If we had to REMEMBER to breathe each day (in order to stay alive), we most probably wouldn't forget, would we?! Yet for a swimmer who wishes to make it to the very top, visualization IS just as important as breathing, and nothing must get in your way from making the time to do it if you are serious about improving.
The key is to schedule time for your visualization in advance. Most swimmers are incredibly busy people, and so their time-management skills are usually very good - but it is highly important not to drop your daily visualization exercise DOWN the priority list! Visualization is as important to success in swimming as breathing is to staying alive, and it should actually be treated that way. So find the best time for you to do the exercise, and try to keep to that routine as much as you can.
For many swimmers it seems that early morning training plus school or work make the visualization difficult to do before the afternoon or evening - so plan a time before or after dinner, or even right before bedtime. It only takes about 10 minutes.
But remember that it's best not to lie down whilst you do the exercise or you will go right off to sleep! This is a mental 'program' which the subconscious mind has been running for a long time, which ensures that as soon as you lie down and close your eyes, you will go to sleep - and it's a very difficult program to override! Sitting up is almost always the best way, and then run the 'perfect race' through your mind several times before you finish and get ready for bed. You may not see results immediately, but they will come.
This is because visualization re-programs the 'floppy disk' inside your mind (the subconscious) which eventually means that you will get a brand new 'print out' (which means your results in the pool). So begin re-programming your mind for success from today!
Most swimmers actually find that visualization is a fabulous way to clear their head after a busy day, and refresh themselves physically and mentally. It is also a fabulous exercise to do at any time you are feeling mentally tired, as it instantly rejuvenates the mind and you emerge afterwards with far more clarity and sometimes even fresh new ideas.
So make visualization a permanent, essential part of your daily routine (just like breathing) - it is one of the most powerful mental training exercises you will ever experience.
The Mind controls the body, and the mind is unlimited. The best of success,
Craig Townsend
