New Season

Aquadawgs!

Welcome to our blog!

This is an exciting time as a coach because summer is here and it is the ideal time to be able to focus more attention on getting fast in the pool while staying cool and getting a tan.

Congrats to all the Aquadawgs who participated in the swim meet on May 16th. I saw lots of fast swimming but still some good room for improvement. The meet results can be found here. Ribbons will be handed out during summer season at practice. If for some reason you are not swimming during the summer contact Deb Rothstein: djrothstein@vosymca.org for a time to come pick up your ribbons.

This last week our Aquadawgs went through their first practices for the season.

• The BEGINNER group worked on lane management, basic swimming rules/terms, and freestyle.
• The INTERMEDIATE group worked on lane management, freestyle technique, backstroke technique and dives.
• The ADVANCED and HIGH SCHOOL groups worked on freestyle and backstroke technique as well as some small aerobic sets to get back into working out.

Here is an article about why drills matter! A good one to read after all the drills we did this last week. 

3 Reasons Why Drills Matter

This week at Marshalls (Ray & 48th St) they had speedo vanquisher goggles for $8. These are my favorite goggles and that is the cheapest I have ever seen them. I stocked up with a few pairs and I thought I would put it out there for anyone who is interested. 

Our first swim meet is this week Saturday June 13th at our Ahwatukee YMCA. You can sign up here. Meet entry forms are due no later than Thursday June 11th. 

T-shirt order forms are also do this week (June 11th). You can print the T-shirt form here. This will be the only T-shirt order this season so don't delay. Nothing shows our team spirit better than matching shirts!

Here is some overall information for the season...

Summer Season Dates: June 3-August 1

Morning: Mon-Thurs (Coaches Alisha & Emily)

• High School: 6:00-7:30 am

• Advanced: 7:30-9:00 am

• Intermediate: 9:00-10:00 am

• Beginner: 10:00-11:00 am

Evening: Tue/Thurs (Coaches Trey & Keeley)

• Beginner: 4:00-5:00 pm

• Intermediate: 5:00-6:00 pm

• Advanced: 6:00-7:30 pm

Where to Meet: Swimmers are to meet the coaches on the pool deck 5-10 min before practice begins.
Locker Rooms: For locker room use swimmers are to use the family locker rooms located on the North end of the pool.

Parents: Parents are asked to not interfere with practice and it is preffered that they are only on the pool deck at the beginning and end of practice to pick up their child. 

Swim Gear: Swimmers in the beginner and intermediate groups are required to have a water bottle, kickboard, fins, goggles, swim cap (girls only), and a black swim suit for meets. Swimmers in the advanced and high school groups are required to have a water bottle, kickboard, fins, pull buoy, goggles,a swim cap (girls only), and a black swim suit for meet . This swim gear is used frequently and very important for all swimmers to have. The best place to buy swim gear is swimoutlet.com/aquadawgsstore. 

Bathroom: Please have your swimmer use the bathroom before practice.

Sunscreen: Please put on sunscreen 10 min before practice. If sunscreen is put on right before jumping in the pool it washes off. 

Swim Meets: quickscores.com/aquadawgs 

• June 13th Ahwatukee YMCA

• June 20th Glendale/Peoria YMCA

• June 27th Ahwatukee YMCA

• July 11th Ahwatukee YMCA

• July 25th APRA Swimmer's Classic

• August 1st Y Champ Meet Southwest Valley YMCA 

Staying Connected:

• Aquadawg Website: information about the swim meets (entry forms and results).  quickscores.com/aquadawgs 

• Aquadawg Blog: weekly updates about whats going on, imformation about swim meets, pictures, and swimming articles. coachalishassplashpad.blogspot.com

• Facebook: facebook.com/ymcaaquadawgs

• Instagram: @ymcaaquadawgs

If you have any questions please let me know!

Coach Alisha

alisha.maxwell@vosymca.org

MEET FORMS DUE TODAY!

Aquadawgs!

Don't forget that meet forms are due today! You can print out the meet form here. Please bring it to practice filled out.

We have been working extremely hard and I am expecting this to be a big meet for improvement, especially for the older groups. Please try your hardest to be at the meet. It is a great time to see progress and have fun! Our last meet was only 1 hour long and I promise to keep this one short as well. Come ready to swim FAST!

Coach Alisha
alisha.maxwell@vosymca.org

NEW SEASON: FAQ's

1. Where do I meet for swim practice?
• Swimmers are to meet me (Coach Alisha) on the pool deck 5-10 min before their practice starts. Parents are welcome to walk their children out and stay with them till practice begins. 
2. Are parents allowed to watch practice?
• Once practice begins parents are asked to please leave the pool deck. I do allow parents on the deck 5 min before practice starts and 5 min before practice ends, so that parents can drop off/ pick up their children. The pool decks get crowded and the lifeguards are responsible for the people in the pool and on the deck. It is also sometimes distracting to swimmers if they can see their parents. If there are special conditions or if you are uncomfortable with this please talk to me. 
3. When are swim meets?
• Our swim meets for this season will be March 28th, April 25th, and May 16th. Mark your calendars! All swim meets will be held at our YMCA.
4. What is the required swim gear and where do I buy it?
• Swimmers in the beginner and intermediate groups are required to have a kickboard, fins, goggles, and swim cap (girls only). Swimmers in the advanced and high school groups are required to have a kickboard, fins, pull buoy, goggles, and a swim cap (girls only). This swim gear is used frequently and very important for all swimmers to have. The best place to buy swim gear is swimoutlet.com. If you do not prefer online, kickboards, googles, and caps are usually fine to buy at a general sporting goods store. But good fins are hard to find in a sporting goods store and if you do find them they are usually overpriced. I would recommend buying these fins here or another pair like these. Those fins are a good price and they work great for practice. Please try to avoid buying the scuba like fins they do not work well for practice. If you have any more questions or concerns about fins please ask me. 
5. What bathrooms/locker rooms should my swimmer use?
• I would recommend that swimmers use the family locker rooms located at the north end of the pool deck. These locker rooms provide private bathrooms with showers and also private changing rooms. Sometimes in the men's/women's locker rooms adults are less conservative about dressing and undressing and this makes some children uncomfortable. 
6. Is the pool heated?
• Yes the pool is heated. It is always kept at ~80 degrees. 

Also a couple reminders...

• Please use the bathroom before practice. I understand that the little ones sometimes forget but I have also seen many swimmers use this as an excuse to get out of a hard practice. Because of this I get more strict as my swimmers get older. Almost none of my advanced/ high school swimmers should be getting out of practice to go to the bathroom. I understand there are emergencies and that is okay but I will not be regularly permitting multiple swimmers in those groups to go to the bathroom during practice.
• Please bring a water bottle. 

Currently my YMCA email is not working...I am working with YMCA tech support to get it fixed. So if you have any questions please email Deb at: djrothstein@vosymca.org. If I need to see the email she will forward it to my personal email. If you have emailed me over break I am sorry for not responding!

Thanks!

Coach Alisha 

2015 NEW SWIM SEASON: A step by step guide

1. Lets get registered for an AWESOME 2015 season. If you still need to register please contact the front desk. 
2. BOOKMARK THIS PAGE. I post on this blog at least once a week.
3. Practices start January 12th & 13th!
4. High School MON/WED/FRI 5:00-6:30pm
5. Beginner TUE/THURS 4:30-5:30pm
6. Intermediate TUE/THURS 5:30-6:30pm
7. Advanced TUE/THURS 6:30-8:00pm
8. Please go to the bathroom before practice!
9. Please use the FAMILY locker room.
10. Meet outside on the pool deck next to the lap pool.
11. Parents can walk swimmers out to the pool deck but need to leave the deck after practice starts. Parents may come out to the deck 5 min prior to the end of practice to pick up their swimmers. 
12. Remember to dress warm...it may be a new year but it is still winter!
13. "I promise the pool is HEATED". I swam many times over break and I was nice a warm :)
14. Bring your swim gear!
15. Swimmers need a...KICKBOARD (option1, option2, option3, option4), GOGGLES (option1, option2, option3), FINS (read more about my recommendations here, option1, option2, option3), WATER BOTTLE, SWIM CAP (girls only) (option1, option2, option3), and PULL BUOY (advanced/high school only) (option1, option2, option3).
    
    
    
16. All swim gear can be found at swimoutlet.com
17. When you get to practice make sure to introduce yourself to Coach Alisha. She likes to know all the names of her swimmers and who they belong to. 
18. If you have never met her before she looks like this...
    
19. Get excited! I miss all my swimmers and am very excited for a new season of FAST swimming.
20. Also this season we will have a new fluffy mascot joining us. Stay tuned for more details. :) 
    

Any questions or comments feel free to email me: alisha.maxwell@vosymca.org

Coach Alisha

Last Weekly Update: End of Season Wrap Up, Meet Results & Happy Holidays!

Thanks for an amazing season Aquadawgs!

Good job at the meet on Saturday! I am sorry for the few minor technical difficulties at the start of the meet, but once we got going I think it went smoothly. I was proud of our swimmers, I saw a lot of best times. It is sometimes hard to do this when the weather gets cooler. But the swimmmers were doing a good job of staying warm and swimming FAST. 

Here are the meet results.

Ribbons will be handed out today at practice.

Don't forget to register for next season. I know the holidays get busy but January is right around the corner and spots are limited. Next season will be Jan 12- Mar 7. I have talked to some swimmers already, but if you think your swimmer is ready to move up to the next group please ask me and I will let you know if they are ready. A lot of factors go into my decision to move swimmers up. 

The last practices are TODAY (December 16). There will be NO practice December 18th.

Over winter break there will be some swimming on TV. Besides the olympics, swimming only is aired on TV about twice a year, so mark your calendars! On Sunday December 21st from 3-4pm EST on NBC the FINA short course world championships will be on. I would encourage all Aquadwags to try to watch this if they can.

I have been talking to some swimmers about fins lately. Some swimmers have the scuba type fins that don't really work well for practice. They are not very flexible and cause some swimmers to develop bad kicking habits. 

If your swimmer has this type of fins I would encourage getting a swimming training pair before next season. 

swimoutlet.com has fins for $16.99. I just bought a pair myself. This would make a great christmas gift. 

Find the link here. 

Hope everyone has a Happy Holiday!

Coach Alisha

alisha.maxwell@vosymca.org

Reminders

• The last meet of the Season is Saturday December 13th at the Ahwatukee YMCA @ 8:00am (I previously said it was at 7:00 am but that was incorrect)
• Please bring your meet form to me by Thursday December 11th at practice
• You can find the meet form here
• Last practices are Monday December 15th (for the High School Team) and Tuesday December 16th. This practice will be the 12 days of Christmas swim.
• Registration for next season is going on now. Next season will be Jan 12-March 7. Register now to ensure your spot, spaces are limited. 

Weekly Update: End of Season Meet & Info + a fun video

Thanks for another great week Aquadawgs!

This last week we worked on some pacing (best average swimming) and IMs. Beginners also worked on some introductory flip turn work. This week we will be focusing on technique, speed, starts and turns in preparation for our swim meet.

Our last meet of the season is this Saturday, December 13th the Ahwatukee YMCA (7:00 am) Please remember to bring your meet form to me no later than Thursday, December 11th. Please dress WARM (being extra everything, and dress warmer than you think you need to) for the swim meet. Refer to this previous post for more specifics on how to dress for winter meets.

Our last day of practices will be Tuesday December 16th and Wednesday December 17th. We will be doing the 12 days of Christmas swim for our final practice.

Remember to start registering for next season. It may seem far away now, but Christmas break will fly and we will be back in the pool in no time. 

Also don't forget about the holiday gift guide swimming gifts make great Christmas presents. 

Over winter break there will be some swimming on TV. Besides the olympics, swimming only is aired on TV about twice a year, so mark your calendars! On Sunday December 21st from 3-4pm EST on NBC the FINA short course world championships will be on. I would encourage all Aquadwags to try to watch this if they can.

Here is a fun video I saw on Facebook this week. Enjoy!

"When You Say You're a Swimmer" from Chris Shimojima on Vimeo.

Coach Alisha
alisha.maxwell@vosymca.org

Weekly Update: HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Thanks for another great week Aquadawgs!

This week I am grateful to have a job where I get to work with awesome swimmers and their families. You guys are the reason I love what I do!

I hope everyone had a wonderful thanksgiving.

Here is an article on 15 reasons to be thankful for swimming.

This week swimmers swam the TURKEY swim.

T--turns
U--underwater
R--race (turkey race)
K--kick
E--every stroke (IM)
Y--yards/YMCA

It was lots of fun and we burned some calories so we could eat up on Thursday.

Important Info:

• Check out the holiday gift guide for great gift ideas for Aqaudawgs!
• Next swim meet is our next swim meet is Saturday December 13th at 7:00am the Ahwatukee YMCA. Please have your meet forms to me by Thursday December 11th. 
• Our last day of practices will be Tuesday December 16th and Wednesday December 17th. We will be doing the 12 days of Christmas swim for our final practice.
• If swimmers would like, we are thinking about making shirts that say: "I survived the 12 days of Christmas swim". Swimmers would have to pay $10 for these shirts. If you like this idea send me an email (alisha.maxwell@vosymcaa.org) saying you want us to make shirts. If we get enough interest we are going to go through with it, if not we will just do the swim for fun.
• PLEASE remember to dress warm for practice. Sweatshirts, sweatpants, beanies, and warm shoes are encouraged. Being cold after practice is not good. Please dress warm. 

PRACTICES THIS WEEK: Thanksgiving

There will be no practices THURSDAY the 27th and FRIDAY the 28th due to Thanksgiving. I hope all swimmers will have a wonderful holiday and enjoy time with family. I hope to see all of my swimmers the following week to work off all that pie. :)

I am grateful for all my Aquadawgs!

Have a wonderful holiday!

Coach Alisha
alisha.maxwell@vosymca.org