This post is written by guest blogger & Fitter & Faster Partner:

Kyle Sockwell

This time of year always pulls me back into thinking deeply about the people and moments that shaped my career in the sport. Swimming has a funny way of convincing you that the only things that matter are intervals, stroke counts, and whatever is written on the whiteboard (or piece of wet computer paper) at 6:12 AM on a random Thursday morning. You look up and it’s dark outside, your teammates are half awake, your coach is somehow more alert than the entire group combined, and you start another round of chasing a goal that sounds borderline ridiculous when you say it out loud…moving through water faster than you ever have in your life.

That’s the whole assignment…or at least the main objective.

 When I look back on my career, I wish I had realized a little earlier how lucky I was to get to do that. Katie Ledecky once said, “I love the process.” That simple line hits harder the older you get in the sport. You don’t always love the 10 x 300 pull or the 6AM plunge into a 78º pool in February, but you grow to appreciate what those moments mean and the people who help you get through them.

We all occasionally get caught up in the repetition of the sport. 

Practice after practice. 

Meet after meet. 

The weeks start to blend and you begin to treat the grind like a checklist. But behind all of it is an ecosystem of people who make the sport possible and make it fun. The teammates who turn a silent warm up into something that feels like a shared mission. The coaches who pour more energy into your goals than you sometimes do. The parents, volunteers, timers, officials, and staff who keep the whole operation running so you can focus on your goals. They are quiet forces that shape your career more than you realize in the moment.

As I reflect on everything swimming gave me, I keep coming back to this idea. You only get so many seasons. You only get so many early mornings with the same group of people chasing something that does not make much sense to anyone outside the sport. Gratitude in swimming is not a massive realization. It is a collection of small ones. It is understanding how rare it is to chase something this demanding with people who care this much. It is recognizing that the grind is actually a privilege.

So as the year winds down, take a second to look around. Appreciate the early mornings, the coach with the slightly annoyingly loud whistle, the teammate who pulls you through the last rep, and the chance to keep chasing a goal that might always be just out of reach in the best possible way.

I didn’t reach every goal I had for myself in the sport, but I was really lucky to get to swim.

It goes fast.