How Swim Tech Can Improve Your Performance

Technology can give swimmers a real, tangiable advantage in a race or competitive event. Here's how you can make the most of tech in your training.

1. Capture more high-quality data

Swimming by 'feel' is great, and you know your body better than anyone, or any technology. However, we've all gotten out of the water expecting good results and being disappointed, or expecting bad results and being pleasantly surpised.

It's frustrating when this guessing game about your performance happens before, during or after a race or event. You want to get in the water knowing what you're capable of, what 'good' feels like, and where your limits are.

To know this, you need to collect data. The more data you collect of a high quality, the better your analysis. More data just means more metrics; how efficient are you, what's a good distance travelled per stroke, where's your heart rate during intense session... these are all measurable with data.

This is why a wearable is now a requirement for swim training. If you don't use one, you're guessing and hoping - and truly, it's better to know. So, the best way to capture more high-quality data is to use a wearable device - we recommend Garmin - it captures a huge amount of data at no subscription cost.

2. Learn how to analyse data

Capturing more high-quality data is useless if you don't know how to analyse it. Analysing data just means looking at the numbers, finding patterns, and drawing insights from those patters. I'll give you an example of how you can analyse your data below:

If you review data across 3 training sessions where your heart rate goes up drastically after 30 minutes of training, and your stroke length gets much shorter - there is a pattern. You could find that when you get tired (e.g. after 30mins) you rush your stroke and it gets shorter, which means you take more strokes to cover the same distance, and your heart rate goes up.

Working backwards, if you want to become more efficient in your longer swims, practice keeping your stroke extra long after 30mins. Do this for a couple of weeks, check the data, and look for improvements. If the data improves, keep doing the same thing until it stops improving. If data gets worse, find a new pattern and try and different approach.

Analysis is a skill, and an important one. With practice your ability to spot patterns, make changes, and find improvements gets better and better. This is the science of 'self-coaching' that technology supports.

3. Avoid the gimmicks

Not all technology is good technology. Do you need a screen in your swimming goggles? Possibly not.

It's good to really think about the costs and the benefits of technology; how will this device, app, or service tangiably improve my swim performance?

Indicators that technology is useful include:

• You definitely use it multiple times per week

• You rely on it for your training

• You trust it to capture and analyse your data

Indicators that technology is not useful include:

• You use it occasionally

• How it looks is a big part of why you like it

• It helps, but you don't rely on it

So, make sure that the technology you choose to incorporate into your training is truly useful and isn't just a marketing gimmick.

4. Keep the main thing the main thing

Swimming is a simple sport with a simple aim: going faster more efficiently.

If the tech you're thinking of buying doesn't directly help you improve your swimming, reconsider.

There are only a few ways to get faster or more efficient:

• Training in the pool (swim technique &endurance)

• Training in the gym (strength, flexibility, cardio)

• Improving nutrition (energy, composition, recovery)

• Improving sleep (energy, recovery)

You want to be able to point to one of these areas and say: yes, this technology is helping, I rely on it to [train / eat / sleep]. If you can't say that, don't buy it, and don't use it.

If you're looking for swim coaching technology you can rely on to improve your performance, check out the SWIMMA app.