Recovery, what the heck is it? We all know it’s an incredibly important part of any training program. Still, there is a lot of mythology around it, including, but not limited to, the idea of a “recovery” workout.
I get into all of it with Professor Trever Gray. (One note, I reference a post which I unfortunately could not find after recording the podcast. My bad).
Dani Bostick is many things. She’s a teacher, a parent, a former mental health counselor. She was also a victim of sexual abuse at the hands of her swim coach. She’s a passionate voice for reform beyond sports.
We split the podcast into two parts. In the first, we discuss the recently released MAAPP, which Bostick has been sharply critical of. In the back half, we discuss the uncomfortable conversations that are necessary about the culture that enables abusers within an organization.
Last week USA Swimming’s Safe Sport Division released the Minor Athlete Abuse Prevention Policy (MAAPP). The release has been controversial, particularly among coaches who have additional responsibilities as a result of the policy.
I begin by assessing the major planks on their own- do they make sense and are they sound policies for preventing abuse? Then I get into a lot of the context surrounding the policies, with questions and commentary.
The lightning rod of international swimming, Michael Andrew, is going on a ketogenic diet. To discuss this startling development, I brought on keto dieter (and race pace trainer) Shawn Klosterman along with resident nerd Trever Gray to hash it out.
We discussed the synergy between the two, and some of the science behind it (and not behind it):
Nicolas Messer is always a good hang on the Swim Brief. This time he checks in from a brand new geographic location. We talk about how he ended up there and what his new job entails.
We also get into the topic of streamlines, and I put Nico on the spot on whether he has joined the anti-streamline coalition. Enjoy:
Nerd Alert is back with Professor Trever Gray, who’s here to school me on concurrent training. What does that even mean? We get into it on the podcast straight off the top.
If you’re a coach and you’re doing any kind of cross-training this is a must listen.
Today the long awaited and teased podcast with the Managing Director of Sport Development for USA Swimming, Joel Shinofield. We trace Joel’s history in the sport, back to his earliest days teaching and coaching up to the present day.
We get into what motivated some of the twists and turns in his career, before finally pivoting to a conversation of his current role and what he’s trying to accomplish right now. Joel even turns the tables on me at the last minute. Enjoy:
This podcast was recorded last week with somebody I’ve admired in both her athletic and professional career. Samantha Arsenault Livingstone was a 2000 Olympic Gold medalist.
I wanted to have Samantha on because we connected over the fact that she’s pretty brutally honest about the peaks and valleys she had along the way, and dedicated herself to helping others when they encounter the same. We had a far reaching conversation covering almost two decades. Enjoy:
Some links that we discussed during the podcast:
In the wake of the OC Register’s reporting earlier in the week that an FBI Veteran, hired to investigate Sean Hutchison, was very much not allowed to investigate, I called up Sarah Ehekircher.
We go through the article and give context to the names and players involved, and what some of the facts suggest about the broader Olympic sport culture:
This week I’m joined by my friend Glenn Neufeld to discuss last month’s Easterns, and the road to reviving the meet over the last three years.
We also talk about some of the surprising things at the meet that make it a little different from your average swimming competition: