Importance of Recovery: Preventing Overtraining in your Swimmers

Swimming is one of the most demanding sports, in regards to training demands and energy expenditure [1][2]. While many coaches and swimmers will focus on pushing their limits to the extremes in the pool, the importance of recovery is often underestimated. Recovery is essential for improving performance, preventing injuries and maintaining overall wellbeing [3].

Importance of Recovery

When you swim, your muscles undergo stress, which are necessary for growth and adaptation [4]. Recovery allows these muscles to repair and strengthen, leading to improvements in your muscles, which consequently improves your performance [3]. Without the adequate recovery, you risk overuse injuries, or stress fractures and mental fatigue [3][4].

Physical benefits of recovery

1. Reduced risk of injury
2. Improved muscle repair and growth
3. Increased energy and endurance

Pyschological benefits 

1. Reduced stress and anxiety 
2. Improved mood and motivation 

How to Recover...

With the recent surge in popularity in contrast therapy, and infrared sauna therapies, it is hard to determine which is best to recover. It it important to note, as a coach, you should guide swimmers in the pool, as well as outside the pool - which means in their recovery too. 

Foundations first, start with the big rocks 

then add your supplementary strategies.

Making sure we focus on the big rocks of recovery first. If we look at this image below for example. It is clear that we must focus on the foundations of recovery before add the strategies that lie above, as they will supplement your foundations of recovery. 

As a coach, you should encourage conversation with your swimmers to better understand how they are recovering in terms of their sleep, and mental recovery away from the pool. Then start talking about nutrition, hydration strategies. Target those first, before we start discussing about ice baths and massages etc. 

Also note, if you plan to be in a heavy training block, and the main aim is to drive adaptations and progressively overload training on your swimmers, it may be as simple as a conversation with your swimmers to ensure you are on the same page. It will be important to provide transparency and allow your swimmers to trust the process as this specific block may be targeted to overload your swimmers - and they should feel tired. But provide them a clear plan with the inisght that by the time your next event/competition, the training will reduce, recovery opportunities will increase, and swimmers will feel fresh to compete! 

One way you can check your current form score is via Simma! Explore form score for more.