Swim the Mile You’re In

The first time you attempt a distance longer than you’ve previously swum can be daunting. “Can I do it?” is the question that haunts many of us in the days, weeks and even months leading up to a big swim. Trying too hard to answer this question can lead to missing obvious things you could be doing to maximize your potential on race day. For example, it’s hard to relax and get sleep if your mind is going a hundred miles per hour trying to anticipate every possible thing that could go wrong.

Thinking & Problem Solving

A variety of problems can arise during a swim that may prevent you from your goal: hypothermia, exhaustion, injury, wind, storms etc. Some are under your control and others are not. Our minds are adept at using thought to plan, troubleshoot and identify solutions to problems that arise. For example, if you notice your shoulder hurts, you might adjust your stroke to try to find a less painful way to swim. If you’re getting cold or tired, you might consume more calories, caffeine or warm beverages. Noticing and thinking about these immediate problems can help you respond with resiliency and increase the likelihood of success.

Unsolvable Problems

Some problems that arise cannot be solved by thinking about them. Uncertainty about the future is one type of unsolvable problem. We all want to feel confident and reassured that we can “do it”. We want to know this before we even start. We want to know it for sure. We can stay up all night trying to solve this problem and get no closer to a solution. Knowing whether or not you will “do it” on race day is not a problem you can solve with thinking.

Swim the Mile You’re In

Instead of trying to answer the question: “will I be able to do it”, you should focus on what you can do right now that will increase the chance you can continue later in the swim. Identifying these actions is the best way to use your mind to help you instead of stress you out. This is what is meant by, “swimming the mile you’re in”. Here are some examples:

• Staying focused on the present moment
• Distraction (taking a break from focusing on the present moment)
• Ignoring pain/cold/discomfort
• Responding proactively to pain/cold/discomfort
• Picturing the end of the swim, celebrating and enjoying victory
• Forgetting about the end of the swim and focusing on enjoying the now of the swim

These might sound like a list of contradictions, but what you need to do now to be able to continue later means different things, at different times, to different swimmers. A lot of the skill of swimming very long distances comes from finding out what works and doesn’t work for you. It can sometimes be hard to let go of overthinking the future and focus instead on what you can control in the present. So, I promise to dedicate a whole post to that topic. But for now, just swim the mile you’re in, and before you know it, you’ll be there :).

Additional Reading

“Swim the Mile You’re In” is a slight twist on the popular ultrarunning moto, “Run the Mile You’re In”. I first learned of this idea from reading Addie Bracy’s book, Mental Training for Ultrarunning and I highly recommend this helpful resource.