by Olivier Poirer-Leroy

How did the greatest swimmer in history prepare on the day of his biggest performances? Here is what swimmers can learn from Michael Phelps’ full race day routine.

On the morning of the big race we wake up with a mixture of nerves, excitement, and possibly even dread. (But hopefully mostly excitement!)

With all the hard work in swim practice behind us—all those two-a-days, the reps on reps of 400s pull, the timed kick sets—now it’s time to see what we are capable of.

Although the training is behind us, and the taper has been completed, for a lot of us chlorinated athletes it’s the race day part that causes us the most problems: keeping our head straight and our thoughts positive long enough to compete at our best.

For the greatest swimmer of all time, Michael Phelps, a pre-race routine was fundamental to helping him feel in control, stay calm in the face of insane amounts of pressure, and remain laser-focused on his own performance.

Here’s what Michael’s race day routine looked like.

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