Is it possible to beat a swimmer who is faster than you?  Yes!  In fact, it happens all the time. Let me explain how this is possible.

Many times I have worked with swimmers who are technically better and faster than another competitor, yet they are consistently beaten by these competitors at meets. Even more frustrating, they quite often put in better training times than their competitors, only to find themselves battling to catch them in the meets.

What these swimmers lack is the mental edge over these swimmers. This mental edge simply creates opportunities which may not otherwise be there for you in that race on that particular day. This mental edge can include many different factors, one of which I will mention one today. Today’s subject has won many races for swimmers who simply weren’t as fast as their competitors, but scored a psychological win. The subject is body language.

Every single moment you are at the pool, without even knowing it, you are unconsciously showing your competitors your level of self-confidence. Simple aspects in your body language often gives away valuable information to other swimmers, and so it is essential to only send out signals which say "I feel great and I’m ready to go!".

Your body language plainly shows your competitors whether you are feeling confident, relaxed and self-assured, or whether you are lacking in confidence and feeling nervous about the race to come.

When you demonstrate confidence to your competitors (whether you actually feel that way or not) it affects them in two ways. Firstly it makes them wonder where you got that sort of confidence from, which often triggers negative thoughts before a race. Secondly, it often forces them to examine themselves and question their own confidence, asking themselves a question such as "Am I as confident as they are?"

As soon as they are thinking these thoughts, they have handed you the mental edge for the future race!

This means that they will assume you will have the edge on them, and their mind programmes their body accordingly for the race. This is a fabulous effect on your competitors when you have not even said a word to them!

The funny part about this is that you may not actually be feeling confident at all, you’ve just made them think that you feel confident! And the payback is that when you begin to act confident, you very soon begin to feel that way anyway.

So what signals do you give out to other swimmers? Are you exuding confidence and relaxation, or stress and nerves?

Here are some things to watch for in your body language when you are at a meet; firstly, always keep your head up, never have it dropped down towards the ground, as this always looks like a person who doesn’t feel confident enough to make eye contact. Secondly, smile and laugh a lot, rather than having a tense look for the world to see. Remember, winners are grinners! Additionally, smiling has also been scientifically shown to relax the body through a variety of relaxing chemicals it releases into your system. Also, walk confidently, as if you are already the champion of the pool. If you do feel nervous, don’t let anyone detect it from your behaviour, act relaxed and in control at all times, as this will not only fool your competitors, but quite possibly improve your own emotional state as well.

Never, ever show feelings of negativity, nervousness or any other ‘vulnerability’ to your competitors, until you are away from their view. Act positively no matter what, and eventually word will get around that absolutely nothing ever seems to bother you!

They may start thinking of you as a machine, who is totally unaffected by setbacks - a bit like the Terminator in the Arnold Schwartzenegger movies, or the ‘Iceman’ in Top Gun. Eventually no-one will ever bother trying to unsettle or intimidate you before races again, in fact they may become quite psyched out by swimming against you. Absolutely no-one wants to swim against a machine!

So be aware of the subconscious signals your body language is giving out to other swimmers, they can be either a huge psychological weapon or a major disadvantage, the choice is yours.
It has often been said, to become a champion, firstly begin acting like one.This saying may be even truer than it sounds. Many champions copied the mannerisms and behaviour of their idols when they were young, and this may well have been their key to their success. Think of a champion you admire, and begin copying their most impressive habits. You may be surprised at the results.

"These 'Mind Training for Swimmers' tips are
written by Craig Townsend from It's Mind over Matter, who
runs mental training programs from Sydney, Australia.  You
can subscribe to his free swim tips at his website
http://www.swimpsychology.com or send an email to
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Each tip is Copyright © Craig
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