Are You Ready for Summer League Swimming?
It’s that time of year again! School is wrapping up and parents are looking for fun (energy draining) activities that will help their kid make friends, stay in shape, and learn the value of hard work and dedication. Black Kids Swim highly suggests you put your kid on a summer league swim team! Summer league swimming reinforces life saving swim skills and is a fun introduction to the sport of competitive swimming.
While your kid will be doing the hard work in the pool, it typically falls on the parents to keep kids on time, organized, equipped and properly fed. Here are our top recommendations to prepare for summer league swimming and be an amazing swim parent at the same time.
On Time
Swim meets start early. And no one likes to get up early. To avoid having to wake yourself and your swimmer, get them an extremely loud alarm clock. We avoid digital clocks to give kids extra practice learning to tell time.
Organized “Where are my goggles?” To avoid hearing this every Saturday Black Kids Swim suggests investing in a swimmers bag with multiple pockets for goggles, swim caps, flip flops and snacks. We love the bags that come with mesh pockets to let things air dry quickly and the dirty clothes bag for wet items is always appreciated. Also, air freshners can prevent the “musty bag” smell from driving you crazy.
Equipped “But all they need is a swim suit, right?” Wrong! Swimmers have a laundry list of equipment needs. If you and your child are new to swimming you will want to make sure you are properly equipped from day one. No one wants to be the kid without a kickboard or pull buoy. And, if your kid does really well (which they will!) they may ask you for a tech suit or Fast Skin for the championship meets later in the summer. These light weight suits compress swimmers’ bodies and repel water – they can help achieve faster times. However, they can cost anywhere between $80 – $700. We highly suggest finding a discounted or past season suit to save some cash while still making your little swimmer feel like an elite athlete.
Properly Fed Swimmers eat differently! They need carbs and protein and they have to avoid sweets, acidic foods and anything that could cause indigestion or bloating (like dairy products). They day before and the day of a swim meet, it’s important to eat the right foods. If they don’t, they could discount the hours of hard work and training they’ve put in. Stock up on healthy snacks like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, fresh fruit, and recovery drinks to fill your swimmers snack bag and you’ll be glad you did.
Now, you’re ready for summer league swimming. Swim hard this summer! Together, we can Change The Tide!
