For any average high school student, their alarm may go off at any point between 5:30 and 7:00 A.M. From there, it’s a slow and groggy morning as they go through their routine and prepare for the school day ahead, possibly running facts they memorized the night before through their mind or wondering if they did their math homework. Then it’s off to school.

For a different group of students, one that is beginning to increase as years pass, their alarm may go off as early as 4:00 A.M. They go through their morning routine, as any average student would, but theirs has a special point integrated within it— jumping into the pool.

Having practices before they go to school is nothing new to active swimmers, specifically those on the Oakton swim team. Having practices three or four mornings a week, these athletes are able to swim laps and work their hardest while, at the same time, their peers are just getting out of bed. To some, getting up and doing anything that early is their worst nightmare. To others, it’s not as bad as it seems.

“The only hard part about morning practice is getting out of bed,” said Joe Wong, 10. “After you’ve done that, It’s just a normal practice.”

Joe brought up another interesting point, saying that “The only difference between morning and afternoon practice is the time. I perform the same during both.”

That’s a benefit that you might not consider at first thought— having your afternoons freed for homework, sleep, and other activities. Joes also added that coffee is always a big help in the mornings.

So, with practices in the morning and their afternoons freed up, swimmers are able to manage their time and get plenty of sleep like the rest of us, at least their full eight hours.

What about, though, the new crop of younger swimmers having practice before their day at middle school, or even elementary school?

Connor Tain, a sixth grader at Waples Mill Elementary School, swims every Friday morning from 4:45-6:45.

“Jumping in the pool that early can be hard, knowing how hard you will have to work, but afterwards you feel great,” Connor said about early morning practices.

He gets 7 hours of sleep a night, two hours less than his age range’s suggested amount of sleep, but he says it doesn’t bother him too much if he’s able to take a nap between practice and school. With school starting much later for him than us, and only having practice once a week, Connor and other swimmers like him manage just fine.

While early morning practices seem like they would be less than enjoyable to the most of us, some swimmers think it’s a great way to start off the morning feeling refreshed. Others, though, may prefer having their practices in the afternoon. In that case, to each their own.