Recently we had a chance to sit down with Mark Schubert, a nationally renowned swim coach who has had a very exciting career helping mold a wide array of extremely talented young swimmers. We’re honored that Mark has used our products for many years and thought our readers would be interested in his unique background and his approach to swim conditioning.
Can you tell us a bit about your background?
I was the head swim coach for the Mission Viejo Nadadores from 1972 – 1985 where we won 43 national championships and put 15 swimmers on Olympic teams. From there I went to the aquatic center in Boca Raton from 1985-1988 where we put 3 swimmers on Olympic teams and won 10 national championships. Next I went to the University of Texas where we won 2 NCAA titles and came in 2nd place twice and put 3 swimmers on the Olympic team. Next I went to USC for 17 years where we won 1 national championship and several swimmers made it on the Olympic team. From there I joined USA Swimming as the national team head coach and general manager for 4 years. Now my career has come full circle as I’m back as the head swim coach of the Mission Viejo Nadadores.
Why did you come back to Mission Viejo?
I came back to Mission Viejo because of the great facilities and to work with one of the greatest teams in the country.
Where are you from?
I grew up in Akron, OH and went to Firestone High School and still call it home. It’s been quite a bit of fun to have such a great relationship with NZ Manufacturing, another great Ohio company.
How have you used NZ Manufacturing products in your training?
Currently we use a variety of different NZ Manufacturing products. We use the swim belts for various drills such as sprints with fins and paddles. We also perform swim assisted drills where one partner swims while the other partner sprints.
In addition, we use the Modular Dryland Kit several times per week in a variety of different drills such as:
- Timing the athletes to see how many repetitions they can complete in a certain time period.
- Instruct the athletes to perform a certain number of repetitions of the exercise. As is the case with all of our drills, form is extremely key as we’re looking for movements that mimic swimming. We want a swimmer’s form to be as fluid and deliberate as possible.
What are some of the benefits of NZ Manufacturing products that have caused you to use them in your training?
We mainly use NZ Manufacturing products because of the superior way in which they’re constructed. They last longer than any other products we have tried over the years. We also like how some of the equipment, such as the StrechCordz® with Paddles, benefits our swim stroke training. In addition, we’ve found that when we’re doing assisted drills, we need resistance training equipment that’s substantial and that will stand up to constant use over an extended period of time. The resistance training equipment from NZ Manufacturing are some of the only tools we’ve found to sufficiently meet these needs.
Good Luck to Mark Schubert and the Mission Viejo Nadadores!
It’s always exciting to chat with amazing coaches like Mark Schubert of the Mission Viejo Nadadores. His accomplishments are truly inspirational and we’re excited to see how well his Mission Viejo teams will perform over the next few years.
To learn more about any of the NZ Manufacturing products mentioned above feel free to reach out to our team today by phone at 800-886-6621 or use our online contact form.