In a Blaze of 23 Seconds

It was Cameron McEvoy who reignited something in me.

He famously prepared for the 50-metre freestyle in a way many people considered controversial. Instead of spending endless hours in the pool, he limited his swimming and focused intensely on speed—training the fast-twitch muscle fibres responsible for explosive movement.

Could that really work?

Regardless of what people thought, he persisted. He combined short, highly focused swimming sessions with hours of strength training, heavy weights and even rock climbing.

They said it wouldn’t work.

Then, in a blaze of 23-second glory, he proved them wrong.

I was hooked.

Maybe this could help me.

I didn’t need another vague goal or another promise that I would begin someday. I needed focus. I needed drive. Most importantly, I needed something I could put into action.

And so it began.

I wasn’t entirely sure what I was doing, but I started following Cam’s approach—although perhaps not quite as rigorously.

Not yet, anyway.

I’ve studied the science at university. Now it’s time to stop treating it as theory and put it into motion.