Compiled by Michael Ursu - Gold Licence

The Australian, Long, Effortless, and Effective Training System. North Thornton (USA)(From World Clinic Series)

As far back as 1953, the famous Australian coach I believe that swimming success is based on a well-developed , while working with his squad at the Ryde facility neural approach to technique in the water - more specifically a in , formulated a philosophy of basic work training. well developed “feel” for the water pressure in and around the body. As he describes in his 1953 publication Training for All Sports, The art form of swimming must be taken into account to reach it is “The Bread and Butter” training for all distances. your maximum performance level.

Basically, it involves covering long distances easily and quite Just developing more strength and exerting more pressure on slowly at a low heart rate - analogous to walking in everyday life the water will not produce what you are truly capable of becom- (“For about the first month of training, the swimmers should ing. concentrate on long distances of basic swimming, when proper stroke technique can be worked out without any time pres- Effortless: sures”). There is only so much effort endurance that you can put into a single training period. Forbes also notes that race pace combined with basic work, broken swims, race distance efforts (80%-90% range) and Usually the higher the level of effort used, the shorter the dura- sprinting (20-25 yards all-out) are also necessary parts of a tion of the training session. complete training program. Another point Carlile brought out was that the human brain has However, approximately 75% of the training is in the basic “effort-making centers,” and that too much high-end training range. will fatigue these centers, causing failing adaptation and even- tually total fatigue. Also mentioned in his 1953 book on training was the fact that this longer, easier basic training was followed by a majority of The recovery process (hours of sleep, balanced diet including the 1948 Australian Olympic Team, which set world records and nutritional supplements, and a dominated the 1948 games. balanced lifestyle of social and recreational activities) becomes just as important, if not more important, than the training in the Long: water, the length of time in the water and the intensity of that Carlile goes on to say that the greatest distances covered will time. usually be basic work for both sprinters and distance perform- ers. Effective: This is an interesting fact: Both the sprinter and the distance Time in the water during “Basic” time needs to be devoted to man will benefit from any amount of easy work, provided it is all the effective drills and the many things that allow you to done slow enough. “DANCE” in the water, as opposed to working.

Slow work will not “bog down” the sprinter, but too much fast Steve Gladstone, Cal’s celebrated crew coach and winner of work will spoil both types of athlete. eight IRA Challenge Cup championships, is quoted in Sports Illustrated’s Scoreboard section in the June 12 th, 2000 issue. There still should be a blending of various types of pace work, thus the swimmer’s drug of choice is Gladstone evaluates by feel, many times not even looking at his L.S.D. = Long, Slow Distance. stopwatch. “Precision is intuitive,” he says.

This partially explains why some of the heavy yardage pro- “I am drawn to the movement, not the quantifiable pieces. grams of the late 60s and early 70s produced some fantastic performances. When a racing shell is moving fast through the water, it is an art form. Since water is not a familiar medium for the human body, it only makes sense, that unlike other land-based sports and This form is ephemeral, transitory. activities, swimming performance is dependent upon familiarity with the feel of the water around the body. You’ll see it today and never again.” Later in the same article, it is stated that “in recent years, (Gladstone) has emphasized This can only be improved with more opportunity to spend time low-cadence rowing in practices so his oarsmen can better in the water. understand leverage.” I believe this applies directly to swimming. Training!: The period in the water actually becomes a training session as You can’t “Dance” very well, or enjoy it very much, if you are opposed to a “workout” (“work” is a four-letter word). under the gun to swim a certain demanding time on each swim or to make a tough interval. I believe you can carry this all the Creating a systematic way to play at learning to dance more way up to an Olympic time standard if you are worried and only effectively with less effort in the water will produce more fun focused on the time standard rather than how to find ways to and a playful daily approach to being the best water dancer that enjoy the “Dance.” you can be.

The beauty of spending more time in the water and execut- By perfecting your balance and streamline, effective stroke ing less physical effort is that it gives you plenty of time to use technique will influence your number of strokes per length and your brain to think about ways to make things more efficient effectively use your core to generate power that will positively and easier. The use of the brain while practicing swimming influence your stroke rate. is almost a lost art with most of the swimmers in our training group. You will end up with a product to keep tweaking and polishing during the longer, slower yardage. However, like anything else, the more you use it the easier it gets and the better you get at it. New members to our training The end result of all this is tremendous endurance and ultimate group often find that their attention span is very short and that speed. The by-product of this is a fast time - the thing that you the most important skill they must develop is refocusing again never actually specifically tried to get. Ironically, the more you and again during a training session. try for it, the harder it is to achieve.

You can usually tell whether or not a swimmer is focused by I guess it is kind of like holding water - the harder you squeeze watching his stroke technique. It is not uncommon to see a water in your hands, the less of it you can actually hold. stroke technique change two or three times within 50 meters. Trying is not doing. We need to decide if we really want to try My definition of effortless is avoiding resistance and drag by hard with much effort and too few results or go for an easy, shaping the body into the best possible vessel to slip and slide relaxed “Dance” which can be achieved in less and less time on over and through the water while applying the best possible the stop watch. The choice is yours. technique to propel the body with as little expenditure of effort as possible. *The reference to Dance comes from George Leonard’s book The Ultimate Athlete, chapter 14, “The Dance Within the Game” This is something that I call “Easy Speed.”

It is like Ponce de Leon searching for the Fountain of Youth - a More Thoughts on Effortless & Effective never-ending quest for more Easy Speed; you can never have There are two human swimming patterns: too much. In recent years I have had the pleasure of having 1) Rhythm cycles - distance per stroke; and a young man named Bart Sikora in our training group. Bart 2) Cycling rates - the number of cycles in a period of time. always gave the appearance of not working very hard, and he wasn’t. What he was doing was finding new ways to swim more As speed increases, cycling rates must increase. Usually, dis- effectively and easily at the same time. tance per stroke (D.P.S.) will decrease.

Once he could not find another single way to efficiently get However, the more successful you are, the less it will decrease. more Easy Speed out of that time, he would drop down to a little faster time and begin the process of making that speed as Simply put, holding distance per stroke constant while increas- efficient and effortless as possible. ing your cycle rate yields maximum speed, whatever that may be for your current stage of development. As speed increases, A new and pretty dam intelligent way to approach training. the viscosity of the water increases and becomes more and more resistant. One might wish to add a third “E” to the acronym A.L.E.E.T., making it A.L.E.E.E.T. This makes technique increasingly more important.

This third “E” stands for the European influence brought to the Two Sides to a Stroke Cycle Australian Institute of Sport by Gennadi Touretski, the Russian Side One is the recovery/eliminating side and coach of Aleksandre Popov (the world record holder for the 100 Side Two is the pulling/creating force side. meter freestyle). While training Popov, Gennadi used many easy meters of basic-type work to allow Aleksandre to per- I look at it much like a steam engine on a railroad train - the fect his range, rhythm and relaxation theory of technique and pistons driving forward on one side while they move backward search with Easy Speed. on the opposite side. I believe that most swimmers and coaches focus their attention The keys seem to be establishing a rhythm by swinging the and efforts on the pulling/creating force side of the stroke, the hands, being aware of the hand’s angle of entry into the water thinking being, to establish the proper catch (at lower speeds, the hand must assume a greater angle to reach the proper vertical catch posi- “Pull harder on the water and I will move forward faster.” tion), and being able to shift the hips to facilitate the swing of that side of the body. Until recently, I was one of that group, before reading some material written by Charles “Red” Silvia of Springfield College, Training now becomes a play period (to allow you the oppor- who writes about the “inertial” and “free swinging conceptual tunity to play around with the technique) followed by a show level” of swimming. & tell period (to share with your teammates the exciting new “Dances” you have learned). Silvia coined several phrases whose meanings are based on the laws of motion and translate into the “Dance” concept, namely: Sounds like kindergarten all over again.

“Swim within yourself.” Next it is time for a snack and a good nap - nothing wrong with “Let your stroke carry you” (and bring it home at the end of that! your swim). “Be as inertial as possible and the least muscular.” The Catch - The Key to Unlocking Easy Speed “Swing my hands” (not the arms). “Fire and release” (with firm but relaxed Charles “Red” Silvia lists the four distinct parts of a mechani- hand). cally superior stroke. They are: “To be truly unconscious when you swim, you first must be 1. Inertial shoulder girdle elevation and upward scapular rota- conscious.” - sounds like Phil Jackson? These concepts, from tion. Red Silvia by way of Tufts University Coach Don Meagrely, are 2. Shoulder joint medial rotation and elbow flexion. his greatest contribution to swimming. 3. Shoulder joint adduction and downward scapular motion. 4. Inertial round off and release (partial supination and shoul- The use of the “swing” allows the swimmer to let his arms be der joint lateral rotation). This is the quick-released arm action free of muscular effort and tension. (Always referring to the that we have been referring to. hands as opposed to the arms allows for more relaxed easy speed.) The great number of sensory end organs in the hands Studies of ’s crawl stroke show that he does not rush and feet (with their appropriate representation in the sensory the initial part of the propulsive phase of his stroke (the catch) and motor cortices plays an important role in the anatomical as he takes the time to position the hand and forearm by medi- make-up. ally rotating the humorous and flexing the elbow.

Nervous system impulses are not fatigued or stymied when the Once this position is attained, then the prime movers of adduc- body moves freely within the “Dance.” Again, this is what I call tion vigorously contract against the resistance of the water. “Easy Speed.” Silvia’s material and with Gennadi Touretski’s training with Podov have convinced me to look on the opposite In simple words, on his recovery he swings a relaxed arm and side of the stroke. hand into the water in front of his head using the momentum of the throw for propulsion. As the hand is sliding forward, he By effortlessly throwing the hands, with relaxed arms, you may uses the water pressure over the top/back of the hand to drive increase both cycle rate and distance per cycle (or at least not the hand slightly downward. It is at this point that he allows his decrease it). The real beauty of this is that the low physical cost scapula to slide up and forward over his rib cage. it takes to swing the hands allows you to go for much longer duration at greater speed (G.S.). Once the shoulder and scapula are shifted forward, the upper arm rotates inward about a quarter turn and the elbow bends An athlete can slow down and go for longer distances and be to near a 90-degree angle with fingers pointing toward the bot- able to stand up and go at top speed for shorter distances at tom. Now you have a catch, and swinging the recovery arm can almost any time. I believe that this is the mark of an athlete allow you to hold water and rotate your body past your catch. who is training properly. Very little muscular force is used, and the speed of the relaxed According to Bill Boomer, U.S. Swimming has done tests on recovery arm drives the stroke. Because of the speed of the towing athletes, and they have found that at high speed (faster recovery arm as opposed to the resistance of the water on the than world record pace), the elimination side (recovery) ac- lower side of the stroke, you get the appearance of a catch-up counts for as high as 80% of the speed. in the stroke.

At slower speeds it seems to be down to 70%. My opinion is There is no need to hurry up and spin your wheels as some that this is the side that E.S. comes from, and the greatest thing less-experienced swimmer might try to do. is that it is an easier and much faster way to go. Approximately 1/3 of the stroke cycle time needs to be taken to More Thoughts on Balance get into a good catch position. This position is purely a me- chanical function of shifting the scapula and shoulder up and Balance is so basic that it is impossible to reach your maximum forward. speed without a good degree of it. Balance is the platform from which we work. It should not be muscular. Any instability and you have problems. A relaxed body is always more efficient and effortless. To be balanced in the water is quite a bit different than being The advantage of the inertial positioning movement of the balanced on land. medial rotation instead of vigorous muscular action involves the size and positioning of the muscles involved. Dryland Body Line. This is how a normally postured body looks when broken down into shapes, blocks and then lines. The rotator cuff muscles are small and their main function is to stabilize the humerous in the shoulder. Trying to use these Aquatic Body Line. This is how the body looks re-shaped and muscles for propulsion would be ineffective and would cause realigned to make an aquatic line. shoulder problems.

So slowing down and shifting the scapula and shoulder parts To be able to capture the aquatic body line, you need to be able up and forward on your frame allowing your upper arm to to be aware of the position of your body segments (the head, rotate inward a quarter-turn - and flexing your elbow to near 90 chest/rib cage, hips, thighs, and lower legs and feet). You degrees will set you up with a great catch. also have to be aware of the muscle of your “core” and which muscles can move certain body blocks into and out of balanced Once you have the catch, and only when you have it, you can aquatic alignment. throw and go to amazing new speeds. Back to Basics - Balance, the platform from which all speed emerges. While in Los Ange- les at the 2000 Janet Evans Invitational, my son Richard had the Some basic beginning drills are as follows: opportunity to speak with Attila Czene. 1. Laying face down on a kick board and moving your segments around into an aligned position (The bottom edge of Attila is a very talented swimmer and gold medalist in the 200 the kick board should be at the bend of your hips). individual medley in the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. Richard A. Elongating the neck with the head relaxed. Draw asked him when he began swimming and what his coaches the head up by lifting your lower jawbone up under the ears. taught him as a beginner. Proper head position will have your goggle straps vertical to the surface of the water. Attila began at age I 0, and the first and only thing he was al- lowed to do was to learn to balance on five points: B. Eliminating the sway of the lower back by draw- ing the muscles of your crotch up toward your navel. If you Head, flex your abdominal muscles too much, you will force your feet Right Shoulder, down. Once you have become perfectly balanced, you will have Left Shoulder, eliminated the sway in the small of your back, your feet and Right Hip, and legs will be on the surface as well as the back of your head, Left Hip). arms shoulders and hands. Once he could balance perfectly on all five points - front, back and sides - then he was allowed to breathe in each of these The easiest way to begin is in an “X” position (arms and legs positions, without losing his balance. separated for balance). Then move slowly to a “Y” position by closing your legs. Then, finally into an “I” position with both Once he had perfected these skills, they let him begin to move arms and legs together in a streamlined position. Once you through the water while maintaining perfect balance. A little get comfortable, then you can begin changing your position and different than the “learn to swim” classes I have seen. The ma- keeping your balance. jor problem we have is that we begin swimming with all of our imbalances and our tremendous need for air. The progression goes 1) Stomach, 2) Back, and 3) Sides. Then We build our strokes around our breath while supporting all of add more boards under you in each position. Finally, have our stroke problems with our hands and feet. We are lucky to someone shake the boards gently while you keep your balance. have anything left for forward propulsion once we are finished Once you have this, then add breathing in each of these posi- counterbalancing all of our problems. Good luck on finding any tions. Last, add swimming movement while maintaining this speed, much less “Easy Speed.” balance.

You will find some sketches done by Milt Nelms, a coach with US Swimming, which depict each of these positions. It was almost like cracking a jackpot at the casino!

If you feel like getting in a pool, find a kick board and try some Now this professor/coach writes with the crispness of idealism of this stuff. It will do you a lot more good than swimming laps. and his works are sensibly easy to read and to understand.

*In the near future, USA Swimming will be releasing some new So it is not difficult to imagine he enjoys much popularity with video tapes on working with the “Boomer Boards. his readers.

However, humility and modesty are not his finer traits and his utterings do come across with a certain arrogance that This is TILTING AT THE WINDMILLS OF SCIENCE The Word and is to be accepted as the Final Truth.

By Late Bernie Wakefield Even his references of validity are his own creations. Now that’s what I call displaying a super ego! Wading through the labyrinth of data on the so-called “Informa- tion Highway” can often be a daunting and frustrating proce- He has been known, in the past, in various journals, to assassi- dure. nate mercilessly, in the literary sense, others of his profession.

Daunting not only because of the staggering amount of material His condemnation of certain faux pas attributed to his col- available but also the many fascinating avenues to explore. leagues, who were generally accepted by the common herd (us) as reasonably accurate if not quite precise, does not lie easy Frustrating because of the time consumed wading through the with other coaches and scientists. So perhaps he can withstand jungle of garbage to get to the jewels of wisdom within. I have a little criticism of his own integrity. to admit being an obsessive seeker of knowledge and in surf- ing through cyberspace often find myself being confronted by Sitting down and reading at leisure and with some pleasure, all scientific hocus pocus that may as well be in Arabic text. these State of the Art bulletins he had created, I was engrossed So that leads to further confusion in my struggle to compre- at the concise way they were constructed in simple terms of hend it all. comprehension.

Not only because of the paucity of my education in the physical I became ecstatic. sense, but the requirements of protocol that these apparently superior scientific journals demand. This was not the usual disciplined script of the scientific jour- nals. Wonderful! At last somebody with a literary talent who can Perhaps they are disciplined in formality to keep out individuals explain physics without sounding like a professor of philosophic like me who would dearly love to fathom the jargon of etiquette, absurdity! In the midst of all this exhilaration, I was jolted up- but find most of it too boring to unscramble and in disgust, right by his next statement and my mouth fell open in shock. click it out of sight. If only they were allowed to spark up their findings it with a little humour or write in terms that us lesser In one series of Training Schemes for Junior Swimmers, he was mortals could assimilate without cynicism or resentment. describing how to take a bunch of kids in obviously an equal standard of swimming and, in a perfect simulation of training, English expression is easily the best language in the world to process them carefully through a series of exercises and skills communicate with; why make it so difficult? Maybe there is to an ascending level. Over a period of time. And, when all of a hidden agenda! Anyway, here I am again on my tatty little those perfect kids had reached a perfect standard, THEY WERE soapbox trying to cure the ills of the swimming world with the READY TO SWIM FAST AND TRAIN HARD – BUT – NOT BEFORE! only tools I have at my disposal, experience and a certain way with words. I fell about laughing so much I toppled off the sofa and my mis- sus said … “Don ‘t be ridiculous and get off the floor, nothing So there I was recently, fumbling my way on my surfboard of a could be that funny”. But it was! Now, let’s get back to the real computer, falling off occasionally but grimly pursuing a certain world. target of information when unexpectedly I surfed right in on a virtual treasure trove. The pool deck as we know it. Lets take the same squad, maybe 16 kids in two lanes who are there for this type of training. This particular website, containing all these delicacies of science-fact, was published by a certain well-known coach who Perhaps a junior or intermediate development squad. We have is based in the United States. Kilobytes of lovely information arranged them into what is close as possible to a uniform poured through my machine and onto my overworked printer standard. Of that 16 detailed for instruction, three are not pres- for future digestion. ently available because of sickness or injury or doing detention at school.

At least six have some sort of attention deficit and never hear Here is this gentleman, pompously declaring that no kid should anything from the coach except … “Lesson is now finished”. be allowed to go fast in racing or training unless he can swim They just watch what the kid ahead of them does and copy that. perfect technique. Well you certainly can swim any distance over 25m with perfect technique if you train with nothing else Two more have leg injuries from playing footy and can’t do but perfect technique – slowly. anything but Freestyle – but no kicking! And then what happens after all this absorption of perfection One stuck his finger in the chain of his Bicycle and can only do skill? The illustrious scientist/coach is now loftily declaring … kick! Two more just wandered in ten minutes late and well into “You are now ready to go fast”. the session. One forgot his goggles and has to go and borrow a pair. One has never been taught Butterfly because he only Over how far? 25m? Maybe 50? That’s about it folks. started training last week when mum saw him win the class championship Freestyle over 25m at school and thought he may Another metre of quick work and the holes begin to appear be a future Olympian. – rapidly. No speed endurance. But boy! ... can they swim a superb lap or two of slow Freestyle or Breaststroke. Forget Some are overweight, most have posture problems, several are Butterfly, that’s a joke. lacking suppleness and/or fitness but probably there could be one or two among the lot of them who could make a reasonable Imagine saying to a group of kids at a lesson on Basketball … standard of competitive swimmer “Now we are all going to practice throwing three pointers like Magic Johnson. Like so. But I am not going to let anybody play a Doesn’t look too much like a perfect squad does it? game until they can throw ten out of ten in the hoop”. But it does look about average for what you have to teach. Or, liken the routine to a Wally Lewis throwing a 20m cutout And teach you will because this is your bread and butter and torpedo pass to his winger, or a Maradonna slamming in a the whole business of swimming is highly competitive in more match winning goal (without the hand of God) or a Pistol Pete ways than one. You can’t discard any of them because they Sampras whacking a passing volley or a Cathy Freeman run- don’t come up to the expectation of certain scientists. ning a blistering 400m sprint – all in slow motion of course!

You have to eat as well as pay the bills! So, where do we start? Okay, just for fun let’s take a hypothetical case of the same bunch of kids training for a team of any ball-playing sport. At the beginning? Okay, perhaps we spend a month teaching them the skills of technique as urged by this learned paper. All, Sound technique or ball control is always given preference to as superbly described, at a slow and steady pace which, as you any other aspect – or should be. But are those skills learned at can well imagine, is giving them a fine stroke, albeit at a deadly half pace? Or is the ball thrown, kicked, passed, bowled or hit slow speed, absolutely no endurance and subsequently, a huge at a speed LESS than what is done on the actual field of play? drop off in speed over anything past 50m. I do not think so. No matter, the best is yet to come. Or will it? Good coaches will always practise at the speed that will be Within that month I would bet a generous sum that you will get expected on the field or court or pitch. Only when there is a a parent, utterly devoid of comprehending the problem with a certain skill do they slow it down. mechanics of what this type of training is all about, on the blower asking why Timmy is being beaten by his classmate Remember that tired old expression … “Practise makes Perfect Billy who is swimming in a most inexpensive school club squad – only if you practise Perfectly”? Add another adjunct – “At full doing 2 x one hour sessions weekly. And who, a month ago, speed”! By all means correct the fault at a basic speed – if was swimming 5 seconds slower than his son was! Logical! Try the timing can be retained, but then return to play speed (or explaining that one and retaining credibility! training speed) as soon as possible. Preset the patterns of movement and then practise towards perfection – at the correct As we are all aware, Parents want stroke correction. speed. Other sports have it right, why do we persist in doing it otherwise simply because we obtained results that way 50 But they also want speed and if you don’t give their children years ago? that speed then their next season will be spent with young Jonesy down the road who is in his first year of coaching with a program that consists of miles of slog work and little else, Do tennis players practise serving into the net? but – he is getting great early results. So what comes first? The Do sprint runners like Carl Lewis practise running slow chicken or the egg? 5000m? Do Mountain men in the Tour De France practise ped- alling on the flats? Do divers practise belly flops? Do we train greyhounds to race like dachshunds? Or vice-versa? Maybe they are not the best of analogies … but you get the idea. Perhaps it was doing a stroke that was tailored to suit a par- ticular structure or a training regime that was different to the The same principle is involved with other aspects of play and norm but fitted the bill for that swimmer perfectly. So we all games and races. Of which Fitness, Endurance and Power are eagerly jumped on the bandwagon and copied that – sometimes all major factors – but only to the level that is required for that with good results but not always, because other variables in- particular race, game, set or match. terfered with the process of learning. The point is, be innovative and don’t be afraid to stray from the printed word. This is where we sometimes lose our way – going overboard with overtraining to a standard above what is necessary for that Have you ever tried to wade through those scientific journals? type of sport. Coaches are especially vulnerable in this area when good results appear to accumulate after repeated hard How many have you discarded because you asked a logical work but, like all good things, they soon come to a crunching question like, “Why have they gone to so much trouble and stop. obvious expense to research this particular aspect of swim- ming when all they have to do is ask an experienced coach if it The level of fitness should be finely attuned to the rationale of was viable?” The waste of all that intelligence and resources is participation. So, how about chucking in a bit of fast work now breathtaking. and then? Maybe more. This same scientist, architect of all those lovely bulletins, Now they grow stronger, go faster and because they are not slammed a number of swim ergonomic aids that coaches have swimming long distance, they do not fracture their stroke and used for as long as there has been competitive swimming. hold it very nicely, thank you. And what a perfect way of cor- Paddles and similar devices for instance, came in for a severe recting stroke – over a short distance so they are still fresh bucketing. and never too tired to accept information in a fogged up mind desperate for a little oxygen. Thus the neuromuscular patterns Certainly there has been some ridiculous objects on the market are set in place – permanently – at the speed you are ultimately that the inventors claimed instant miracles with but on the seeking – not at plod pace. issue of paddles I really see very few problems if used with a grain or two of commonsense. My experience has been that And so it goes on. they may or may not build power into the stroke, this is still a debateable issue but for correction of certain stroke faults they A certain amount of slow technique work to teach the computer are invaluable. of a brain to accept the flow of perception so it can then send out the correct responses to the muscles required. And then, Drills came under his Messiah-like prediction of calamity for stepping up the effort with a certain amount of short distance those who dabble in such tools of dread. I have to admit to speed work to set timing patterns for the technique required for some reservations on certain stroke drills as not only being that event. Does that make sense? Finally, apply all the training useless but capable of destroying strokes to the point where the demands – distance or sprint – to all those energy systems drill became the dominant factor! However, carefully selected over a relative period of training so that the technique of stroke drills are essential tools in any coach’s armoury. We would find remains intact throughout the race. life on the pool deck pretty difficult without them.

Now, because they are not restricted by irrational rules, they Probably the Sweetenham-Goldsmith model of linked drills, are fast approaching a situation when they can stretch out a lit- although not a new concept, is the best way to go. Here is a tle further and swim a little faster- holding good technique with great example of enthusiastic science and astute coaching go- some ease. ing hand in hand to produce something of real value. It’s good reasoning to correlate one drill to another in a sequence that It is all so simple. finally ends with a full stroke correctly done.

Why are these scientists instructing our teachers to bore our Sequential perception is an accepted tool of teaching anywhere kids out of their brains when they can be learning by a faster in the world of learning and in this respect swim training is no and far more entertaining concept? All they are displaying is different. His revelation that tether swimming is one of the best a complete lack of experience of what actually goes on at pool methods of instilling power into the stroke has been known deck. All those noble thoughts and words rolling around their for at least 60 years – and proven by random results over that intelligent but illogical heads but what comes out is mostly same period. nonsense. What truly amazes me that we have progressed as far as we have despite all those fanciful ideas! I wrote about my experience with this form of training 30 years ago – and it was old hat then. Still the scientists squabble over I should not show amazement. It is a fact that every World this exercise of training and predict stroke vandalism if used beater had a coach that used some nous with his swimmer. frequently. Struth!

Weight training was also given a working over for its inefficien- But getting published in a prestige medical journal may! cy towards specific stroking and in this aspect I agree with his Like all coaches who, from time to time, put their thoughts and remarks. I use weights as a form of training but I expect little experiences to paper, we take the chance that somebody in an from them except a general strengthening of the whole body. Ivory Tower is going to take a big swipe at us.

My experience in this activity indicates that it is the precursor Once I had a prominent coach/scientist photocopy many of my for the introduction of power into stroking and kicking by other published papers, write his observations in the margins just as methods of induction. Paddles, Tether, HVO sprinting and vari- a schoolmaster would and return them to me with an accompa- ous towing apparatus for example. nying letter on my lack of knowledge and general failings to un- derstand science. I have no doubt he thought he was doing the The need is there to be adequately strong enough to carry out right thing and maybe he was correct in much of his critique. tasks with these implements. Surely that must be straight forward thinking? I appreciated his efforts to re-educate me but he missed com- pletely the whole point of the exercise. All I was doing, and still Quite possibly, simple body exercises, isometric or isotonic or do, is to give my opinions – right or wrong. just plain dynamic, can produce the comprehensive strength- ening requirements that you seek without the accompanying I never state these notions are fact – only that my experience problems of muscle trauma that is usually associated with has been such and such and I will continue to do that until heavy weight training. So there is another way to go if you sus- proven wrong. It is the learning process that is priceless. Expe- pect the results of weight work. Talking about conclusive proof, rience and learning from your successes – and your mistakes. this is what the controversy is all about. And if anyone can tell me that science is infallible then I can write you a book on their fictions, fallacies, foibles and faults The constant rejection by science unless it is “proven” by over the years – and even recently. Another respected scientist research. Many times these so-called expert researchers use filled a page or two in a scientific magazine on the faulty hand groups of swimmers with little or no background of swim train- entry of when swimming his world breaking ing behind them 800 and 1500 record and surmised how much faster he would go if the fault was fixed. “A reasonably fit group of students” goes the blurb in the jour- nals. Turn it up! Don’t they think the coach knows about it?

To the swim coach, it represents a hopelessly unfit bunch of And would fix it if it were possible? Many of these alleged faults people who probably can’t swim more than 50m without pause are nothing more than natural movements that are caused by for refreshments. another structural fault, which causes that particular move- ment to be purely compensatory. Once I had a National team “Donuts and coffee anyone?” scientist tell my swimmer she was totally unfit after a relative failure to get through an International heat. Even when top swim groups are used as guinea pigs, it is brain blastingly comical to see the minimal amount of information Notwithstanding that she may have been unwell or any other assembled in some of the final conclusions. I suppose over the factor, he sent her confidence plunging to its lowest ebb and years I have allowed a dozen or more Uni Students, Graduates I spent several hours getting her back to normal. Two weeks and Professors to carry out research on my squad on the many later, on maintenance work only, she smashed the Common- factors of swim problems related to training. Items like, illness wealth record for the same event. What a ninny! But a dan- at taper times, overtraining syndrome, psychological tests, pa- gerous one then it comes to making outrageous statements rameters of muscle stretching in and out of the water and heart without a shred of proof or knowledge of previous training. rate monitoring and testing. Does this look like a diatribe on the scientists that we stand I allowed it because I was interested in the outcome -good or alongside in our quest for glory in swimming? It was not meant bad. Few have had the thoughtfulness to pass on their findings to be so even if it looks like it. to me without being reminded. In the final wash up their results amounted to a pittance of enlightenment. Yet when we of the I have many friends (maybe not so many if this gets published) coaching fraternity put pen to paper and write about things that who wear their mantle of science bravely and confidently but have actually occurred in training with swimmers who have sometimes need a kick in the bum; not so much for their pat- achieved high levels, and the good or bad effects of same, do ronising attitude or pretentious posturing but to get them back they listen? I think not. on this earth and listening to people at the hub so they may be able to solve some of the real problems that beset us from time All they do is criticise an immaterial or irrelevant part of strok- to time. ing or training of your swimmer or squad. Results, in their books, do not appear to be a substantive rationale. By now, it is blatantly obvious that my target for today is the CLUBS & COACHES Researcher. CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT Not the earnest Physiologist, or associated professions who OR FOR SERVICES actually work “hands on”. By Ted Tullberg, Level 3 ACC Swim Coach We cannot do without them and their enthusiasm. Having received many telephone calls from Coaches and Clubs It is the people who reside in high places and produce papers regarding separate employment responsibilities, as to Taxa- of surreal dimensions without displaying any real positive evi- tion, Superannuation and WorkCare, it appears that some dence of proof who stick the thorns of aggravation in my side. Coaches and Clubs seem to confuse a Contract of Service with a Contract of Employment and are ignorant of their respective These are usually the same ones who decry the efforts of the responsibilities. pluggers of this world who are willing to ‘have a go’ in the de- velopment of champions using techniques of their own making. In an attempt to clear up this confusion and to ensure both par- ties are clear of their employment and legal responsibilities, I These uncrowned toilers and shapers of swimmers are the have prepared the following paper. ones who can stand with pride, humbly admiring their efforts of creating, from learn to swim, a National Champion and can say The Contract of Employment to themselves “I sculpted that” where we sometimes lose our way. The Contract of Employment can be oral or in writing.

Going overboard with overtraining above what is necessary for Its terms may be expressed or implied from the actions of the that type of sport. parties or may be drawn from the common law, State or federal legislation, industrial awards, enterprise bargains and relevant Scientists are just as vulnerable as coaches in this respect. industrial or managerial or workplace customs and practice.

So how about chucking in a bit of fast work now and then? The contract of employment is an individual arrangement.

Maybe more. Now they grow stronger, go faster and because The Contract for Services they are not going very far, they do not break up their stroke and hold it very nicely, thank you. These are made with independent contractors and exist be- cause of the following reasons: And what a perfect way of correcting stroke – over a short dis- tance; not too tired or exhausted to take in information and the neuromuscular patterns are being set in place – permanently The avoidance of both the hirer and the contractor of the provi- at the speed you want -not at plod pace. sions of industrial awards and tribunals; And so it goes on. Flexibility in terms of engagement; A certain amount of slow technique work to teach the com- The special skills of the contractor; puter of a brain to understand so it can send out the correct The potential for cost savings through greater competition responses to the muscles required, a certain amount of speed between contractors; work – also for technique and to train those energy systems to The effects of regular recessions in the Australian economy. race – with speed and endurance. Common Law courts usually use the following indicator to de- Does this look like a diatribe on the scientists that we stand cide whether the relationship is one of employer and employee alongside in our quest for glory in swimming? or one of principal and independent contractor. The ownership of tools and equipment. The provisions and maintenance of a It was not meant to be so even if it looks like it. vehicle and other tools and equipment by the worker is often an indication of an independent contractor.

The mode of remuneration. If remuneration is based on time, the worker will generally be seen as indicating an employer/ employee relationship whilst payment in the form of a lump sum on the basis of work undertaken may well be evidence of an independent contractor. Determination of the hours worked and provision of holidays. Fixed working hours are often an indication of an employment contract. Delegation of work responsibilities. The right to delegate work (a) Under a contract that is wholly or principally for the responsibilities is often a significant feature of an independ- labour of the person to whom the payments are made, where: ent contractor. Control of the obligation to work and power of i. The person making the payments under the contract dismissal. Power of an employer to restrict the worker to one is not a natural person; or income is generally an indication of an employer/employee re- ii. The payments under the contract are not wholly or lationship. Similarly, “an employer can have no more practical principally of a private or domestic nature. control over an employee than the right to effect the employee’s dismissal.” Further interpretation of “Salary and wages” is found in 221A(2)

Deduction of income tax by the employer on behalf of the 221A(2) [Interpretation of terms used in definition of “salary or worker would tend to suggest the existence of an employer/ wages”] For the purposes of the definition of “salary or wages” employee relationship. in subsection (1):

Other relevant factors include: (b) a payment made to a person under contract that is wholly or principally for the labour of any person shall be taken Whether worker’s compensation premiums were paid by the to be a payment made under contract that is wholly or princi- employer in respect of the worker. pally for labour of the person to whom the payment is made if:

Whether the worker contracted with the employer under a Note: The normal interpretation of the Taxation Office is that if business name or his own account. a contract is more than 50% labour, it is a contract for employ- The ratio of expenditure income – i.e. if the worker has a high ment. ratio of expenditure to income, it is indicative of an independent contractor situation. (c) A reference to a contract that is wholly or principally The length of contract. A long-term contract, particularly where for the labour of a person shall be read as including a reference the worker performs work for no other party is often an indica- to a contract that is wholly or principally: tion of an employer/employee relationship. For the performance or presentation by a person of, or the participation by a person in, any music, play, dance, entertain- The main area of legislation which the coach and club should ment, address, sport, display, promotional activity, exhibition, be concerned with are: or any activity (being a similar activity that involves the exercise by the person of intellectual, artistic, musical, physical or other The Taxation Act personal skills) or for the performance of any services in con- The Superannuation Guarantee Scheme and nection with any such activity; or These apply to all states and territories. A payment made by a natural person shall, without limiting the The Taxation Act generality of the definition, be taken not to be of a private or The Taxation Act provides further definition of an employee and domestic nature if it is made by the person in his capacity as what constitutes salary or wages. trustee of a trust estate or as a member of a religious, charita- ble, social, cultural, recreational or other organisation or body; The Tax Act 221A(1) describes an and

“Employee” as; “A person who receives, or is entitled to receive (e) No part of an eligible termination payment shall be salary or wages.” taken to be exempt income. “Employer” as; meaning “a person who pays or is liable to pay salary or wages, and includes: Pay-As-You-Earn Taxation

Employees are required to pay tax on their salary or wage In the case of an unincorporated body of persons other than a income progressively as they earn it. It is paid through tax partnership the manager or other principal officer of that body; instalment deductions made by employers under the pay-as- and you-earn (PAYEE) system. Every employer is generally required to withhold tax instalment deductions at prescribed rates from In the case of partnership each partner; and each payment of salary or wages made to an employee. An A government body: employee is a person who is entitles to receive salary or wages. The term “salary or wages” covers: And “Salary or Wages” as meaning “salary, wages, commis- sion, bonuses or allowances paid (whether at piece-work rates (a) Payments of salary or wages to an employee as such; or otherwise) to an eligible person as such, and without limiting (b) Payments made wholly or principally for the labour of the generality of the foregoing, includes any payments that are the payee. assessable retirement amounts for the purpose of this defini- tion, eligible termination payments and any payments made Payments to Employees as such Superannuation Guarantee Scheme

For a payment to be made to an employee as such – as distinct The Superannuation Guarantee (SG) scheme requires all from an independent contractor – there must be a master- employers to provide a prescribed minimum level of superan- servant relationship between the payer and payee. nuation support for each of their employees. Employers who fail to provide the prescribed minimum level of support are The relationship of master and servant exists where one person liable to an SG charge, which is not tax deductible, equivalent to contracts to perform work for another and is substantially sub- the amount of the shortfall plus an interest component and an ject to the control and direction of that person in the manner in administrative charge. which the work is done. Meaning of Employer and Employee On the other hand, an independent contractor undertakes to perform certain work but is not, in the execution of the work, The SG scheme applies to all employers in respect of their subject to the order and control of the person for whom the full-time, part-time and casual employees, with only limited contractor performs the work. exceptions. The terms “employer” and “employee” have their ordinary common law meanings. Payments Made for Labour of Payee Employers and Employees – statutory meaning A payment will fall within this description where the recipient actually performs the whole or principal part of the labour. In general terms, an employee is a person who receives pay- ment in the form of salary or wages in return for work or A contract is generally regarded as being principally for labour services rendered, or payment for work under a contract that where the labour content exceeds 50% of the value of the is wholly or principally for the person’s labour, and the person contract. liable to make the payment is the employer.

The concept of “labour” specifically extends to sport and to the Under its extended meaning in SGAA, a person is an “employ- performance of any services in connection with such activity. ee” or “employer” in the following circumstances:

Employment Declarations A person who works under contract that is wholly or principally Employees who wish to claim the general exemption from tax for the labour of the person is an employee of the other party to on the first slice of taxable income or who wish to have any the contract entitlements to dependent or other rebates reflected in tax in- A person who receives payment to perform or present sport or stalments deducted from their earnings must lodge an Employ- who receives payment to provide services in connection with ment Declaration with their employer. these activities, is an employee of the person liable to make the payment. An Employment Declaration makes provision for an employee to quote his or her Tax File Number (TFN). Where an employee SUMMARY fails to quote the TFN, the employer is required by law to deduct tax instalments at the top personal marginal rate of tax I trust this short paper will assist Clubs and Coaches to make plus Medicare levy. logical decisions on these employment questions and most importantly, ensure they meet their legal obligations. Obligations on Employers This paper is an outline of obligations and responsibilities of Every employer of one or more employees must register as a clubs when employing coaches and/or teachers and should not group employer. Registration as a group employer applies to be used as an authoritative document on employer obligations corporate and non-corporate employers alike. to coaches.

On registration the employer will receive a group number and It is in the best interest of each club to either obtain profes- must quote this on all correspondence, etc., with the ATO relat- sional guidance or seek direction from the Australian Taxation ing to group matters. Office, and the Insurance and Superannuation Commission, as to their respective obligations in respect of employment of An employer must generally remit to the Commissioner, by coaches. the seventh day of each month, the equivalent of the total tax instalment deductions withheld from the salary or wages of employees during the preceding calendar month. JUST HOW TOUGH ARE YOU?? The marvellous distance running of the incomparable Emile Zatopec and the blonde Russian, Vladimir Kuuts who won By The Late Bernie Wakefield the golden double in the 5,000 and 10,000 at the Olympics. I still feel that same kind of thrill when I see old films Summarised by Michael Ursu of our own speedsters in , Marlene Matthews, Shirley Strickland and on the track. “Comparisons are odious,” said a very enlightened Will Shake- speare, the incomparable champion of the English Language. In the pool, the inimitable Dawn Fraser’s triumphs in her 25 World records and three Olympic gold medals for the same Perhaps Stratford Bill meant that comparisons can be most event. The Konrad kids who swam with fire and pure strength offensive if the reference is to objective events or real persons, … the smoothness and tactical brilliance of … and clearly because of the very complexity of life itself. But to use later, the effervescent Holland who showed the World a new contrasts as a sounding board to describe how conversely way of swimming fast over a distance. people may act, when they are attempting something stressful, is not such a bad exercise. I could go on and on.

Especially if we can point to certain traits in various sporting It would be unfair not to mention the grace, power and techni- events that those champions must possess. People come in all cally faultless who dominated the Munich Olympics. shapes and sizes. The breathtaking Perkins in , winning the 400 Freestyle at the World Titles like it was a sprint event. The fast revving Some are drawn to a sport because Mum or Dad find it conveni- arms of Michael Wenden in his double sprint victories in Mexico ent – or big brother and sister play it – or for any one of a hun- City for Olympic gold. The elegance and sublime power of Tracy dred reasons. Almost none are officially identified as talented Caulkins in Los Angeles. in a certain direction and pointed towards the sport that suits their structure or inclination. Robbed of gold in Moscow because of the US ban, she made up for the sadness with a bucket full of gold and records to match. These days, in , there are certain States who are doing And lastly, the impossible technique of a skinny kid called Janet just that – identifying dexterous young people and the sports Evans, setting a record for the 400 Freestyle in Seoul that has best suited to that particular proclivity. There are few things stood for six years. Even taking into account the differences in more painful than to see young persons deeply involved in a training standards from era to era, the old-timers still did it sport, which obviously does not suit their structure – when they tough and found the way to the top just as difficult as today’s could be enjoying more success in a sport that does befit them. champions. No winter training in heated indoor pools for them.

In swimming, and in other similar types of competitive sports, No body-hugging costumes – or even the comfort of goggles. contestants require essential attributes to take them to the top and it is not intended to bore the reader with details of strength Often they swam and trained in the murky waters of lakes, and endurance and all the other factors, ad nauseam. ocean rock-ponds and unchlorinated pools. No heart rate monitors and sports drinks or Nutritionists to monitor their The one desperately absolute priority is TOUGHNESS. diet – or weight trainers, physiologists, or even psychologists to help them get their act together. These people – and a thou- And I don’t think you will find any argument there. Toughness sand more like them – swam tough. comes in two distinct packages … mentally tough … and physi- cally tough. Both can be trainable features of a swimmer’s They had to. agenda. Training hard and long provides many of those aspects of toughness that is the prerequisite and allows the swimmer to Evans faced the might and chemical power of an East Germany race tough. Many don’t and can’t ... either racing or training. in Seoul and gleefully swam away from them. Our own Julie Over a fairly lengthy lifetime I have spent many hours training McDonald shut out the German girls in the 800 at the same and playing sport and watching and analysing a hundred others. venue, with a devastating display of raw courage to grab the bronze. Comparing each sport against each other for sheer What was once a hobby became a profession and then an toughness is not a good idea in sports that are no way related, obsession. Studying the sport, and the people who played it, but it is possible to compare the difference between swimmers became a full-time job. I opted to become a swimming coach and land-based sports persons. because that was the way the cookie crumbled but it didn’t stop me from studying and enjoying other sporting endeavours and Many are impossible to contrast – like Golf and Bike racing. their participants. From a young age, I witnessed feats in the name of sport that thrilled me beyond what any drug could do. Golf requires nerves of steel, great skill – but not a hell of a lot of fitness.

Bike racing demands skill, strength – and a kind of toughness Are Swimmers Pampered Too Much These Days? that only cyclists can recognise. I recall once seeing a State road race in 1946, conducted over the then Olympic distance of I often wonder if swimmers are pampered too much these days 125 miles. Not that the distance alone should be regarded as and perhaps not prepared to tough it out when that moment of gut-retching endurance. crisis arrives.

The Tour de France, and others of that ilk, makes such a race I believe coaches like Laurie Lawrence had it right when he look like a Teddy Bears Picnic. But for me, a novice cyclist, it harried his swimmers into doing huge sets and often at times was a revelation in pure grit and determination. when they were not expected.

A few miles from the bunched start, one of the favourites, a lo- It was not unusual for Laurie to drag his swimmers out of bed cal lad named Rex Woodruffe, fell badly when his pedal clipped late at night in a swim camp after a gruelling day’s work and an outcrop of rock on a narrow bend after he was boxed in to run them on the beach and sand hills for another hour. the inside running. The event was run over 15 x 8 mile laps and a 5-mile lap to finish it off. In this way, he emulated the deeds of one Percy Cerutty, an- other charismatic coach who worked marvels with his athletes When he passed the start for the first time, he had 117 miles on the sand hills of Portsea. to go. His body had been shredded by the fall when he skidded down the gravel edge of the road. His shirt and shorts were Maybe they did not have it exactly right – for all their cham- ragged and blood soaked. pions, they too had failures – but they showed the World their way was the correct way for those who were prepared to put One pedal was bent from the contact with the ground, which everything on the line for their sport. made pedalling difficult and painful. There was never a thought in his mind of surrender and, despite his obvious agony and the It wasn’t so much what the actual training effect would be, but impossibility of making up lost ground, continued to chase the the toughening up consequence it would have on their minds … leaders who lengthened the distance away from him on every “Never surrender”. lap. I remember a swimmer at the Auckland His face grimacing in pain, he plugged on until the end of the who had won the 200m Freestyle from an outside lane. race, passing other stragglers but never the leaders. When he finished in a state of pure exhaustion, the blood had dried on His name was Marty Roberts. him and one arm hung by his side, grotesquely swollen from a broken wrist. On arrival at hospital, he was found to have suf- He was being interviewed after the event and was asked to fered a broken collarbone and several busted ribs in the fall. explain how this remarkable win came about.

I never forgot that performance – or the agony that man suf- His reply stuck in my mind forever. fered in the name of sport. He knew he never had a chance of winning … so what made him go on and punish his body so se- “I was an average trainer for years, doing only what I thought verely? Some would say, stupidity – but I would call it courage was enough for me and constantly querying the program. in the highest possible category … “to thine own self be true. I was going nowhere, so one day I decided to make a commit- ” By completing such a task he made himself so mentally and ment to myself and coach. Everything he told me to do from physically tough that nothing he would encounter in future life that moment on, I did without conscious thought. would unbalance him. He knew what he could do at the lowest ebb in the tide of adversity. ” He went on … “If he said jump, I simply asked, How high coach? It was difficult for me because I had always questioned For me, that was the essence of toughness and though I have the workload, now I just shut up and did the work – and it paid heard of other sportsmen striving to beat the world in their off. ” Comparing a top swimmer’s life with that of a professional brand of sport when everything that could go wrong, did go tennis player, comes up with some interesting comments which wrong; nothing I have seen in swimming has come near that may turn out to be positive. experience. Probably because officialdom would not allow a swimmer to compete in that condition anyway. The usual scenario for swimmers of past eras was to train for one season during the summer months and then compete in a But I wrote about it if only to highlight the extreme toughness number of lead-up meets, finally tapering for one big one. that is within all of us – given that correct moment in time when we will give everything – even our life – for a cause. There are more “big” ones around these days and, as a result, swimmers train the year-round only taking a week off here and there and maybe a longer regeneration after a really big one like the . The workload on today’s swimmers – as far as competition The question for them is an aspect that could be addressed by goes – is much heavier than yesterday’s stars contended with swimmers, coaches and administrators of the sport. and is now approaching the same situation that confronts pro- fessional tennis players. Sprinters. That band of people, who are constantly branded sooks for their much lesser input of work, albeit much more Still, I believe there is quite a gap between the two. painful because of their neuro-muscular make-up, could cer- tainly adopt a policy of upgrading their competition calendar. Tennis players have a solid season, competing on a weekly basis from Continent to Continent, ignoring such trivialities that That great sprinter of modern times, Alex Popov, was showing concern swimmers like jet lag and tapering. us the way in that regard and competes at regular intervals all over the World, without seeming to lose condition or speed. They need to say in top shape the year round … their very living, their ability to maintain match form … demands it – so they Not long ago in Australian swimming there was a definite policy train when and where they can – no matter what the weather. within selection circles that because our sprinters, male and female, were not up to scratch with the rest of the world. It Track athletes also have a similar season. was of little value sending away sprint swimmers to compete overseas – a waste of money! They, too, compete on a weekly basis at top meets where they are meeting the best of the World and therefore need to stay in A change in that thinking, just a few years ago, saw our poorly- top condition. rated sprinters racing the best in the world and now, as a result of that enlightened strategy, we can truly say there is depth – if No breaks for them either. not yet right at the top of world domination.

Cyclists have an identical yearly program. Road cyclists, in particular, follow the huge endurance events in Europe where it attracts enormous crowds and subsequent- ly, huge payouts to successful competitors.

Australian Cycling coach, Charlie Walsh, is spoken of in the same breath as Attila the Hun and Genghis Khan so I can well believe that the Institute cycles would be on programs designed for stoics and masochists!

So, in comparison to tennis players, athletes and cyclists – are our swimmers sooks?

Do we need to toughen up their outlook on training and compe- tition?

In past years, many of our swimmers were children and could not be expected to do the work and racing commitments de- manded of them today, but these days more and more swim- mers are opting to continue well into their twenties – no doubt because of the financial attraction and the possibility of getting ‘set up’ for the rest of their lives.

Then we have to consider the requirements of swimmers such as Open Water swimmers and the huge distances they com- pete.

The distance pool swimmers from 400 up to 1500 who are now working and racing at speeds that were once considered com- mon only for sprints.

These people certainly know all about work and how to main- tain it.