where the magic happens. It's where the integration of your mind and body, your skills and technique, your stroke mechanics and your hard training all come together. The 3rd 50 is the "championship" lap, where the great swimmers take control of themselves and the race and power away to victory. We want to share our almost 80 years of experience with coaches, swimming teachers, swimmers, triathletes, and people who love being in and around the water worldwide. Who Are Wayne and Glenn? Wayne Goldsmith is an Australian coach, mentor, writer, speaker, and presenter. He's worked in swimming for more than 30 years and is an internationally respected sports performance professional. He's been recognized for his contribution to the sport of swimming with the Outstanding Contribution to Swimming in Australia Award and been recently received the Al Schoenfield award from the International Swimming Hall of Fame. Glenn Mills is an American coach, writer, and video producer. He's been involved in swimming for over 55 years. He's competed at every level of the sport, from winning the US Olympic Trials and NCAA Championships and even setting a few Masters World Records. For over 25 years, he's produced swimming technique content as the Co-Founder of GoSwim.tv, the Official Technique Partner with USA Swimming. He has also won the Paragon Award from the International Swimming Hall of Fame for his contribution to competitive swimming.

Welcome to The Third 50! This is the third episode in season one and it's an incredibly important topic - Developing the Technical Eye! Every coach needs to develop their "Technical Eye" - their ability to look at a swimmer and determine how to improve and enhance the swimmer's ability to move efficiently through water. Some coaches have a "technical eye" which is mostly intuitive - almost instinctive - and they can practically "feel" technique as a result of years and years and years of watching swimmers train and race.   But , Wayne and Glenn present ways for all coaches to learn - and master their Technical Eye! Three Takeaways: Every coach needs to develop a TECHNICAL EYE - the ability to see technique and to identify where technique is working and where it’s not working; Coaches will talk sets and reps and volume and equipment - but the importance of developing a TECHNICAL “EYE” can not be over-stated;  A simple way to learn the Technical Eye is to walk with a swimmer and progressively, systematically and methodically see what's happening from the tips of their fingers to the tips of their toes.  Why The Third 50? Because it's the third 50 of a 200 that matters. (We could have called this The Third 100 because it's the same principle!) The 1st 50 is fast because you're fresh and fired up, ready to race. The 2nd 50 flows because you're trying to relax and keep it smooth. The 4th 50 is about fighting and staying strong to the finish. But the 3rd 50 is where the magic happens. It's where the integration of your mind and body, your skills and technique, your stroke mechanics and your hard training all come together. The 3rd 50 is the "championship" lap, where the great swimmers take control of themselves and the race and power away to victory. We want to share our almost 80 years of experience with coaches, swimming teachers, swimmers, triathletes, and people who love being in and around the water worldwide. Who Are Wayne and Glenn? Wayne Goldsmith is an Australian coach, mentor, writer, speaker, and presenter. He's worked in swimming for more than 30 years and is an internationally respected sports performance professional. He's been recognized for his contribution to the sport of swimming with the Outstanding Contribution to Swimming in Australia Award and been recently received the Al Schoenfield award from the International Swimming Hall of Fame. Glenn Mills is an American coach, writer, and video producer.  He's been involved in swimming for over 55 years.  He's competed at every level of the sport, from winning the US Olympic Trials and NCAA Championships and even setting a few Masters World Records.  For over 25 years, he's produced swimming technique content as the Co-Founder of GoSwim.tv, the Official Technique Partner with USA Swimming.  He has also won the Paragon Award from the International Swimming Hall of Fame for his contribution to competitive swimming. Send in your video for a chance to have it analyzed on our podcast:  https://goswim.wetransfer.com

Welcome to The Third 50! In this first Episode, Wayne and Glenn discuss how coaches can help and inspire their swimmers to realize their full potential and share their thoughts on swimming technique. Three Takeaways: Every swimmer is unique: every technique is unique. How do you develop and enhance the technique and skills of individual swimmers? Some principles apply to all swimmers, e.g. head and hips positions, small head movements, soft hands, loose feet, but the name of the game is to develop "their" stroke - a stroke that works for the one specific, unique individual. There is no one "text-book perfect" swimming technique that applies to all swimmers. The only swimmer who is "text-book perfect" is the swimmer whose picture is in the textbook. For everyone else, it's about finding out what's efficient and effective in maximizing propulsion WHILE minimizing resistance. Why The Third 50? Because it's the third 50 of a 200 that really matters. (We could have called this The Third 100 because it's the same principle!) The 1st 50 is fast because you're fresh and fired up, ready to race. The 2nd 50 is flowing because you're trying to relax and keep it smooth. The 4th 50 is about fighting and staying strong to the finish. But the 3rd 50 is where the magic happens. It's where the integration of your mind and body, your skills and technique, your stroke mechanics and your hard training all come together. The 3rd 50 is the "championship" lap, where the great swimmers take control of themselves and the race and power away to victory. We want to share our almost 80 years of experience with coaches, swimming teachers, swimmers, triathletes, and people who love being in and around the water worldwide. Who Are Wayne and Glenn? Wayne Goldsmith is an Australian coach, mentor, writer, speaker, and presenter. He's worked in swimming for more than 30 years and is an internationally respected sports performance professional. He's been recognized for his contribution to the sport of swimming with the Outstanding Contribution to Swimming in Australia Award and been recently received the Al Schoenfield award from the International Swimming Hall of Fame. Glenn Mills is an American coach, writer, and video producer.  He's been involved in swimming for over 55 years.  He's competed at every level of the sport, from winning the US Olympic Trials and NCAA Championships and even setting a few Masters World Records.  For over 25 years, he's produced swimming technique content as the Co-Founder of GoSwim.tv, the Official Technique Partner with USA Swimming.  He has also won the Paragon Award from the International Swimming Hall of Fame for his contribution to competitive swimming.