Swimming Blogs - Kaitlyn Utkewicz

I know whoever reads this was quite upset that I didn't do an update after Nationals. When I got home, I was swept into all the schoolwork I had to do and SAT stuff to prepare for. But I guess those are just excuses and I've been taught that in swimming, there's no time for them. Today marked the beginning of long course season, something I dread every year .. More swimming, less turns, more yardage. Pretty much a sprinter's nightmare. That would be a good way to describe today's practice. It was frustrating because my stroke felt good, but… more »

It's almost midnight on a Sunday and I'm running solely on adrenaline. LHY just picked up its third consecutive state banner and I couldn't be more excited. This was one of the most exciting weekends of my life. I'm not really sure how I can explain in words all of the unbelievable swims, some of them record-breaking. Before when I was thinking how I was going to write this blog, I thought of maybe compiling the top ten craziest moments of the weekend. But then I realized how that wouldn't do justice to anyone that didn't make the list. Everyone… more »

Two meet sessions, three new national qualifiers, and two personal best times later, I'm home. This was one of the craziest weekends ever. I swam lifetime bests in the 50 and 100 free (24.72 and 53.50). And I didn't shave at all! All I wore was that new bluseventy suit that I ordered. I know a lot of whispering was going around the stands as fast swim after fast swim occurred. But honestly, I know some kids that didn't improve their times wearing the suit.And I actually went a little slower at finals the next day. So the suit isn't… more »

It's upon us. The two months that we've been preparing for since September. The two months we've been thinking about since we jumped in the pool for the first practice. March and April. Championship season. I'm extremely excited to see what the team as well as myself will do going into MOCs, States, and Nationals. With the new suit technology, anything is possible. I know there's a lot of controversy going around about the suits and how they're giving people an unfair advantage. I'm probably gonna get ridiculed for this later for sounding like a hypocrite because I own a… more »

Well the past two days have been extremely painful and I have a feeling the hard practices aren't going to be stopping any time soon. Sunday we did 9050 yards and today was 6300 in 1 1/2 hours. Needless to say, my body is definitely screaming at me right now. I got in one of my moods after today's practice - one of those moods where I just got really annoyed and overanalyzed everything I did wrong. I don't swim smart. I never have. Usually my race strategy is to take it out as fast as possible and pray that… more »

So that woman that claimed to swim across the Atlantic Ocean - well, it turns out that she actually didn't and made up the whole story for the press and money. This was the article I discovered today and it's anything but pretty. They should have known something was wrong when she thanked her heroes Rosie Ruiz and George O'Leary. Over the weekend, the Associated Press (and other outlets including CNN) carried news that 56-year-old Jennifer Figge became the first woman to swim the Atlantic Ocean. The article described her trip from Cape Verde, off the coast of Africa, to… more »

Swimming fly-based practices on both Saturday and Sunday has me feeling steam rollered right about now. I was complaining about how sore I was for the majority of the day until I saw an article about a 56 year old woman who swam the entire Atlantic Ocean. And I'm complaining about swimming 4.5 miles in 2 1/2 hours. Here's some of the story here: A 56-year old American woman has fulfilled a dream she has had for nearly 50 years, and made history in the process, by swimming across the Atlantic Ocean. Jennifer Figge has become the first woman on… more »

COUNTY CHAMP. 100 Free. 1:01.03 short course meters. Has this happened before? No. Have I ever felt this cool? Once. and that was a certain date in March last year that I qualified for a certain meet that takes place in Florida. But in all seriousness, my 50 was absolutely terrible and I wanted to make up for it in the 100. It was definitely one of those "oh my god did I just win?" moments. Definitely a step higher from my county performances freshman and sophomore year. Could not be happier :) more »

Well, I'm sitting here contemplating what tomorrow's going to bring. Counties 2009. The past two years I was disappointed with the results mainly because there was something that went wrong in a race. Freshman Year- 200 Free, 100 Fly. Not a banner day for me - I was young, naive, and probably too intimidated to cause any real damage at a high school county meet. Though the best hightlight was our relay with Lauren English coming in first place. That's a race I will never forget for a long time. Sophomore Year- 50 Free, 100 Free. I was so obsessed… more »

I'm finding it easier and easier to push myself harder at practice. That sounds like an oxymoron but it totally applies. We had a hard set today that at this time last year, I would've looked at it and completely given up. But I actually did really well with it, not exactly where Keira wanted me, but within a second of it. I definitely look forward to going practice now. Each day is different - you never know what to expect and there's always something new to learn. I feel like there's something different about this year. A new attitude… more »

Let's just say having an entire week of doubles before competing doesn't do much for your times. I don't think anyone got best times today... well, except for that ten year old that keeps breaking team records left and right. I added 2 seconds in each of my events. My coach keeps telling me that I can't be afraid of the 500, that I could be so much faster. Which, I agree with because I shouldn't be going 5:38 if my 100 is sub 54. I just don't know how to swim the race. Heck, I don't even know how… more »

I definitely think swimming is all about your mental attitude towards the race. If you psych yourself out, there's no way you're going to get the results you want. Today for example, I was nervous as anything for my 400 IM. I ended up adding 6 seconds. I have an issue with taking things out too fast and dying. I guess it's the sprinter in me. My 200 fly, on the other hand, was great. I didn't think about it too much and just decided to swim. I got my best time by 2 seconds (2:20.77) I was really happy… more »

I'm just starting to figure out how to use this site. I can't believe I didn't think of joining before. I'll probably update this every so often after a meet or if I'm stressing about anything. I'm going to try to keep a daily log of my workouts as well. I'm really excited for the months to come and I'm training harder than ever. I want to have a great meet at Nationals. I hope my hard work pays off. The team is huge this year. We have 19 kids and it's only December. That's already one more than we… more »