EP 86 (S2E34) - Carson Sundem Head Coach (ACP) & Real Estate

·1 hr 34 min·5 clips

Carson argues that “garbage yardage” is hurting swim practices.

Swim Bros opens into a long, familiar conversation with Carson. The tone stays casual and direct. Carson and the host spend a lot of time on how swimmers should actually be developed across a year. They talk through taper and what it means to address it before the season demands it. The conversation makes the case for undulating the body instead of grinding it flat. Carson frames that as a better way to recover, stay in better shape, and peak higher when it matters. There is clear skepticism toward the idea that club teams always know best just because they have more science or more resources. The discussion keeps returning to what is realistic for younger swimmers. Carson reminds listeners that most of these athletes are still under 17 and many are under 16. He makes the point that they are not adults with adult responsibilities, and the training load should reflect that. The episode leans hard into minimal effective dose. Carson describes his own path and says he did not start weights and doubles until he was around 15 and a half or 16, around the time he started high school. Before that, the work was simpler and smaller. It was more swimming, some dryland, some medicine balls, and a Saturday session with an older national group. The point is not nostalgia. It is a challenge to the habit of overcomplicating development. The talk also opens up into the way training environments can overpromise certainty. Carson suggests there are very few cases where anyone should be claiming a kid has to stay with one program for 12 months plus. The framing is protective without getting sentimental. It treats young athletes as people who need enough stimulus, not endless stimulus. The conversation then moves toward the transition ahead as Carson talks about moving from Division III toward Division I. That shift gives the episode a forward-looking edge. The training arguments are not abstract; they are tied to what comes next in real competition. The episode closes with a lighter note about the season, a possible third trophy, and the idea of checking back in later to see how it all shakes out. It lands like a coach and athlete still in the middle of the work, not above it. The overall feel is sincere, practical, and rooted in the everyday decisions that shape performance over time.

As heard by us

A loose but practical coaching talk that treats restraint and recovery as real advantages.

This Swim Bros episode stays grounded in taper, year-round load, and minimal effective dose, and that focus gives the coaching talk real weight. The strongest stretches come when it turns to recovery, resources, and pressure at different levels of the sport.

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Why you'd press play

Press play if you want a real-world take on taper, training load, and how to help young swimmers peak without overdoing it.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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