Not just for Kids ...

A Cluster of Healthy Behaviors
BY KATHLEEN WOOLF

Did you know that behaviors are found in “clusters?”

Engaging in a healthy behavior, such as eating fruits and veggies, increases the likelihood of adopting additional healthy behaviors. On the flip side, trying a cigarette (or another unhealthy substance) increases your risk of taking on multiple risky behaviors, even later in life. This phenomenon is known as “behavior clustering.”

• As an athlete, you participate in regular physical activity – a healthy behavior. Cluster this activity with other positive behaviors to promote good health and improve performance. Here are some suggestions:
• Eat breakfast! Breakfast is the most important meal of the day and influences performance at school AND practice. A healthy breakfast should include whole grains, fruit, dairy and protein.
• Avoid smoking, drinking and other risky behaviors.
• Get enough sleep. Lack of sleep slows your thinking and makes it tough to focus on a task. Juggling practice, school, work and social events makes it difficult to get to bed on time. However, if you don’t get enough sleep, you are more likely to take more risks.
• Decrease time spent watching television and playing computer games one to two hours per day. Too much television interferes with other healthy behaviors, such as reading, doing homework, spending time with family and friends, and being physically active.
• Increase consumption of fruits and veggies. They are loaded with essential vitamins, minerals and fiber, which may help protect you from chronic disease.
• Decrease consumption of high-fat foods. Saturated fat (full-fat dairy products and fatty meats & poultry) and trans fat (processed cookies, cakes and chips) can be dietary villains.
• Consume a variety of nutrient-rich and tasty snacks throughout the day. Store snacks in your backpack so that you have healthy foods available rather than relying on a vending machine for between-meal snacks.
• Drink plenty of water. As a swimmer, you are at increased risk of dehydration. Consume fluids before, during and after exercise to ensure you are getting enough.

ABOUT KATHLEEN WOOLF

Kathleen Woolf, PhD, RD is a registered dietitian and a member of the American Dietetic Association, the Sports, Cardiovascular and Wellness Nutrition Dietetic Practice Group, and the American College of Sports Medicine.

Away Meet Check list

Marlins Away Meet Check List

1.    When you get to the meet, you must:

a.    Have your child check-in for every day of the meet. The athletes must check themselves in. The clerk will circle the events for the day, or ask the swimmer to do it and the swimmer will initial next to it. Pre-seeded meet do not require check-ins.

b.    Find the team area and set-up with your team.

c.    Have your child check-in with the coach, at which point the coach will go over warm-up procedures and any specifics for the meet. If your child is young and the weather is on the cold side, the coach may advise him or her to skip warm-up all together.

d.    No events should be modified before clearing it with the coach first.

e.    Be ready for the team meeting schedules 5 minutes before the end of the scheduled warm-up.

2.    Show your team spirit: Swimmers should wear Marlin’s paraphernalia like cap, suit, parka, sweats, T-shirt, etc. Remember to cheer for your teammates! Team swim caps must be worn by all swimmers during warm-up and races.

3.    Help your child learn their competition routine:

a.    Check their Heat and Lane assignment (if relevant). Heat / Lane information is posted around the pool 10 to 15 minutes before the race or can be found directly on the program if the meet is pre-seeded.

b.    Check–in with appropriate coaches to let them know their seeding assignment and get a word of encouragement and a technical reminder. Be patient, coaches have to watch races, talk to swimmers before and after their races. They may not be ready when you are; this is why you want to give yourself some extra time to check in.

c.    Line up to swim and make sure the timers have your name on their clipboard, swim the race.

d.    Warm-down (double the distance swam in the race if it is 200 yards and above, or triple it if it is 100 yards or less) if space is provided.

e.    Check-in with appropriate coaches to hear feedback on your race, times, splits, pointers, acknowledgements.

f.     Go drink and eat! Let go of the last race and prepare the next.

4.    Parents, help your child stay at the meet as long as you can to reinforce the fact that any competition is a team event. Get involved in the running of the meet by timing or becoming an official. Avoid coming for your child’s one race and leaving 5 minutes after it’s over.

5.    What to do when your child gets disqualified. Disqualifications “DQs” are part of swimming; this is the other way your child’s performance is judged other then with a stopwatch. Rules are designed for purposes such as fostering fairness amongst the competitor, allowing order and smoothness in the running of a meet and protecting the integrity of a stroke against the ever-evolving interpretations of the swimmers and their coaches. Sooner or later your child will be “DQed”. When this happens, remember that this is part of the learning process. The Stroke and Turn Judge will meet the swimmer behind the block and will hand him a yellow sheet while explaining the reason for the DQ. You are encouraged to listen and make sure your child understands the nature of the mistake. The coach will go over all the details to make sure that this “incident” turns into a learning opportunity. Parents and coaches are not allowed to argue the merit of a DQ directly with the judge. If necessary, a protest can be filled by the coach with the Referee who will investigate the call made by the judge. Often your child will be upset. Remember to offer your support and let the coach do the coaching.

6.    Pick up your awards at the end of the meet when possible.

7.    Clean the team area; leave it as clean as you found it.

8.    Check in with your coaches when you leave the meet, even if it’s just to say goodbye. Don’t leave the meet until you know if your are on a relay or not.

9.    Parent’s code of conduct: Swim meets are an important part of the sport experience. It is also the one-time parents, coaches and swimmers come together to make the event work and to help it be successful. Each has a specific responsibility, which do not overlap.

The child’s job is to showcase his/her knowledge and experience acquired during practice sessions and other competitions, while having fun. It’s also to reach goals he/she has set for himself/herself while socializing with his/her friends.

The coach’s job is to facilitate the experience by sharing his/her expertise, by putting things in perspective and giving an unbiased opinion of the athlete’s performance. The coach’s job is to use the opportunity competition provides to reaffirm and / or redefine goals for each athlete, each training group and the team as a whole.

The parent’s job is to provide unconditional support and love to the athlete. Also to allow the athlete to mature by creating the space needed for him/her to grow. The parent’s job is to assume there is always a certain amount of pressure put on the athlete during competition, and that they should be careful not to add to it.

a.    8 & Under: At this age, it is the parent’s job to help their kids learn about the running of a meet. Don’t expect the coaches to run around looking for your children because they simply can’t. Bring your child to the coach, run them through their competition routine until they know it by heart. Parents should teach their children how to best utilize their coach, they should also help the coach better understand their children by communicating with them.

b.    9 – 12: If your child is new to swimming, you may want to follow the recommendations for the younger swimmers. The goal is to make sure the athlete is doing what needs to be done while helping them less and less as they get older. This means that sometimes parents may want to let the athlete suffer the consequences of a mistake in order to best learn from it.

c.    13 & up: By this age, the athlete understands their expectations at a swim meet … but parents are not off the hook yet. They still need to make sure that there is good communication between their child and the coach.

10. What to bring to a swim meet? Dress warmly; you can always take layers off if the day turns out warmer then expected. Pack at least 2 towels, swimsuit, cap, goggles, warm socks, sleeping bag, and extra clothes. Don’t forget to write your name on all your belongings so that they can be returned to you when found. Bring homework; reading, cards, and travel games … last but not least, healthy food, water, sport drinks that will keep your body fueled throughout the entire meet.

11.  Remember: If you are new at this, more experienced parents will be delighted to help you out, they all remember being a little confused at the beginning too!

Meet Report - Rohnert Park on 4/17 and home meet on 4/24

We just had 2 nice meets this month. Everyone participating had a good time, kids swam good races for the most part, parents enjoyed catching up with other parents while watching their little one perform, and coaches enjoyed a "body and mind friendly" format, i.e. a meet that last less then 4 hours.

The only bad part was that these meets were one week apart. Unfortunately, it's not always easy to make the meet schedule work for everyone. I try to have a home and an away meet per month, and if we don't count the Far Western Champs in early April, I can say I did it! It just wasn't pretty, I mean who wants to go to a swim meet on the tail end of spring break? 12 swimmers did! And who wants to go the a home meet 7 days later ... or 5 days after joining the team? So, yeah, like I said, not pretty.

Still, the 12 swimmers who participated in Rohnert Park, had a blast. Not only we had almost 80% best times which in itself is no small feat, but it was one of the few meet we've gone that had this home meet feel that we all like. Laid back, low intensity - we even perform or first "quiet" cheer in the history of the team - organized by friendly people, it really doesn't get much better than that. 8 year old Lilly Blanadet was lucky to choose this meet for her first competition ever ... and she was back 7 days later at our home meet participating in her first relay, she had a blast. Jack Berkenfield finally achieved a goal that had been eluding him for a while: his Junior Olympic cut in the 50 free. Excited, is a sadly understated word to describe him after the race. We will be back in Rohnert Park on May 16th, June 5th and most likely on July 18th.

 Team Meeting before our "Quiet Cheer".

Our last home meet was a success as well. 39 Marlins swimmers participated and 40 North Bay swimmers (mostly younger) graced us with their presence. The 2 teams have had so many meets together, they seem to blend where I sometime forget we watch Marlins and NBA swimmers in the pool, but rather kids I know ... and kids I know less. 63% best times, makes this meet average, but a lot of the faster swimmers have just finish their most important meets with really fast times which will take a little while to improve again. We welcomed 3 brand new swimmers, some with just a couple days of practice under their belt. Congratulations to Alyssa Mulligan who's boiling excitement propelled her across the pool as if she was a veteran, Ali Thomas who showed tremendous potential as a competitor and Alexei Muromcew who, although a bit nervous, found the courage to swim the 50 free. We had another team record in the 9-10 Free relay where James Beard, Bennett Carbone, Lani Kamler and Violet Loo obliterated the last record in style.

Last, but not least, on behalf of all the swimmers, I would like to thank the parents who stepped up and help run the home meet, and timed at the away meet. We really could not do it without you ... literally!

Far Westerns - A good performance for our swimmers!

Far Westerns is the top age group competition offered in Pacific Swimming. It is scheduled twice a year, early April for the short course format and mid summer for the long course format. Last weekend's meet gathered over 170 teams who traveled from all over the westerns states to compete in the championship. Only 90 teams ended up scoring points this year and for the first time, finals were retransmitted live over the internet!

3 Marlins swimmers qualified for the meet. James Beard 10 improved both of his events in the 50 and 100 back. Jared Sears 14 swam a strong 200 back missing the team record by only 3 seconds, and Monica Sears, although ready to swim fast, missed her best time by a mere 3 seconds in the 400 IM. The meet was scheduled over 4 days and although James and Jared got tropical conditions for their races, by Sunday Monica was stepping on the block to start her race as gust of chilly winds were lifting the timer's tents and blowing the parking lot's sand in everyone's faces.

In the end, everyone did a great job. It's not easy to drive 90 miles, warm-up for 30 to 40 minutes and race for 35" to 5', and somehow figure out when to eat, drink and stay focus on a task with no second chance. I certainly think this is what makes these meets so challenging and help lay the foundation needed to become an experienced athlete. 

On behalf of the swimmers, I want to take this opportunity to thank their parents for an unconditional support they offered throughout the event. 

Signing up for swim meets ... digitally

I admit that a part of me miss the good old time of paper entries. A team would advertise their meet, I would post it at the pool, talk to kids and parent about it and then fill-out the entry forms and mail them with a check. I'm not saying it was not a lot of work, but there was a sens of order, a comfortable time line that would give all parties involved a chance to think it through.

In the year 2010, entering a meet is a very different process. First, you need to be connected .... I mean internet connected, second, you actually need to know how to navigate the web, and last but not least, you must check your e-mail daily. For best of for worst we live in the digital age.

Going digital is speeding everything up. From the time a meet gets "posted" on line, to the time the meet is closed could be just a few days. With Swim Connection alerting the parents directly (if you have an account) of the availability of a meet, the system is now so efficient that it effectively bypasses coaches altogether. Yes, there are ways for me to help you chose events for your kids, but with so little time to register to a meet, it is not easy do do my job.

Most parents like to plan early, which is why I post the meet schedule on the marlins website as early as possible. Unfortunately, most parents are confused by the time line relating to different type of meets. For example, I advertise our home meet early (all the home meets until July are posted on the website), but I usually do not open the meet for registration until 2 weeks before, and I will close the meet 3 days before the event date. But away meets are different, although the schedule is advertise early, it seems that the meet open for registration almost randomly. Some open 2 to 3 month in advance, some 2 to 3 weeks.

If you are serious about taking your kids to away meets, please be pro-active and talk to Jeff or me about your options, we can recommend a meet based on your child's level. Once you know what meet you want to attend, then you must stay alert for the e-mail announcement I send as soon as a meet opens-up for registration. In the e-mail, I usually describe the meet in more specific terms. As always, if you are new to this or want to take it slower, enter just one day - no need to be there 2 or 3 days unless you and your kids are ready for it!

Junior Olympics Championships In San Ramon

Jeff and I had the pleasure to spend the weekend with 4 qualified Marlins swimmers and their families. JO's (as we call it) is no small affair. 90 teams participated with over 1350 swimmers competing over 3 days. Swimmers must qualify to compete and James Beard 10, Monica Sears 11, Jared Sears 14 and Alicia Vogelaar 12 managed to qualify in a total of 21 events. Just a year ago, the Marlins were represented by just one swimmer in 6 events.

Our athletes put on a great show: 17 best times (81% improvement) and one new team record for Monica in the 400 IM. Monica manage to qualify in the ultimate age group meet (the Far Western Championships held in Morgan Hills in April) in the 400 IM, Jared qualified in the 200 back, and both will be joining James who will be swimming the 50 and 100 back. I have posted the results for our swimmers here. For an overall meet result, go here.

This meet confirms that we are on track with our training and that we did a much better job with preparing the kids to race. Now, we need to build on that success and shift our focus on the month of July when we will be competing in the Redwood Empire Swim League Championships (RESL). We hope that the growing success of these swimmers will get their teammates to work hard to join them at the top. We have a bunch of talented swimmers in group 3 and 4 that are ready for the next step.

What if it rains?

Each year when we get rain, I get a lot of phone calls and e-mails from parents who want to know if swim practice will be canceled. Well, practice is always on except during the following weather conditions:

• Extremely high winds. We can get 60 mph wind gusts at the top of the hill.

• If there is lightening less than 30 minutes before a given practice.

• The pool falls below 78 degrees for group 2, 3 and 4, and below 80 degrees for group 1.

I know that when the weather is cold and rainy, most sane people would consider swimming to be at the bottom of the list … or not even on the list at all. And this is exactly why you should get your kids to practice in a pouring rain; I can tell you they will love it because it’s unusual! If I decide to cancel swim practice I will send a team wide e-mail with the news and will be available by phone as well.

As far as swim meet goes, I have never attended a swim meet shortened as a consequence of bad weather ... and I wish some had been. There is this mentality in the swim community that you just don't quit. Kids are taught to push through discomfort at practice and in their races ... and parents do the same the day of an event. Over the years, we have seen tents fly, ice on pool deck, pool steam so thick you can't even see the other side of the pool, rain that just won't quit. Our Spooky plunge in 2008 was a good example of that!

 Look at these parents! I bet they still talk about that meet.

The start of a new session.

This fall, one third of our team is composed of novice swimmers and parents. This is of course very exciting, but it requires a lot more work to get practice organized, particularly in Group 1. In order to make everyone’s experience on the team as best as can be, I will call on all of our more experienced parents to pitch in and help answer questions while on the pool deck at practice or at meets.

One of the challenges of our sport is the fact that the swimmers have to share a small space while practicing their skills. The skills needed to make this happen are a bit more complex than those needed to execute a good stroke. It always makes the beginning of a season a little more chaotic. But remind your little guys and girls that this is only temporary.

A few times a year, I remind everyone how important it is to be on time for swim practice. Other than the obvious, understand that it is very disruptive to organize the lanes for the first 15 minutes of practice, so please do your best to be on time. You can help improve your child’s experience in the water by making sure that your boy’s swimsuit is tied, long hair is tied in a pony tail or held in place with a swim cap and that goggles are properly fitted before swim practice.

So far the kids have been behaving in the locker rooms after practice, and that’s great news. But let’s not relax our vigilance too much. I have already reminded Group 1 and Group 2 to turn the water off once they are done showering! So please go in the locker room and check on your kids. Help them respect the club’s property and keep the showers to a minimum. Please encourage your boys to use the cubbyholes instead of the locker room benches to store their bags and towels.

Last, but not least, remind your kids to wait for you inside the club to be picked-up and not in the parking lot … or on the sidewalk in front of the club.