August 30th, 2009 | 
Author: I am 14 and in 8th grade going into 9th in the fall. I do tennis, track (which is just starting), and wrestling (which is just ending). I am thinking of dropping wrestling & starting competitive swimming (for the first time ever) in the summer on the competitive team at our community pool, then start club swim in fall, and varsity in the winter. Is it too late for me to start? Will I be at a major disadvantage? Should I get private lessons beforehand? Any particular things I should do to prepare myself? Any sort of help is appreciated.
Posted in 
Tags:
It is never too late to join swimming. For you, you’re starting high school, it’s a great time to try something new. You’ll be super fast by junior year.
If you’re a natural athlete, then it’s not too late to start. Be advised, becoming a good swimmer will take dedication and hard work for many years. You’ll have to swim year round, because you won’t get really good by swimming only varsity.
Since you do all of those sports, you will find the tranisition to be a little easier than what most people go through. Your plan is perfect. Make sure you really go to practice in the summer and try avoiding missed practices. Missing one week can put you down a lot. Just pay attention to your coach, give it all ya got, and i think you will be fine for school. Just a warning however, swimmers usually dont do other sports because swimming requires a lot of time and effort. Try it out in the summer and see what you like.
Of course….I joined when I was 13..but…not to put you down or anything but your first and second year is probably going to be hard. Because everyone on the swim team has usually been on the team for their whole lifetime and they are going to be much faster than you….like 2 years ago when I was 13 I was pretty slow….it was sort of embarassing at competitions in stuff but when I turned 14 I started improving and now at 15 I am already one of the best on my team…so it takes time…just be patient and don’t give up…oh…and you should run too! I do 4 miles every other day….it helps me with breathing, strength, and endurance…also, before you join the swim team…be sure that you can swim 50-100 yards without stopping….and be sure to know the major 4 strokes (front crawl, butterfly, backstroke, and breaststroke)….good luck!
If you have basic swim skills (can swim a few laps non stop, do at least 1 other stroke well, tread water for periods of time, etc.) you should be fine on a community league team. I have seen swimmers start around your age and be NCAA qualifiers by the time they hit college – it all generally depends on a combination of perseverance and genetics! Private lessons never hurt to gain quick understanding of the technical aspects of stokes you are not fully comfortable with – but that will obviously be a significant cost. Assuming you start now (or summer) and practice continually until swim season in high school, you should in a good place to at least be JV swimmer. Making Varsity will all depend on how competitive your high school is – some places nearly everyone goes V, other schools have a clear cut JV and V teams.
Go for it. I used to be a highly competitive swimmer, and while I was still doing it a girl who did not know ANY of the four strokes joined our team (she was 14). She is now competing at the senior national level, and possibly going to the Olympic Trials in 2012 (she is a sophomore in college now).
Just do it man! I’m 17 and joined my schools swim team THIS YEAR. At first I couldn’t keep up with the team but after a few weeks of being in a competitive atmosphere and with great instruction from my coaches, I became one of the average to faster kids on the team. You will be completely surprised by how much progress you can make QUICKLY in programs like these. Just be sure to work as hard as you can and never miss a practice if you can help it.
No, never!! That’s great that you want to get into it now, and the other sports you do will have helped you a good bit. If you’ve never swam competitively, you will be a little slower than your age group at first, but with careful training and practice, you’ll make it up quickly. By careful practice, I mean listen to your coach and try to do everything right in practice. That way, when you get into meets and adrenaline takes over, going fast but not sloppy will be natural.
Best wishes
NEVER! swimming is a great sport and everyone can pick up competitive swimming. and since u already do sports it should b easier for u then kids who have never played a sport b4. yes. when u first start ppl might b faster then you. but if u go to all or most of the practices you WILL catch up and mayb become faster then them (personal experience). you could have lessons b4 hand. they dont have to b private tho. with a class is fine. just to get u in “shape” and get ready for wat is to come. beware that practices may b hard at first(i used to b afraid of going) but ur body will soon get stronger and get used to all the work. swimming is not an easy sport. ur using everyone of ur muscles in your body. but if u try ur hardest everyday or time at practice you will b surprised at how much u have acomplished and achieved
good luk email me if you have questions
Unless you fully commit to swimming, you will always be at a major disadvantage. When you are 10, it is ok to do several things at once, but once you hit high school, if you really want to swim…just swim. Football, baseball, basketball, and track are all sports that you don’t have to totally commit to (although baseball players usually commit to baseball). Swimming is a sport that takes full commitment. The way you want to start out is great! you will start out at a major disadvantage, but if you are willing to put time and effort into swimming, then you will notice major improvement at each meet until you are really hanging with the best (it’s tough to improve on what’s already at the top) I will advise you this. If swimming is not taking up your life, then you are not working hard enough. I chose not to swim in high school because football and baseball do not take up your life. I was a much better swimmer than I was a football/baseball player. But I didn’t want to wake up a 5 am to go to practice and have more practice after school plus club practice. If you are willing to give up your high school life, swim! Otherwise, I’d advise you to stick to other things.
A normal swimmer’s schedule:
5:00 wake up
6:00 practice
7:00-2:30 school
3:00-4:30 practice
5:00 possibly dinner
6:00-8:00 club practice
9:00 sleep
Since you do a lot of sports, you would have an advantage over people who are just joining. Your plan sounds great. It’s never too late to start! Starting out as a freshman is considered early, actually. Yes, getting lessons would be excellent because you’d be learning from someone that’s good, so if you really like swimming, you’ll do well. Learn free, back, fly, and breast if you don’t already know it, learn how to tread and have good endurance and you’re set. Swimming takes up a lot of time, so don’t skip too many practices or be and feel really behind, and you’ll have to do a lot to catch up. If you really like competitive swimming, you should try water polo too. Swim team helps with water polo and water polo helps with swim team, like vice versa. I just turned 15 and i’m on a high school swim team. I had a disadvantage because all the swimmers played water polo, so they were all faster than me and more used to the workouts, but pay attention to technique and learn as much as you can.
good luck and follow your plan. i’m sure you’ll do well