The Swim Chronicle: Issue #9 – How Much Should Your Child Swim During Holidays? A Parent's Guide to Finding Balance

TLDR: Finding the right balance between swim training and holiday fun can be tricky, but it’s not impossible. A couple of well-structured pool sessions and some engaging land-based activities can help your child maintain fitness while still enjoying a well-deserved break. Here’s how you can make the most of the holidays while keeping your young swimmer connected to their sport.

Finding the right balance between swim training and holiday fun can be tricky, but it’s not impossible. As someone who has been on both sides—training hard as an athlete and later guiding young swimmers as a coach—I know how important it is to maintain fitness while enjoying family time during the holidays. As we approach the 2025 Season, the meets are going to come hard and fast!

I remember my own experiences growing up, when the holidays meant a mix of training and adventure. There were times when I found myself sneaking in a short 30-minute leisure swim in the hotel pool before I started my day. These sessions kept me connected to the water while still leaving plenty of time for fun. Staying connected to swimming is important, but so is recharging and embracing the holiday spirit.

Here’s how you can help your child keep their swimming skills sharp, without feeling like they’re missing out on the fun.

Reduce, Don’t Eliminate

Swimming over the holidays doesn’t need to be intense or time-consuming. Just one or two pool sessions during their break can be enough to maintain their feel for the water and prevent any skill regression. It’s all about keeping them connected to the water without overwhelming them with rigorous training. When I was younger, even a quick 30-45 minute swim focusing on technique during holiday breaks helped me stay sharp without cutting into family time. These swims weren't about pushing to exhaustion but rather about staying engaged with the water—focusing on technique, feeling relaxed, and maintaining a sense of routine.

The key is to make these sessions count by emphasizing quality over quantity:

• Aerobic maintenance: A steady 400-800 meter swim at a comfortable pace helps maintain endurance. The swim doesn’t have to be intense—just enough to keep the muscles and lungs engaged. Mixing in light kicks, technique drills, and low-intensity individual medleys (IMs) can help preserve muscle memory and overall fitness.

• Technique focus: Holidays are a great time to emphasize technique. Encourage your child to think about their form—how they enter the water, how their body is aligned, and how they execute their turns. Shorter, quality sessions focused on perfecting small details can be incredibly effective.

  
  

The idea is to stay engaged without making swimming feel like a chore. Keep it light and fun. Even incorporating playful elements—like a mini-race against a sibling or practicing a new drill—can make these sessions enjoyable.

And remember, it doesn’t all have to happen in the pool. Even simple activities like walking around sightseeing, playing on the beach, or hiking can help maintain aerobic fitness. Staying active doesn’t always have to mean formal exercise—it’s about keeping the body moving in enjoyable and relaxed ways.

Embrace Land-Based Activities

There will inevitably be days when pool access isn’t possible, and that’s perfectly fine. On those days, dryland exercises are a great way to stay connected to swimming-specific movements and strengthen key muscle groups. Land-based activities provide an opportunity to maintain fitness and even work on areas that contribute to better swimming performance, like core strength, balance, and coordination.

• Core exercises: The core is crucial for maintaining proper body position in the water, and it’s something that can be worked on without a pool. Exercises like planks, Russian twists, or leg raises can help your child develop a strong core, which directly impacts their swimming efficiency. Engaging in these exercises for just 10-15 minutes can have a significant effect on maintaining swim fitness.

• Skipping: One of my personal favorites—skipping is an easy and effective way to build stamina, coordination, and agility. I used to take my skipping rope on holiday because it’s portable and can be done anywhere. It’s a great cardiovascular workout that keeps the heart pumping and improves overall conditioning.

  
  

• Bodyweight exercises: Squats, lunges, push-ups, and burpees are all exercises that require no equipment and help build strength in key muscle groups used in swimming. Encouraging your child to do a simple bodyweight circuit every few days can be a fun way to stay active together as a family.

  
  

These exercises are short, effective, and can be done anywhere, ensuring your child stays swim-ready, even without a pool nearby. The goal is to keep them active without making it feel like a chore—find ways to make these activities enjoyable, perhaps by turning them into a game or doing them together as a family.

Maintain a Loose Routine

While the holidays should be flexible and fun, keeping a loose routine can help maintain a sense of discipline. For example, you could designate Monday and Thursday as swim days, with cross-training activities or family fun on the other days. This structure ensures your child stays in touch with their swim fitness without feeling constrained by a strict schedule.

The Bottom Line

The holidays are all about finding that balance—keeping swim skills sharp while enjoying time off. The goal isn’t to make huge gains in the water, but to maintain a connection to swimming and overall fitness. The good news is, kids don’t lose their aerobic capacity or swimming skills as quickly as we sometimes fear. In fact, they pick things up quickly once regular training resumes.

Encouraging your child to balance pool time with family fun will leave them feeling refreshed, motivated, and ready to dive back into full training with renewed energy. Let them enjoy the holidays without pressure—after all, a little swimming goes a long way! So relax, embrace the break, and trust that with just a bit of activity, they’ll return stronger and more energized than ever.

Till the next one! Coach Danny