How Swim Team Changed My Outlook On Teamwork
Do you consider yourself a solo act? Have you ever wondered what it means to be a part of a team? This blog recounts my high school experience with sports and explores how being part of a team taught me to persevere and just keep swimming during times of struggle.
In my previous blog, I talked about my time on a varsity water polo team during the winter of my freshman year. I recounted the hardships I endured as an amateur athlete under the supervision of a bully coach and drew back on how I learned to persevere under such conditions. What followed next in spring was an entirely new underwater chapter.
In the spring of my freshman year, I joined the swim team. Unlike when I was in water polo, it was a co-ed team conjoined of boys and girls, and the team consisted of fifty. I was still an amateur in the water, and the team was stacked, so it was safe to say I did not make varsity this time.
Initially, being part of such a vast team was weird, especially compared to the ten-girl team I was a part of during the winter season. As someone who suffered from social anxiety, I was a bit unnerved by the team size. But as someone who didn’t like attention, I was happy to get lost in the crowd and let someone else take the spotlight.
To my delight, the coach was a kind woman that welcomed us with a friendly smile on day one. To my horror, however, I learned too late that her co-coach was my former water polo coach. I was very apprehensive going forward because it still felt like he didn’t think I was worth being on the team. But the leading swim coach believed everyone deserved a chance on the team, so we started practice.
I remember being introduced to the four competitive swimming strokes: freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly. I was fastest in freestyle, which was the most basic stroke. I wasn’t particularly fast when it came to the rest of the team, but I was fast enough to keep up to some degree.
Eventually, our leading coach assigned us our strokes after enough practice, and we were off for our first swim meet (competition). If memory serves correctly, I was assigned freestyle for my first event (race). Then, over time, I was assigned other strokes like butterfly, breaststroke, and backstroke.
I remember the backstroke giving me some anxiety because, unless I timed the turn just right, I would always hit my head against the far wall of the pool. Ouch. I also recall having trouble with the breaststroke, feeling awkward as I maneuvered through the water.
But what gave me the most trouble was the Individual Medley, which was an event that consisted of performing all four strokes in a specific order. I couldn’t get the pacing right for the longest time and kept mixing up the strokes. In an IM, or Individual Medley, the order starts with butterfly, then backstroke, then breaststroke, and ends with freestyle.
It took me a long time, but I eventually got the hang of it. It helped that my leading coach was kind to her instructors, and I learned to ignore the co-coach, his short temper, and his lack of faith in me. It also took me a long time to adjust to being part of a team again. Admittedly, I lost my temper (usually due to the heat or plain exhaustion), but I was never turned away when it was my turn to hit the water. My family and team would cheer from the sidelines, and I still believe that that unwavering support gave me the strength to persevere and keep swimming.
According to the freshmen swim card I found stashed with my yearbook, by the end of the season, my records were 47.35 seconds for the 50 FLY (Butterfly), 41.4 seconds for the 50 BACK (Backstroke), 1:20.27 for the 100 BACK, 58.52 for the 50 BREAST (Breaststroke), 34.9 seconds for the 100 FREE (Freestyle), 1:13.40 for the 100 FREE, and 1:47.76 for the IM (Individual Medley).
As I said, I was by far not the fastest, but I had a coach and team that supported me and meant the world to me. Eventually, I got stronger and gained stamina. I learned to pace myself and take deep breaths whenever I had time to breach the surface during my events.
These days whenever I dive into a pool, I can’t help thinking back to the things I experienced while on the swim team. I may not have graduated to become an all-star athlete, but what I learned during my time in the spring taught me the fundamentals of teamwork, and I have carried those fundamentals with me into my adult life. I learned to cooperate, collaborate, and work hard with others to achieve a shared goal, and that is something I believe everyone should learn.
After all, no one can remain a solo act for long. Even the best athletes are on a team or have a support system. I learned to rely on my teammates and coach while on the swim team. Now, I have learned to rely on my friends, family, and even my coworkers during hard times.
Everyone needs a support system. Everyone needs a friend in their corner or a team. Pick the people in your corner wisely because you pick them right, and they’ll have your back for years.