In a Rut?

You haven’t dropped time in 6 months, a year or more. You’re frustrated and wondering what you need to do to break through. I’ve been there. Being stuck in a rut is one of the toughest things to mentally push through, especially when you are training your butt off. Here are some tips to help you push through and breakout on the other side.

Take a step back. The longer you’ve gone without dropping time, the more frustrated you get. It is easy to get caught up in the frustration. Instead of letting it consume you, take a step back. Ask yourself “what can I do better?” Analyze every aspect of your training and lifestyle to see what you can change so you can get faster in the pool. Small changes can go a long way.

1. Training- are you doing EVERYTHING you can to get better every single time you train? Are you present and mentally engaged during every set? Set your intention for practice every day before you get in the pool. Make sure you are improving at least one thing every time you train.
2. Diet- are you fueling your body properly? Look at what you are consuming. Make sure you are getting enough vitamins, supplements, protein, carbs etc. so you can perform your best. Make sure you are eating ENOUGH. You are training at a high level 1-6 hours a day depending on the day. Fuel. Your. Body. Properly.
3. Sleep- are you getting enough sleep so you can train and perform your best? Do you go out late on Friday nights then wake up at 5am for morning practice? Guess what, you may not feel the effects in the moment, but you are not setting yourself up for success. There goes a morning practice that you did not maximize the benefits.
4. Recovery- are you recovering properly? Recovery includes stretching, resting, fueling properly and sleep. Make sure you are consciously recovering properly between each practice so you can train at the level you need to.
5. Lifestlye- is there anything about your current lifestyle that you can change to reduce your stress? Is school stressing you out? Do you have homework and project deadlines looming over you? Try to manage your time differently to reduce your external stress and focus more of that energy towards your training. Try working on homework during lunch or any break you get so you aren’t thinking about “everything you have to do” when you get home from practice. Even knocking out 10 minutes of work before afternoon practice will help your mental state.

Remember, just take a step back. Try to ease the frustration and don’t let it consume you. Identify areas of your training, diet, sleep, recovery or lifestyle that you can improve. Work towards improving them. You’ll get out of the rut. It might take a little bit of time but you will get there.

-KF