The lifeguards are gone…

ICYMI: New Night Swim interview with Van Mathias, the newest American record holder in the 50 LCM Breast.

Van works a full-time desk job (Director of Operations at Indiana), trains once a day, and became he fastest American sprint breaststroker in history, going 26.39 in Norway last month in the 50 LCM Breaststroke.

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The Setup

Van quit swimming two years ago. Got into bodybuilding. Zero cardio. Ballooned to 235 lbs. Then last summer, his coaches (Ray Looze and John Long at IU) watched World Trials and said, "You could do this."

Eight weeks later: qualified for nationals.

Four months after that: American record holder.

Here's what stuck out from the interview:

Less Pool Time, Smarter Training

Van's not grinding 20+ hours in the pool. He can't - he's got a real job ordering Jimmy John’s for hungry college swimmers and pushing paper.

What he does:

· One practice per day (no doubles)

· Heavy lifting 2x/week (Olympic lifts, compound movements, serious weight)

· Low volume, high intensity

His philosophy: "Swimming doesn't need to stress me out. It's my escape after staring at a computer for 5 hours."

6:11 - Why Van trains while working full-time

11:05 - "What are you doing that got you from casual swimming to American record holder?"

17:32 - Typical Friday practice walkthrough (dryland + speed endurance)

Strength Work Pays Off (Even When You're Not Swimming)

Two years of pure bodybuilding (no cardio, no pool time) built the power base that made everything else work.

When Van came back:

· Speed was still there (he was fresh)

· Endurance was gone (first month = just getting back in shape)

· Strength translated immediately to explosiveness

Van's take: "The strength was there to be successful. I just had to find the feel again."

13:31 - How two years of lifting with zero cardio affected his comeback

20:29 - Van's current lifting program (Olympic lifts, heavy compounds)

Inspired by Cameron McEvoy's Low-Volume Approach

John Long and Ray Looze studied what Cameron McEvoy was doing (minimal pool volume, maximum quality). Then they used Van as the Guinea pig.

Van's words: "John got a brand new Guinea pig to try stuff with. We planned to swim a 50 and 100 breaststroke that summer - mostly the 100 just so I could get cuts."

It worked.

11:34 - Coaches introduce Cameron McEvoy's training philosophy

14:58 - "Part necessity, part curiosity — what can we do in the pool and still be fast?"

Swimming Should Be Fun (Even at the Elite Level)

Van's on "borrowed time." He did his college career. He has a job. Swimming is the bonus content atm.

Quote: "I'm appreciative of every minute in the pool. I'm not stressing about times. I'm just enjoying it. This is my extra life."

Compare that to burned-out college kids grinding doubles who hate practice. Van's having fun. And it's working.

15:17 - "Swimming's an escape for me. It's my treat after 5 hours at a computer."

1:05:56 - "Swimming's got to be fun. If I'm just a 100 breaststroker, I won't get as much out of it."

Crushing Dryland Workouts to Get in Shape Fast

Before Friday speed work, Van does a dryland session that would wreck most swimmers:

· Med ball slams against the wall (60 seconds straight, chest passes)

· Core work, calisthenics, body weight movements

· Then straight into pulley work and broken race pace efforts in the pool

Van's take: "That shit whipped me into shape fast. When you only have 4 weeks to get ready, you do what works."

17:52 - Med ball dryland protocol walkthrough

18:10 - "If you're going to finish 100 breast, you got to do a minute of med ball chest passes."

Recovery is Individualized (Hot Showers > Ice Baths)

Van tried ice baths. He didn’t like them. So he stopped.

Now it's hot showers before races, Normatec compression boots after practice, and doing what actually works for his body.

His advice: "If it makes you perform better, do it. If it doesn't, don't."

38:02 - Van's take on ice baths (he's not a fan)

1:11:11 - Getting a Normatec (uses it constantly)

Sodium Bicarb is Normal at the Elite Level?

Van talked openly about taking sodium bicarb (baking soda) before races. It's legal and apparently common now.

What he said: "The track & field director at IU told us, 'In track, you're behind if you're not taking it. It's like protein or creatine.'"

Van's experience: "I don't feel like I want to die after a race. I can hop out of the pool and walk around instead of crawling out shaky."

Does it actually work? Who knows. But if it helps him feel better and swim faster, he's taking it.

32:44 - First time taking sodium bicarb

35:04 - "I don't feel like I want to just die when I get out of the pool"

36:40 - Track & field coach's perspective: "You're behind if you're not taking it"

Swim Everything as a Kid

Van's club coaches made him swim every event on the meet schedule at least once a year. Including the mile (which he hates).

Why? Perspective.

Quote: "If you hop in and do 100 fly, you're like, '*&^% man, I just swam a mile last month. This is nothing.'"

Now he's swimming 50 fly, 50 free, and 100 breast at Pan Pacs. And he hinted at racing backstroke just for fun (with zero backstroke training) because "it keeps it fun."

1:03:09 - Club coaches made him swim every event for perspective

1:05:37 - "I'm not going to train for backstroke. We're just going to do it and see what happens."

Watch the Full Episode

Timestamps:
0:00 Intro + Elvis Solo Hosting
1:05 Van Mathias Joins (Director of Ops Life)
4:20 Feeding 90 Athletes is Harder Than You Think
8:10 “Swimming Was My Side Hustle… Now It’s Not”
10:45 The Moment Everything Changed (World Trials)
13:20 Training Plan Inspired by Cam McEvoy
16:05 Low Yardage, High Speed Training Explained
18:40 From 235 lbs to Elite Sprint Shape
21:15 “This is My Extra Life” Mindset
24:30 What a Real Sprint Practice Looks Like
27:10 Speed Endurance Sets That Destroy You
30:20 Why This Training Makes You Want to Throw Up
33:05 Weighted Pull-Ups + Strength Training
36:10 Olympic Lifting vs Swim-Specific Training
39:00 Norway Meet Experience + Travel Strategy
43:15 Time Zone Impact on Performance
47:10 What’s Next: Pro Series + Pan Pacs
49:20 “I Think I Can Go 57 in the 100 Breast”
51:00 Olympics Talk (Why He’s Not Thinking About It Yet)
54:10 NCAA vs Pro Training Differences
58:30 Mid-Distance → Sprint Transition
1:02:00 Ferrari vs Lawnmower (Best Coaching Advice)
1:05:20 “Guinea Pig” Training Experiments
1:08:30 Why Traditional Training is Wrong
1:11:00 How He Actually Built 100 Speed
1:14:20 The Secret: Speed First, Then Endurance
1:17:00 Why Most “Fast Sets” Are Fake
1:20:10 Puking During Practice (Real Talk)
1:23:00 Sodium Bicarb: Does It Actually Work?
1:28:00 Ice Baths vs Hot Showers Debate
1:30:40 Pan Pacs Events + Expanding Beyond Breaststroke
1:34:20 Racing Backstroke??
1:37:00 Why Swimming Has to Stay Fun
1:40:10 Final Thoughts + What’s Coming Next

Enjoy,

-Nate