Courtesy of Jenni Brozena, MS, CSCS, CES
A physical therapist can be a great asset to a swim coach. They can provide knowledge and expertise that enhances the overall training and successful outcomes of the coach’s team. Yet, physical therapists have many times been seen as an intrusion to the training demands outlined by the coach. Phrases can be quickly tossed around in a PT clinic like “you’re swimming too much”, “don’t train as often”, and “tell your coach you need to rest”. These pieces of medical advice can be warranted and highly effective but can also develop conflict and distrust with their swimmer patient. The tension felt between swim coaches and physical therapists stems most often from a lack of understanding between each other. Swimming has a unique culture and performance demands that differ from many ground sports. Physical therapists, the movement dysfunction specialists, have a responsibility to educate themselves on the training protocols to effectively treat swimmers, but even more so, they have three great reasons to prove their value to swim coaches.
1 – Dysfunctional Movement Leads to Decreased Performance.
Physical therapists are educated to be specialists in movement dysfunction, aka: how can we get the body to move better than it currently does. Swim coaches have upwards of hundreds of swimmers to coach so quick intervention is greatly beneficial. A physical therapist who shows a swim coach that they can provide fast, effective, individualized intervention at the onset of pain can be a valuable asset to a busy coach.
2 – Swimmers Are Not Ground-Sport Athletes.
There is exponentially more research and available education for physical therapists regarding ground-sport athletes such as soccer, baseball, and lacrosse players. Physical therapists and their clinical practices thrive when they can access entire teams because, inevitably, when athletes push their bodies eventually something will start to fail. A physical therapist that develops unique exercise prescriptions specific to swimmers and their interaction with the water will gain access to a coach’s entire team.
3 – There Are Riches In Niches.
Swimming is one of the highest participated activities in the world and the competitive swimming community has maintained very tight relationships with each other. Physical therapists dedicated to empowering coaches and athletes with their knowledge of the human body as well as listen to the demands of the sport can gain entrance into a powerfully networked community.
About Jenni Brozena
Jenni Brozena is an international sport scientist and Owner/President of Aqueous, an international organization empowering actionable engagement between aquatic athletes, sport science, human performance, and healthcare. Aqueous is dedicated to the deliberate treatment of aquatic athletes through the performance continuum including preparation, performance, and rehabilitation.
Website: www.aqueous.co
Twitter: @AqueousCo
Facebook: Aqueous Co
LinkedIn: Jenni Brozena
Jenni Brozena is a SwimSwam content partner.
A clinician specialized in sports injury is a huge asset to to any athlete/team/coach. Their focus and purpose is the physical (and mental) health of each athlete. There will be times that an athlete needs to “rest” due to; poor technique, overzealous training on land or in water or limitations of their physical structure.
Coaches MUST to listen to these clinicians as they will help to keep their athletes performing at a consistent high level physically.
Coaches need to understand the mantra “quality over quantity”. Yes there are times that long swims are needed to improve performance, but sometimes there will be restrictions for some athletes.
Good points Jenni. Physical therapists are invaluable! Providers that have not been exposed to the sport of swimming tend to offer ill-advised recommendations when treating the injured athlete. The good news, 3 experts in the sport have just launched a comprehensive on-line swim course designed to educate healthcare providers and coaches on how to better manage shoulder pain in swimmers. All proceeds from the course are being donated to the USA Swimming Foundation. The course can be found on educata.com. Thanks – George