T O M     S H I E L D S

PREVIOUS SEASON REVIEW

INSIDE SWIM:  Let’s start with a review of your previous season, last summer. You competed in 3 events at World Championships, the 100 fly, 200 fly, and 400 Medley Relay, which won gold. Can you take us through that meet for you and how you felt about your performances there?

TOM SHIELDS:  That meet was really crazy for me. It was up and down for sure. I think the prelims and semifinals of the 100 fly were exactly what I was looking for and then I kind of choked in the back end of the 100 fly too much in the finals – I don’t think I really committed to the race. I let the guys who got 1^st and 2^nd in the 200 fly beat me to the 50…and that’s not recommended for anyone out there haha.

You were 7^th at the 50 right?

Yea, I was like 24.1 and I needed to be out a little faster. That’s kind of what this fall has been about – just trying to figure that out.   But yea, the 2 fly wasn’t there that season so I’m really just trying to get that funk back too. The relay was really fun though. It was kind of like a nice end for a really tough week for us Cal guys. I think Nathan had a disappointing individual 100 free, Murph (Ryan Murphy) obviously wanted to medal in the 200 back, and the same fore me in the 100 fly – and that didn’t happen for us. And Murph had that stellar 100 back in the prelims of the Mixed Medley Relay and didn’t swim as fast at night. So it was just nice to come together as a group with Kevin (Cordes) and just finish off the meet strong. And Kevin was on a roll so he was rock solid for us.

Do you feel that you learned anything in particular from competing in that meet?

Yea, I think I need to pay better attention to what I am doing and not be focused on what other athletes are doing – and also not take a month off in December, I think that was a good lesson too haha. But it was great to get married, so I’m not going to say that I regret that. But I think I would be remiss not to say that at least a part of that performance was due to taking some time off and going on vacation in December and January.

TRAINING

Coming into this Olympic season, has your training changed in any way or has what you are focusing on in practice changed in any way from the previous season?

Yea, but I mean, not necessarily because of the Olympics. I feel that I do get a little better every year and its because I learn something new and I’m able to tweak something. And (Dave) Durden, my coach, has some good quotes – he says that you don’t want to do too much different in an Olympic cycle. If anything I’m kind of readapting what I’m doing in the weight room to be a little more specific. Also, I’ve lost about 15 pounds since worlds and a total of 25 pounds since my wedding, and that is just kind of me continuing to get back into shape. So yea there are some special things but nothing too crazy – but yea dude I got big out there on my honey moon. I gained about a pound a day every day that I was out of the water haha.

Are there any weaknesses in your strokes that you have noticed and intend to work on moving forward?

Oh of course, yea. So whenever I’ve taken consecutive breaths in butterfly, which in the 200 is quite a few haha, I seem to lift (my body position up too high). So that is kind of my main focus. Also, I’m working on getting in and out of the walls better because that has been pretty weak for me. I seem to get off the walls pretty well but I’ve been kind of lazy getting into them. So mostly getting in and out of my walls and not lifting on my breaths. In my 100 fly you’ll see me doing a lot of 2 up 2 down breathing or 1 up 1 down breathing so I don’t get too many consecutive breaths in. I’m trying to minimize those strokes and fix them eventually.

You’ve always been great at relay starts and it seems like lately your flat start has improved as well. What have you been doing to improve on that?

I’ve been working on cleans. Also, I think the body weight thing is a lot of that. I feel like I haven’t lost much in my clean ability but I’ve lost 15 pounds so that’s going to drive up my power a lot. And I’ve been working on some techniques and head position stuff, with Tim O’Brien actually, while I was gone, and with Mike Wong who is our volunteer assistant. But you know, nothing terribly specific. My zero to 15 meters has never been a problem, especially in the 100 fly field. I feel like in the 100 fly final at Worlds I was able to beat Joseph (Schooling) and Lazlo (Cseh) but Chad (le Clos) probably got a nose on me just because he came up a tad bit earlier. That’s actually something I’ve been thinking about – not kicking out all the way to 15 meters. I know I don’t have the sexiest reaction time, or the most explosive jump but I enter well and I get a good kick and I think that almost matters more.

So you’re thinking of cutting your underwaters a little bit shorter?

Just off the dive, maybe .2 or .3 of a meter shorter because putting my head at 15 might actually throw my rhythm off a little to hit it. So it might be worth it to just come up and swim and that’s what I did short course – just come up at like 14.75 meters and get into that powerful stroke.  So yea, its something that I’ve been thinking about but obviously that’s pretending that I’m asserting a level of control over my swimming that I don’t have haha.

Haha, could have fooled me!  I’ve seen videos and it looks like you put your head right on the 15 meter mark on almost all of your walls.

Yea, I’ve gotten lucky a lot of times in my career haha. I used to be able to see the 15 meter marker but now I don’t come off the wall as deep so I’m not coming up at the marker as steep, therefore I’m not breaking out as high – which is what I’m focusing on – but its harder to see the marker. Maximizing underwater speed was always what I did, especially in college, that was when I was really getting as far as I could. I would push off the wall real deep and I would be at such an angle with my body that I could see the 15 meter marker out of the corner of my eye, and I don’t do that any more so I just have to get lucky haha. A lot of time I just have to kind of do what I do and just trust myself and that’s what puts me at 15.

I recently saw a video of your 100 fly at the California Fall Challenge meet. Obviously I noticed your underwaters, and not only did you come up a half body length ahead of everyone else but you made it look so easy as well. What do you think separates your underwaters from those of a normal D1 swimmer?

Man I don’t know!  I’ve seen some videos from Worlds and it looks like I’m not trying! Haha. So it’s just like maybe if I try harder I could go faster haha. But I don’t know…that’s just the way I swim – but I do know what you’re talking about.   I’m not as clunky, and maybe not as strong, as other people but I have good rhythm and I just rely on technique and the little things.  I do need to get that fast twitch and that really quick speed on the first 50 at least because I need to go out faster. I think there (CA Fall Challenge meet) I was out 24.6 which is so slow.  If I’m trying to go 50 point I can’t be going out 24 mid.  I need to be 23.7 at least.

Has your training changed in any way to focus on that get-out speed?

Oh yea. We have been doing a lot more power. I’ve also picked up an extra practice a week this fall so I can keep my aerobic base but just do another session of speed work with the extra practice.  And I’m doing a lot of underwater speed work that I haven’t done in a long time.

Lets take it back for a minute – to your freshman year of college. What would you say accounts for the giant drop that you had in the 100 fly from high school to your freshmen year of 47.5 to 44.9?

Nick Folker, Dave Durden, and Greg Meehan. I think Dave is one of the best butterfly coaches around right now and I think that Folker really knew how to get me stronger in a way that wouldn’t hurt me. And also I was part of a team that really filled me with confidence. I knew I was good at underwaters and I knew I had a goal of being a fast underwater swimmer, but when I got to school and we were working on underwaters and getting times for 15 meter underwater swims everyone was like dude, no one does times like that…like you already are as fast as the fastest.  It got sort of into me like that and that really helped me get the confidence.

What was the biggest thing in helping you get to the speed you were at in short course yards for long course meters?

Just focusing on it. I think that people get that wrong too much.  They really focus on short course vs. long course too much.  I feel like everything is just an event.  The 100 yard fly is just an event and the 100 meter fly is just an event.  And I don’t think I have long course figured out yet.  I’ve done a couple of good 200 flys, I don’t have the 200 free figured out, I don’t have the 100 free figured out, but I have a pretty good 100 fly plan.  I think they are all just their own individual events and I try to think like “lets attack this event and figure it out” or “lets attack this other event and figure it out.” And when I have that mind set it seems to work better for me.

You mentioned in a prior interview that as a yards focused swimmer you had a narrower, more power-focused stroke. You said that now, as a long course focused swimmer, you catch wide and focus on the entry kick. Why have you changed your stroke in these ways when focusing on long course?

Just because it’s less for your shoulders to do.  Also, a lot of times your chest will be at its lowest at the point when you’re throwing your hands forward and when you’re getting that entry kick and so you have to wait for that sweep out, like breaststroke, when your chest can start to come up and that might not be the best position to initiate that catch.  So it’s a timing thing and it’s just less for your shoulders to do.

What is the biggest difference between the training you did in college and the training you are doing now?

I don’t have a group. At all times that’s probably the hardest and the biggest difference. I swim with the pro group but Chuck (Katis) is a breaststroker and Nathan (Adrian) and Natalie (Coughlin) are sprinters. And that being said, no one really runs the training group schedule that I do. I do 4 mornings a week where I work out with the milers, then in the afternoon I have been doing the underwater group this year instead of the IM group, and that gives me an extra practice to just work on underwaters which I think has been good for me.  So it’s different because you’re not with 40 other guys through everything you do – you’re on your own more and that’s hard. And I think its only hard because of how good it was for us in college.   Our coaches were very good about keeping the group together and keeping it about the group mentality, and that’s a necessity. You’re either going to have a group that gets focus or you’re going to have a couple of key individuals that get focus, and we definitely have a group at Cal. We do that because we are able to foster an environment where we self-care and we create.  Most of the stroke stuff that I’ve learned throughout my career is from other athletes and it has been facilitated by the coaches and the connections that they have made happen.  That’s something that we’ve had for a long time and we cherish it.

What would you advise a swimmer to do who struggles with getting their underwaters technique right?

More than anything else, do it in warm up.  Also, you’re not going to be good at something if your not comfortable doing it – so you can understand the theory of underwaters all you want but the bottom line is you have to get in and be comfortable doing them. You can watch all the videos you want and do all the cute little drills that you want but if you’re not getting in and doing it everyday then its not going to happen for you.  I like to get in and do a 400 flop. I make sure to get at least 15 meters underwater off every wall, just do open turns…you know, nothing hard. Establishing that length and doing it with the least amount of kicks possible or doing it with a certain amount of kicks is important.  I do 10 to 15 kicks in warm-up or sometimes I do 8 if I want to go really slow.  But in a race I do about 13.  Honestly though, if you’re not doing them in warm up then its not going to translate into practice. When a set is hard its not going to be easier for you to do underwaters then, so you have to do underwaters during the easy parts of practice, like warm up.   That way when it gets harder you will already be used to doing them and you can increase how many you do as the season progresses.

And also, just find your own drills. We do drills that everyone does and we do drills that we’ve made up. We’ve got drills that Dave has made up to focus on something for me specifically and we’ve got drills that Dave has made up to focus on something that someone else has to work on.  Just because it doesn’t exist yet, or doesn’t exist yet for you, doesn’t mean that its not out there.  Just find those drills man, find those and make yourself better. Put zoomers on, kick with fins, kick in all planes, kick upside down – the important stuff is getting in and doing it really.

Sorry, longer answer than you were probably looking for. Im obviously pretty passionate about the underwaters! Haha.  

Haha no, it’s all good!  That’s what we are looking for!  What goes through your head/or what are you thinking about when you are behind the blocks for a finals event at a big meet?

It varies, I think that’s why I’m a little inconsistent. But when its good, the mentality that I’m fostering is relaxed and having fun.  I’m focused on racing and not necessarily on too much about the race.  I might be thinking about 1 or 2 things but I’m really just focused on winning.  At worlds this year it wasn’t really that way – I was really thinking though my swims.  And sure, there are times when you need to think though your swims, but not at worlds.

PERSONAL LIFE

Are you still an avid surfer?

Haha I mean I’ll paddle out and I love it but I’ll go home and all my friends will easily out-surf me.   I’m not even good – but I’m really good at body surfing.

How do you unwind?

I play video games, I hang out with my wife, go on dates…we do all that. Just spend time with her really and commit to growing and fostering a new family with her. I’ve actually really been getting into politics lately too just because I do have some free time.  Bernie Sanders is my guy!

What video games in particular do you play?

Super Mario 3D World is my jam. I play a lot of Battlefront recently because it just came out, all the Legend of Zelda games..and Pokemon games as well. Also, Call of Duty Zombies is intense out here – it really gets the blood flowing – but its more chill for me to kick back and beat a couple of dungeons on Legend of Zelda.

Where do you and your wife Gianna live?

We live in an apartment with 6 other athletes, 4 are actually still on the swim team.

THE GOOD STUFF

Who is your favorite person to follow on Instagram/Twitter?

I follow a ton of surf accounts.  But my two favorite accounts by far are Kook of the Day and Kook Slams – which I probably deserve to be on more than I don’t.  Kook Slams basically just posts hard wipe outs and Kook of the Day basically just makes fun of people for being a kook!

If you had to choose a ringtone for your phone right now what would it be?

“Mary” by Sublime or “Total Hate” by No Doubt.  I’m a big fan of Gwen Stefani and I love No Doubt.  Her new song, “Used to Love You,” is great, I love it!

Who is your hero and why?

So I just watched the Bones Brigade Documentary a couple of months ago, I watched this guys TED Talk recently, and I’ve read about his life story – I personally think he is one of the best athletes of all time – so I’m gonna have to say Rodney Mullen.  It’s just unreal what he’s been able to do.  He’s such an inspiration.  The creativity that goes into his skating is so inspiring.  It’s like “oh man, cool!” maybe I can bring just a little bit of that into my swimming and help it to get better.

Outside of that there’s a bunch of surfers.  Kelley Slater obviously, and also Shawn Barron from Santa Cruz, who actually just passed away. I never got the chance to meet him but I’ve seen a lot of videos on him and I know his story and I think that he was a big inspiration to a lot of people, myself included.

What would I find in your refrigerator right now?

Non fat Greek yogurt, a lot of fat free items, and lean meats. I’m also working with Renaissance Periodization which is a nutrition and exercise company.  The person that I’m specifically working with is Mike Goddard and he has been amazing.  The company gives you an excel sheet of what you’re supposed to eat and they have really helped me to get down to a good weight.  It’s really good during times that you want to have high and moderate glycemic index carbs – but not too many obviously – and really low fat.  It’s just a bunch of small meals and it’s great. I would advise anyone to use it and go check them out.

If they made a movie about your life, who would you want to play you?

Donald Glover – Childish Gambino.  That’s more just because I thought he should have been Spiderman and he didn’t get to be Spiderman, so he should get to be in another movie.

FAVORITES

Pre-meet meal:

A few hours out I will have a bar or some oatmeal and an apple.  Just kind of low fat, high carbs stuff.

Pre-race song/music:

Sublime, No Doubt, Slightly Stoopid, any of the Volcom house bands, Anti-Flag, The Clash, of course Blink 182, KRS-One and old school rap, Eminem…I like a lot of different stuff haha.

Phone App:

Definitely Instagram.

You have a pretty descent flow, what kind of conditioner/shampoo do you use?

“Mane and Tail,” that horse shampoo.

MOVING FORWARD/OLYMPICS 2016

What events are you planning to swim going into trials? The 100 fly and 200 fly are obviously givens. Do you plan on taking a crack at the 100 free to get a spot on the relay?

Yea definitely those, we’ll see what happens, maybe the 200 free. I think everybody has a shot in the 100 free.  Just dive in and sprint – try to get 6^th, or 5^th if they change the rules.  So we’ll see what happens.  You know, it’s (the 100 free) just something that’s fun and its cool because I never used to really train with Nathan, and I don’t often now, but when I do its fun to have some training partner action and see if I can get my freestyle any better.  So we’ve trained together a couple of times this fall.

Any advice for swimmers where this will be their first Olympic trails?

Don’t worry about it too much, it wont be as crazy as you think, and if you do what you know you’ll have success, don’t try to do anything you don’t know.