How I Became a Tri Swim Coach

author : Tri Swim Coach

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Kevin Koskella of www.TriSwimCoach.com gives his introduction on how he became a swim coach.

As I got older, I found that my best and favorite sport was swimming. The Olympic swimmers were my heroes. I focused and dedicated myself to the sport. This meant getting up at 5:30 a.m. many mornings, and countless hours in the pool all year round. I found success in the sprint and middle distance freestyle and backstroke events, ultimately achieving All-American status in college (top eight individual events) and was part of a few record-setting relays at University of California- Davis. 

I experimented with triathlons after college, competing in a few Olympic and Sprint triathlons. I was stunned that I could be so far ahead in the swim, only to be quickly passed by about a zillion bikes within only a few miles of exiting the water!

I started coaching masters swimmers and quickly learned that there is a huge need out there for help with completing a triathlon swim. As triathlons are generally endurance races, the general trend of masters teams — high heart rate training, tight intervals, and not much attention to stroke technique — was something I felt avoided in my coaching. No matter how fast of a swimmer you are, you cannot possibly get far enough ahead to make much of a difference if your bike and run are weak (I proved that in my races!). So I looked for a method that would allow triathletes to train for the swim efficiently, rather than muscling through the swim and having nothing left for the rest of the race.

I found out about Total Immersion when I was surfing the web for “low heart rate swim training.” This methodology- based on earlier techniques brought forth by the great swim coach Bill Boomer in the 1970’s- I found was perfect for triathlon swim training.  In my workouts I began teaching these techniques while giving swimmers enough rest so they get the most out of it.

I then began teaching freestyle swim clinics, mostly (surprise!) to triathletes and aspiring triathletes. I have written several articles on swimming and an e-book called “The Complete Guide to Triathlon Swimming”, which features 2 beginner-level workout plans- 1 for an Olympic Distance race, and 1 for a Half Ironman. You can purchase and download a copy of the e-book today right from my website- www.triswimcoach.com. You can also sign up for my free newsletter there!

I love helping the beginners, and I frequent the beginnertriathlete.com board often to see if I can answer swimming questions. If you have any questions, my email address is [email protected]. I will get back to you as quickly as possible. 

Stay tuned for more in the coming months!
 

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date: August 31, 2004