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Swimmers spend hours in the pool, yet many still aren’t eating enough to support the work they’re doing.

Alicia Glass, Sport Dietitian for USA Swimming, joins to explain why swimmers need to think more like endurance athletes—and what happens when training volume and fueling fall out of alignment. We discuss early-morning practices without breakfast, why sugar and sports drinks can be valuable performance tools, and the practical barriers that keep exhausted athletes from eating consistently.

The conversation also explores why effective nutrition advice must account for the individual, how restrictive ideas about “healthy” eating can leave athletes less adaptable, and what coaches should look for when bringing nutrition professionals into their programs.

Finally, Alicia offers a nuanced approach to one of swimming’s most difficult subjects: body composition.

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Swimming has spent decades asking coaches to become more professional. But has the profession done enough to support them in return?

Doug Cornish is a former swim coach, financial planner, and the creator of the 2025 Swim Coaches Compensation Survey. His findings expose how precarious coaching has become: 38% of respondents reported working without a current contract, while 80% had no cost-of-living adjustment built into their agreements.

Doug and I discuss why coaches continue accepting these conditions, how poor financial stewardship limits what clubs can provide, and why coach retention is foundational to athlete development and the future of the sport. We also lay out five practical changes that could begin moving the profession forward—from credible compensation data and honest job ratings to board education, stronger financial structures, and contract templates.

This isn’t just a conversation about what’s wrong. It’s about what swimming can actually do next—because if we want to save the sport, we have to start with the coaches.

Doug's e-mail: doug@swimpler.com

Website: swimpler.com

ISCA Email 1: https://mailchi.mp/swimisca/coach-retention-the-future-of-swimming-depends-on-it?e=70a9f8d406

ISCA Email 2: https://mailchi.mp/swimisca/can-great-coaches-afford-to-remain-great

2025 Coach Compensation Survery Data

10 Ways to Value Coaches

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Margo Geer’s path to becoming the head coach at the University of Alabama was anything but conventional. When she took over the program at 28, plenty of people questioned whether she was ready.

Six years later, Margo joins me to discuss what prepared her for the opportunity, how her experience as an elite athlete shaped her leadership, and why she was able to deal with the criticism surrounding her hiring.

We also talk about protecting the health and performance of coaches, the value of letting athletes experience different environments, and why college swimming may need to reconsider its 365-days-a-year mentality.

Margo also shares the coaches who shaped her, what she has learned through six years in charge, and how she continues to balance curiosity, ambition, relationships, and life away from the pool.