Lifestyle – kylevm.com

6 swimmers swimming at the camera underwater

I’ve been swimming for 9 years now, and it’s really had a positive impact on my life, such as allowing me to meet friends that I’m extremely close with. Swimming has also allowed me to grow as a person. And finally, swimming has allowed me to obtain a great level of fitness.

How has swimming made me great friends?

Swimming has allowed me to grow really close with my teammates and create special bonds with them that you won’t really find in other friendships. I spend roughly 20 hours a week training with my teammates, which has allowed us all to grow very close. The reason that my friendship with my teammates is so strong is because of many reasons such as our shared experiences, if im dying in practice so are they and we push each other to do better, we push each other to put in more effort than we believe we can, we push ourselves to make the last 100 faster then the previous one and we help each other grow as athletes.

How has the sport allowed me to grow as a person?

Swimming has taught me a lot of life lessons, but the most important one I’ve learned is that hard work really pays off. Swimming has taught me that if I want to improve, I have to train my ass off and be consistent, every day that I skip a practice or that I decide to slack off is a day that everyone else gets to improve more than me, it gives them a slight advantage to beat me. Another life lesson it’s taught me is patience, hard work takes time,Ii could go 4 months without seeing progress and then out of nowhere I will get a huge best time, it’s taught me that even if I dont see results right away, I really am improving, andIi just need to be patient.

How has swimming improved my fitness level?

Swimming is a lot of work, I have 8 2-hour in water practices and 4 1-hour gym practices a week, in swimming I train every muscle in my body and have a much higher endurance than most other athletes. In the weight room, I train my muscles and strength. In swimming, I’m getting the best endurance training there is, andI’mm also getting bigger muscles from my gym sessions.

“Swimming hasn’t just made me a better athlete—it’s helped me grow as a person, build lifelong friendships, and discover what hard work really means.”

What kind of foods should a long distance swimmer eat?

Crispy Salmon with asparagus I cooked in butter and orange juice that I made during my training camp in Arizona

Diet is one of the most important things for athletes, as it’s our source of energy. Being a long-distance swimmer makes it difficult to eat enough food in a day since we burn so many calories, but it’s really important that I eat enough food and that I’m eating good food.

What should I eat as snacks?

Before practices, an ideal snack is some sort of quick carb, such as fruit. This helps fuel me for practices and ensures I have enough energy to perform well. After a practice, it’s best to eat some sort of protein to help the recovery process, such as nuts, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese (ew), peanut butter or even beef jerky. Eating some sort of protein is essential post-workout as it aids in muscle recovery and repair. Throughout the day, I usually try to get in healthy fats for sustained energy throughout the day. This really helps me when I have school after a morning practice. I usually try to have nuts or peanut butter.

What should I eat for lunch?

For lunch, I usually try to have something lighter so that I don’t feel like I need to puke during intense practices. These meals usually include a lean protein and simple carbs. Ideal meals are chicken and veggies, fish and veggies or even turkey sandwiches. It ensures I have the essential nutrients to keep me going throughout the day and be fueled for my practices without feeling extremely sick.

What should my dinner look like?

For dinner I go for lots of protein to help recover from intense practices, I also have more complex carbs since my body will have time to break them down during my sleep and downtime and i dont risk feeling sick before a practice, these meals can be fish with mashed potatoes, beef and rice, breaded chicken, anything that will help me recover while also ensuring i have enough energy for my morning practices.