swim culture is practicing at a different pool than normal and having one of the worst swims of your life 😔😔 kept hitting my fingers on the laneline and the shallow end was 2 1/2 feet deep

swim culture is talking about PRs to a runner and explaining that it's not the slowest time ever

Swim culture is your sister-in-law vaguely knowing that you swim and recommending you get a summer job at that ONE water park when you could literally teach swim lessons at that pool down the street

swim culture is your summer being at the pool all day (doubles + working as a lifeguard)

ok sorta swim culture, but like dec/jan are the hardest months of training but it all pays off when you get into feb and march and its just so nice, im tapering rn, have my last short course meet, have a 1 week break in 2 weeks, and then long course comes around and you have to actually start doing really hard practices again

Swim culture is finding out your childhood pool that was supposed to be shut down is actually being saved so you can come back during summer break in college to be a life guard and tease the new swimmers like the old guards did for you once (I literally started sobbing)

swim culture is being moved up groups before your friends so now you either have to make friends or wait 2 months

swim culture is being seeded 9th in the 500 free so you have to swim in the morning, but you were so close to swimming in finals instead (this is hs state, not club)