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Oct 16, 2019
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My two youngest DD's (8 and 11 years old) are now participating on a swimming team that likely will practice most of the year and have meets in Winter and Spring. I am a new parent to the competitive swimming sport, maybe they swim year around, just not sure. But anyone else's DD swim competitively? Any advantages to this type of conditioning in relation to softball? Curious to hear others' experiences.
 

LEsoftballdad

DFP Vendor
Jun 29, 2021
2,838
113
NY
Swimming is great conditioning.

Swim meets are the single most life draining, agonizing, boring, longest time sucks in the history of youth sports.
My girls did swim for a few years at the beginning of the travel ball experience. It was mind-numbingly boring to watch their 1 minute in the pool over the 4 hours we were there.

It is great conditioning, though.
 
Jan 25, 2022
881
93
Mine did archery for three years. School NASP program, which is ok, but then did S3DA. It's really pretty cool. When they're doing outdoor 3D it's generally 2-3 hours away and at some of the nicest sportsman clubs you'll see. She only took 20 shots the whole time but the walking and scenery was great. Also got to see a lot of areas of the state, which was great for a non-native like me.
 
Mar 8, 2016
313
63
DW was a swimmer in her youth. She insisted our kids try competitive swimming when they were very young. The only thing worse than sitting around for 4 hours to watch your kids swim for 1 minute. Is to sit around for 4 hours to have your kids disqualified in the first 15 seconds for illegal form.

Sent from my SM-G991U using Tapatalk
 
Dec 2, 2013
3,410
113
Texas
My kids cycled through all the sports every year. Quit soccer after 4th grade. Started playing BB. Did Summer Swim league in the neighborhood. 4 Swim meets plus end of year Meet of Champs. The good thing about the summer swim meets, 3-4 hours and done. But it was hot and humid and like @pattar I tried not to talk to the parents. I thought it was so comical that they took it so seriously. Rec league swimming! Meanwhile my kid is playing in a 3 day softball tourney that weekend against "real competition."

Basketball was actually pretty dang competitive. I live close to an affluent area and the dads are super A+ competitive and many played college ball and knew how to properly coach. Lots of former Pro players in the stands too. Steve Francis, Mario Ellie, Reid Ryan-wife coached. The 6th grade girls could beat the 8th grade MS teams in the area. A MS coach walked in behind me while I was manning the scorers table and he was blown away with all the girls dropping 3's on the regular.

At the younger ages I highly recommend playing all Rec league sports as long as possible.
 
Oct 21, 2022
14
3
New Jersey
Swim is my oldest DD who plays 12u, main sport. She's been swimming on a club team all year round since 8, plus the summer rec team. Only break is for a couple weeks in early August.

To answer your question about year round, yes a club team will. My DD's team will swim indoors all fall\winter in short course yards with multiple meets, ending with the state championships which are broken up by region here in NJ if that swimmer has times that qualify. They then switch to long course meter format (what you see in the Olympics) a few more meets an a Long Course championship for those who qualify for that. Then if fast enough they can go a sectional or zone meet to represent all of NJ or east coast, then even to a National level meet.

Spring\summer practice moves outdoors and they continue to practice while they also swim on a rec team if they want to.

Conditioning is awesome as others have said, whether they end up exceling at sprint or distance swim, they will still be putting in lots of pool yardage during practice, plus dryland (Calisthenics). This should translate into helping when on the field.

My 9 yr old DD does multiple dance disciplines that she does at a local academy along with softball. But she thinks of softball as her main sport an has started to cut back on dance.

Just happy that they both have multiple sports that they enjoy competing in.
 
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