Simon Griffiths: my take on tech

Your relationship with technology, what you use or ignore, will almost certainly be different to mine. And that’s OK, says Simon Griffiths

My use of technology comes in phases, often driven by feelings as much as practical reasons. Right now, I’m in a minimalist phase. I’ve stopped wearing a watch in both the pool and open water. I loaned my smart goggles to another swimmer and never asked for them back. When the battery died in my swimming metronome, I didn’t replace it. The only piece of electronic kit I use now is an analogue pace clock.

I’m enjoying having as little as possible to detract from the experience of swimming. I don’t miss the steady beep in my ear reminding me to keep my rhythm or the head-up display showing me my speed in real-time. I like that I don’t have stats to review post-swim and I don’t mind not having a record of how far I’ve swum.

It’s liberating. When I’ve used tech in the past, I’ve found myself adjusting my swimming to ‘please’ the technology rather than swimming normally and letting the kit keep records. For example, I found myself pushing for unhelpful distance targets and avoiding drills that wouldn’t record properly. Silly things.

But I’m not a Luddite. I’m in awe of modern technology and how it can enhance our lives – and our swimming. I understand that tracking your swimming stats can be both satisfying and useful. We learn and progress through feedback – and our technical devices give us plenty of that. When I work directly with swimmers, reviewing data can often reveal things to work on. It’s helpful for tracking progress across a range of metrics.

We have technology now that can give us feedback on our swimming technique too. I tested an app that suggested I was doing something of a thumb first entry – something I thought I’d eliminated years ago. I didn’t believe it. But then I watched a video of myself, and there it was.

And then, of course, there’s AI, which I’ve been experimenting with in several areas. I find it particularly helpful for exploring and developing ideas. Recently, I fed in my race times, including splits, for several pool events. I added contextual information about how I felt and what I’d observed from video recordings. I then asked questions such as:

• What does this data tell you about my strengths and weaknesses as a swimmer?
• What should I work on to improve my 100m butterfly time?
• Am I better off trying to swim further underwater or surfacing sooner?

I like to push back against the first answers too. Why did you say this? Are you sure about this, given that I also do long distance open water swims? Would you give me the same advice if I were 30 years younger? (For some reason, AI loves to keep reminding me of my age).

I also use AI to help with training sessions. I start by writing a session, then I ask AI to analyse it. Who do you think this session is for? What’s its purpose? If its answers align with my objectives, then great. If not, I’ll ask for suggestions to improve it. It always gives me something to think about, even if I don’t use it.

In other words, you can use AI as a learning tool rather than a creation tool. But if you wanted, you could ask it to build a tailored training plan. And it would most likely be good.

But would you follow it? Or do you need the personal connection of a human coach or training partner to keep you accountable, and to share the ups and downs of your swimming growth?

Technology is wonderful but sometimes overbearing. Swimming can be a refuge, and we should be able to keep it that way. The key is to make deliberate choices about what technology we let in, and what we keep out, and allowing ourselves the flexibility to adjust according to our mood. Use it when it suits you – and savour the joy of swimming unconnected when you don’t.