

The Effortless Swimming Podcast
Brenton Ford
Faster times and better technique aren't a guarantee when you train hard. What really makes a difference to your speed and efficiency in the water? The Effortless Swimming podcast helps make a complex sport really simple to better your swimming. We cover open water swimming, triathlon swimming and pool swimming. Hosted by Australian National swimmer and coach Brenton Ford.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 16, 2018 • 23min
#122: The SwimRun Revolution with Breca's Ben de Rivaz
Our guest today is Ben de Rivaz from Breca. Breca hosts swimrun events which take place on trail and open water; team races in pairs wearing wetsuit and trainers, transitioning between running and swimming stages. Join us as we discuss topics about the format swimrun compared to triathlon, why is it appealing to a lot of athletes, different courses and location and a possibility of a National Championship. 00:19 About Ben de Rivaz 03:12 The SwimRun Format 05:36 The Appeal of SwimRun Sport 14:37 Looking For More Courses 14:51 National Championship To know more about Breca events, please visit: https://www.brecaswimrun.com/ Transcript:

Jul 24, 2018 • 1h 6min
#121: Rising Through Challenge with 100m Free World Champion Brent Hayden
Getting beaten up by riot police. Setting his alarm 4 hours too early before the biggest race of his life. Not being able to walk for 4 days just weeks out from his last Olympic Games. These are just a few of the challenges 3x Olympian, Olympic bronze medallist and 100m Freestyle World Champion Brent Hayden shares on today's podcast. 00:47 Brent's achievements 05:22 Focus on the things you can control 06:54 Back spasms leading up to the 2012 Olympics 14:55 Sport is unscripted 16:11 Beaten up and arrested by riot police after 2004 Olympics 28:54 It doesn't need to look pretty 35:17 The best swimmers are the ones that are always open to change 37:19 Key pillars of sprinting 50:26 Astra Athletica

Jul 9, 2018 • 1h 8min
#120: From Commonwealth Games To Coach with Rory Buck
This week I’m joined by Rory Buck to discuss the intricacies of swimming and coaching. Rory Buck is an ex-competitive swimmer turned coach, who went from being a collegiate swimmer to representing South Africa at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester. Turning to coaching to learn more about swimming, Rory now coaches from Dubai. Join us as we discuss topics such as swim culture, the right age to start swimming, a feel for the water, mentality, sighting, effort in swimming and self-perception as well as much more. 01:10 – Rory’s competitive background. 04:30 – Dubai and swim culture. 06:50 – The right age to start swimming. 11:30 – Putting effort into swimming. 20:00 – Confidence in the water. 27:30 – Developing and maintaining a feel for the water. 38:00 – Swimming in a triathlon. 42:00 – Sighting in open water. 52:50 – Watching triathletes and reflecting. 01:01:10 – The mindset and delusions.

Jul 9, 2018 • 20min
#119: How To Swim 10% Faster in 9 Months with Jason Hamilton
This week’s podcast features Jason Hamilton as our guest. An athlete and triathlete who I met during Hell Week last year in Thailand, Jason joins us to speak about his journey as a swimmer, and how he trained to qualify in the World Championships. We cover topics such as winter swimming locations, using structure to keep yourself focused while training and exactly what made Jason swim faster. Join us as we reflect on progress and setting goals as a swimmer. 02:20 – Jason Hamilton. 04:00 – Qualifying for World Championships. 06:00 – What makes you faster. 07:12 – Nathan Shearer 11:00 – Structure to keep focus. 13:14 – Ongoing goals. 15:00 – Winter training locations.

Jul 3, 2018 • 49min
#118: The Fearless Mind with Professional Triathlete Angela Naeth
In today's episode, We are joined by Angela Naeth who is a professional triathlete. If you are someone who enjoys thinking and reflecting on your sport, your life and things around that, I think you will really enjoy this episode. Angela is a very genuine person and she is someone who has done a lot of thinking and reflecting on her own over the past eight years that she has been racing triathlon. We talked about some ways that she has overcome anxiety around racing and performing, something that she dealt with in the early days of her triathlon career. She also mentions a book that she has read five or six times that she has been able to use and get a lot from when it comes to becoming a fearless and competitive racer.

Jun 19, 2018 • 7min
#117: What You Believe Will Make You Freeze
There are some beliefs that will help you and there are some beliefs that are keeping us from achieving our full potential. Ask yourself. What are the beliefs that are holding me back?

Jun 5, 2018 • 41min
#116: Conquering The 40km Crossing of Lake Taupo with Vicky Tate
We are joined today by Vicky Tate who has recently swam the 40 kilometr crossing of Lake. Earlier this year she made a crossing and she is one of less than a hundred swimmers who have completed the crossing. She came along to Hell Week last year, our Hell Week camp in Thailand and this was something that prepared for the swim. Join us we talk about her experience. 00:30 From Not Being Able to Swim a "K" to a 40 km Straight Swim 02:01 The Only Thing That Is Going To Stop You Is You. 04:58 Techniques Taken From Hellweek. 07:57 How Was It Like Mentally? 09:09 Swim Pacing In Lake Taupo 10:30 Motivation During The Swim 12:33 "Don't Look Forward and Don't Look Back" 13:36 Singing Songs And Counting Your Strokes 19:50 Feed During The Swim 22:08 Lake Taupo 27:28 Our Mind Can Get Accustomed Quickly 34:37 The Help Of The Community

May 17, 2018 • 60min
#115: The Ultimate Way to Reset Your Body with Bevan Mckinnon
Our guest for today's Episode is Bevan Mckinnon who has been in the triathlon scene for over 15 years as a coach and as an athlete. Here are the topics discussed: 05:09 Intermittent Fasting 08:35 Ketogenic State 11:29 Training while Fasting 21:34 The Satisfaction in Coaching 38:10 Speed Reserve 39:59 Zero To Hero To know more about Bevan Mckinnon, please visit: https://www.fitter.co.nz/

Apr 2, 2018 • 22min
#114: How Body Composition Affects Your Swimming with Andrew Ho-Peng
My guest today is Andrew Ho-Peng who is from Dexa Melbourne. Dexa is a body composition scan that tells you about your bone density, visual fat levels, lean muscle mass and a number of other things. It is a really good way to check in with your health and well being. Listen as Andrew explains what Dexa does, who is it best for. 01:37 How Did Dexa Started? 04:07 Types of Clients that Avail Dexa. 05:33 Metabolic Health 08:11 The Focus of Dexa. 10:36 Dexa as a Motivation

Mar 20, 2018 • 33min
#113: How To Fuel For The English Channel with Tara Diversi
If you ever wondered how you should fuel for a marathon swim, then this podcast is for you. My guest for today is Tara Diversi, who has experience in long-distance swimming. She swam the English Channel and the Rottnest Channel and a number of other long-distance swims. She works closely with a handful of people every year to help them leading to their marathon swim. She works with them to help them get their feeding and fueling right on the day but more than that is looking for the best approach that works for them. In this episode we talk about: 03:09 Tara Diversi background 05:01 Things to consider when deciding on the Feeding Plan. 07:39 Freestyle stroke affects food digestion. 09:29 Fat versus Muscle. 10:54 Keeping the core temperature up. 16:43 Trial and Error. 19:32 The concept of Multiple Transportable Carbohydrates. 22:28 Training your Gut. 28:32 How do you put on more fat without killing yourself