The SwimSwam Podcast

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In the SwimSwam Podcast dive deeper into the sport you love with insider conversations about swimming. Hosted by Coleman Hodges and Gold Medal Mel Stewart, SwimSwam welcomes both the biggest names in swimming that you already know, and rising stars that you need to get to know, as we break down the past, present, and future of aquatic sports.

Episodes

Wednesday Dec 16, 2020

SSPC: Tommy Cope on Why Breaststrokers Can Get Away with Training Alone

Wednesday Dec 16, 2020

We sat down with Michigan All-American and DC Trident star Tommy Cope. Tommy takes us through his ISL season, which he almost opted not to go for, as well as this past summer which he spent in Cape Girardeau, Missouri at an engineering internship. Cope said his training during this summer was much different than a normal summer at Michigan.

While he would try to swim regularly (6-7 times a week), it was usually only for 1-1.5 hours at a time. However, he was also lifting more, cycling, and playing basketball and volleyball with his fellow interns on a weekly basis. Cope said that swimming by himself could be challenging at times, but because his main focus was breaststroke, he could get away with it, saying that maintaining feel for the water was more important than an aerobic base in the water for those few months.

Music: Otis McDonald
www.otismacmusic.com

Tuesday Dec 15, 2020

SSPC: Sydney Pickrem Gives Opinion on New Canadian Olympic Trials Format

Tuesday Dec 15, 2020

We sat down with Sydney Pickrem, a Canadian medalist and member of the ISL franchise London Roar. Pickrem just made the move to Toronto to train with the elite Canadian group based there and was in a mandatory 14-day isolation when we spoke. She gave us her perspective on ISL Season 2, making the move to Toronto, and the new Canadian Olympic Trial format that was released last week.

Music: Otis McDonald
www.otismacmusic.com

Monday Dec 14, 2020

SSPC: Nic Fink on Double Wrist Injury to Double American Records During ISL

Monday Dec 14, 2020

We sat down with Nic Fink, the breaststroke for the Cali Condors who had a slow start to his ISL season as he was dealing with a double wrist injury. Fink takes us through the grueling "rehab" of having to swim while wearing soft casts on both hands as well as getting back into the swing of racing once he was cleared to compete and the casts came off. It seemed like all worked out in the end, however, as in the ISL Finale, Fink broke American records in both the 100 and 200 breast as well as made the top 4 in the breaststroke skins races to help Cali win the league title.

Music: Otis McDonald
www.otismacmusic.com

Sunday Dec 13, 2020

SSPC: How DII Drury University Produced the Current #2 Sprinter in the Country

Sunday Dec 13, 2020

We sat down with Zach Mertins, the assistant coach (and main sprint coach) at Drury University in Springfield, Missouri. Zach and I swam together in high school, which was Zach's first main swimming experience. Since then, he went on to swim at DII Ouachita Baptist University and eventually ended up pursuing coaching.

From the outside looking in, it seems like Zach has hit his coaching stride at Drury, not only leading Karol Ostrowski to 19.09 and 41.50 at their mid-season meet (breaking the DII national records in both events), but the team's 200 free relay produced a 1:18.49, 1.22 off the DII national record in that event and breaking the school record. Hear what Zach has to say about how they're doing things at Drury a little differently to yield these results.

Music: Otis McDonald
www.otismacmusic.com

Saturday Dec 12, 2020

SSPC: Penn State Coaches Explain Importance of Team Book Club on Culture

Saturday Dec 12, 2020

We sat down with Penn State coaches Matt Hurst and Steve Barnes to talk about what the swim and dive teams have looked like during quarantine. One interesting thing they brought up was that the team had been hosting a book club for quite a while and recently they split it between the men's and women's teams. The women read Untamed by Glennon Doyle, while the men "read" (watched) Netflix's The Last Dance. Both coaches describe what they personally gained from the experience as well as what they thought the teams culture got from both works.

Music: Otis McDonald
www.otismacmusic.com

Friday Dec 11, 2020

SSPC: Marco Koch on 60x50s LCM Breast Holding Under 30 on Fast/33 on "Easy"

Friday Dec 11, 2020

We sat down with world champion and ISL star Marco Koch, who is coming off of the Budapest bubble with the New York Breakers. Marco is such a relaxed guy when you talk with him, but you wouldn't know it by his swimming. In ISL, he finished as the top performer in the 200 breast (2:00.58), registering multiple 2:00 swims.

Koch talks about his longevity in the sport (he's 30, won his first Euro championship at 20), training by himself, and what a normal "hard" workout is on Tuesdays for him.

Music: Otis McDonald
www.otismacmusic.com

Thursday Dec 10, 2020

SSPC: Caeleb Dressel Dissects 50 Free Speedo Sub-20 Challenge

Thursday Dec 10, 2020

To celebrate the 20th birthday of its Fastskin material, swimwear brand Speedo set up a spectacle to answer just that question. World record-holder Caeleb Dressel suited up in a 2008-era Speedo Fastskin LZR racer bodysuit to take on a 50 short course meter freestyle.

Dressel gets real about going 20.4 3 different times in the supersuit. He breaks down how the suit changes your body position and what changes he had to make. Dressel reveals that the week before, coach Gregg Troy did not take it easy on him; quite the opposite, having him log 70k in workouts on the week.

Caeleb is also gracious enough to share his opinion on the suits in general. He confesses that racing in it was a lot of fun and he'd love to see more events, with actual competitors, occur in the future. Think about it: The Illegal Games.

Music: Otis McDonald
www.otismacmusic.com

Thursday Dec 10, 2020

SSPC: Marcin Cieslak on Going PR's, Training Himself After 3 Year Break

Thursday Dec 10, 2020

I sat down with NCAA and ISL champion Marcin Cieslak, who is swimming the best he ever has at the age of 28. Marcin stepped away from the sport after the 2016 Olympics, wanting to pursue other things such as his work in Poland and his company, Phlex. However, he came back to the water 2+ years later and started exploring with different methods of training than the distance-heavy background he had known all of his career.

Marcin has now found the sweet spot for himself, going numerous best times in the 50 fly, 100 fly, and 100 IM during ISL Season 2 as a member of the Cali Condors, all the while training himself and sticking to his own plan during the training camp.

Music: Otis McDonald
www.otismacmusic.com

Wednesday Dec 09, 2020

SSPC: Missy Franklin Launches "Relentless Spirit" 10-Session Masterclass

Wednesday Dec 09, 2020

5-time Olympic gold medalist Missy Franklin dropped in on the SwimSwam Podcast to share her new 10-session (5 hour) course, Relentless Spirit. The timing is perfect considering pool space is becoming more and more limited, and Missy's a pro communicating her swimming experience and all the wisdom she has learned. Relentless Spirit is comprehension, covering GOAL SETTING, CONFIDENCE, NUTRITION, OVERCOMING FAILURE, BALANCE, MOBILITY & STRETCHING, TECHNIQUE, ending with an OPEN Q&A. Relentless Spirit has it all, and it is the perfect holiday gift for your swimmer or swim coach.

See Missy Franklin's 10 Session Course Here

Music: Otis McDonald
www.otismacmusic.com

Wednesday Dec 09, 2020

SSPC: Arno Kamminga on Never Swimming Warmup Before Races

Wednesday Dec 09, 2020

We sat down with newly minted Olympian Arno Kamminga, who was kind enough to talk with us after his qualification meet. Arno spoke candidly about experiencing loss, starting with losing his mother at the tender age of 15. Arno used swimming as a way to cope with the loss, but also started getting more serious about it. He then failed to qualify for any international meet, try as he may, be it Jr or Sr, until the 2017 World Championships.

Arno also gives an interesting bit of trivia in the middle of the interview: he never gets into the pool before he races. The physical warm-up that he takes himself through is solely on land. I'm flabbergasted at this and ask him no less than 10 questions about how he came to develop this system.

Music: Otis McDonald
www.otismacmusic.com