Torpedo Swimtalk Podcast with German Masters Swimmer and European Championship medallist Martin Klein

On today's Torpedo Swimtalk Podcast we meet Martin Klein from Frankfurt, a dedicated masters swimmer who competes with fervour and finds his motivation from within. Inspired by Eric Fromm's "To Have or To Be," Martin shares his philosophy on personal growth and intrinsic motivation, emphasising the joy of swimming beyond the medals. This episode sheds light on his solo training routine, the camaraderie of national and European competitions, and the mental clarity swimming brings in an always-connected world.

Learn how Martin is preparing for next years World Masters Championships in Singapore and get a behind-the-scenes look at his recent performance at the European Championship in Belgrade. Martin also opens up about his mental preparation techniques, like visualisation, to stay focused and calm during races. From the technical nuances of backstroke turns to the specific strength workouts that keep him at peak performance, discover the secrets that help Martin maintain his impressive lifetime personal bests. 

Join us for an inspiring conversation that showcases the passion and perseverance of a true master swimmer.

Chapters

• 0:10 Master Swimming Philosophy and Progress
• 18:56 Masters Swimmer Goals and Training

Transcript

Danielle Spurling: 0:10

Hello swimmers and welcome to another episode of Torpedo Swim Talk podcast. I'm your host, Danielle Sprling, and each week we chat to an inspiring swimmer from around the world about their swimming journey. Swimmer from around the world about their swimming journey. I'm joined today by German master swimmer, martin Klein, living in Frankfurt, where he trains by himself. We find out all about master swimming in Germany, what inspires Martin to keep pursuing lifetime PBs, and all about the recent European Masters Championships where he medalled. Let's hear from Martin now. Hi Martin, welcome to the podcast.

Martin Klein: 0:54

Yeah, hi, glad to be here.

Danielle Spurling: 0:57

Yeah, we're really happy to have you. Where are you based in Germany, and what pool do you do most of your swim training out of?

Martin Klein: 1:06

yeah, I'm living in Frankfurt, the big city here in Germany, and I'm training in actually in Darmstadt it's 20 I train four to five times a week, mostly four kilometers, and I do also athletic workouts two times a week and have fun. The most important part in master swimming is enjoying my way and having fun, because I'm working as a teacher full time, so I need some relax time after that, you know, and swimming is the most for me, where I can be most relaxed. If I go to water and just I can just forget everything, have fun, and that's very important for me to have a right balance. You know, in my life, yes, absolutely.

Danielle Spurling: 2:22

And the master swimming that you do at your pool? Do you do that by yourself or you're with a master's squad or team?

Martin Klein: 2:29

I'm doing this by myself because my team is in Berlin, so it's 6,100 kilometers away from me. It's a big Berliner TSC. It's called my team, so it's a big Masters team with very strong people there, and if I have some Nationals, masters Nationals or last month I went to the Belgrade it's the coding European Championships and it was a big team there with me and so I could get some good results there, because it's important for me to have a big team and in Frankfurt it's not a good Masters team anymore, but I need this for your motivation, I understand yeah, for my motivation, right yeah?

Danielle Spurling: 3:31

how big is master swimming in germany? So how, how many people are sort of swimming it?

Martin Klein: 3:38

yeah, it's very big part. If you look in the results every world championships, it's a big master swimming from Germany, so it's growing every year and the nationals every year about 1,000 people. So it's big meeting for Germany, yeah.

Danielle Spurling: 4:07

That is big, yes. So aside from the nationals that you have in Germany each year, do you have a lot of other competition opportunities?

Martin Klein: 4:17

Of course, of course. Every month, yeah, one competition and master streaming on and take also some small meetings where I can uh just swim with young guys and uh, yeah, um, I try my best and I'm not bad at all. You know, if you look at my best times, my main stroke is 100 backstroke. So my lifetime best is one, oh, so it's it's one minute. And now I'm 45 and I'm swimming still 102, so uh, it's it's not. Or two, so uh, it's it's not.

Danielle Spurling: 5:12

I lost only two seconds uh, about over the last 24 years, so it's not bad at all, I think. I think that's wonderful. What? What do you put that down to? Because I know that when I was swimming as an age grouper, I think my my best time was a 105, and I'm struggling to break 120 now. How did you stay within two seconds?

Martin Klein: 5:29

Yeah, that's the most challenging part of the master swimming. You know to try looking and you progress steady. So you have to look only on yourself and and not looking on and another people. That's why I struggling the most. Just, you know I have strong competition and 45 age group, 45, it's a lot former olympians, you know, like steve to look, uh, last kalinka, or also from germany, um, very strong people and if you look, and their times. So I have no chance now. But the most important part for me is just looking at myself, how I can improve my swimming, my technique, my workouts and to have fun. You know, that's the reason why I'm swimming, why I keep swimming, just enjoy the ride, enjoy the way for me, for myself, you know, and not looking around. You know and not looking around. And it's also not important to me just winning medals or, you know, be the best and what I can do with myself, with my capabilities. You know and that's all.

Danielle Spurling: 7:01

No, I love that perspective. I mean I think you've really sort of encapsulated that. You know what I think Master Swimming is about, which is thinking about your own process and thinking about your own time. So you're really competing with yourself and the external things the medals and those kind of things, you know they're a bonus on top of it. But to be able to keep your time so close, give us a bit of an insight into what kind of workouts you do for your 100 backstroke and 200 backstroke yeah, before I doing this, I would would explain my philosophy.

Martin Klein: 7:37

Uh, so it's called a little bit philosophy for me, if I don't know, if you know the name eric from it's a philosopher, he, he, he write a good book or the best book I ever read. It's called To have or To Be. The main part of his philosophy was the materialism of the society, to describe it and how we focus on materialism. And how we focus on materialism, you know to to win in sport, it's just to win medals, to have medals. You know to to win first place. So, and the compare is how to be. You know how to develop your own capabilities, your own mindset, to grow in yourself. You know that's the philosophy for me, to take this to my sport and to especially to the master swimming.

Martin Klein: 8:54

So, and it's work, if I have a meeting, I'm not looking on always, only on my time or on my place. You know I'm looking how I was swimming, how was my technique, how was my style, how was my mindset in this meeting, and that's the key part for me to develop, to grow in my progress, you know. So if I make a summary of my meetings and I'm looking at my, only on my time. It could be good or it could be bad, but it's not say anything what I could do better. You know, it's only my time.

Martin Klein: 9:42

But what is this? I had a bad meeting at the beginning of my season, but it's, it's, uh, it's okay and I can move on. I keep going, going, going and then I'm start going better because of the small steps I made, doing my progress. You know, doing my work. So, and if I'm looking of my, my um workout, what I'm doing in swimming, uh, if I'm endurance, so um, I have um at the beginning of my session, I have a big, big part, is the body only meter, meter beat, so it's not speed. And then maybe six weeks before the main meeting, I'm making more speed, so less endurance, and it works for me, so I'm not tired if I'm going to the taper, so it's it's two weeks for the big meeting, I'm very strong and then I can use the taper to to make my progress, to make my step in the with the time.

Danielle Spurling: 11:07

I understand what you mean. So do you have, do you have, a coach overseeing what you do, or do you write your own programs?

Martin Klein: 11:13

unfortunately, no, I have no coach in frankfurt, the only coach I have in my team in berlin. But, um, yeah, that's, that's the one, one of the the problems I have at the moment. Nobody is looking at me.

Danielle Spurling: 11:34

Yeah, so it's one of the things you want to look at. Have you got any access to videoing yourself so that you can get someone to have a look at that?

Martin Klein: 11:43

Yeah, of course I have some access. I have some friends who take pictures and who take the tapes for me and so I can look at my technique. That's a very important part. And also, on the meetings, if I'm going to the meet, I always take the tape and I can look at then how, how I was uh and how was my technique uh, because that's that's that's very important uh, today to improve in this, this area.

Danielle Spurling: 12:21

Yeah and so when you, when you were swimming as an age grouper, when you were a teenager and and obviously backstroke has changed a lot over that time now we've got the ledges and we've got the different turns, how did you sort of adapt to those new things if you haven't had a coach, did you? You have to talk, you have to teach yourself those things right, right, that's a good question.

Martin Klein: 12:41

I I just uh, my, my uh underwater um delphine, um was was good, it's good, and was was uh 20 years ago, as it uh as well was younger, was not bad at all. So I could um take this to my master swimming. Maybe the the most challenging part is right now to keep the athletics. You know to stay strong If you're lifting. You know it's always challenging to keep my level with the age.

Danielle Spurling: 13:32

It's obviously going to drop off a little bit as we age, but yes, and obviously you continue trying to do those same things and it just comes off a little bit, but it sounds like you're doing all the right things. So how many times a week are you doing strength training, did you say?

Martin Klein: 13:48

I do two times I'm lifting and strength. So I'm doing also some core. Core, uh, you know, core for my uh entire body. It's uh four times a week. Uh, just 15 minutes, 15 to 20 minutes just to to keep my core, you know uh, strong. It's very important core for just for backstroke or for all swaps.

Danielle Spurling: 14:14

And I mean backstroke, is a very leg-dominant stroke with the kick. Are you a strong kicker and do you do a lot of kicking in your training?

Martin Klein: 14:25

Not, I'm a strong kicker at the beginning of my race, but then after the third 15 metres I'm not kicking anymore. Yeah, that's, that's. That's very hard to train. Also, because it's it's. Yeah, if I have only one hour or one hour and TESOL, I am doing more, you know more of my whole body swimming than kicking. But yeah, I will try to focus next time more on the legs to make some improvements in this area, area. Uh, yeah, because it's, it's, it's, yeah, it's important, like you say, um, it's, um, just on 50 meters. So my, my 50 meters are not so good compared to to 100 meter. So I'm swimming just only 29, Just a little better, 28, just like 28.8 or 9. So if you compare this to 1 or 2, I can improve some speed, definitely.

Danielle Spurling: 15:46

And so in your 100 backstroke do you take it out. Quite what's your strategy? Do you take it out very fast or do you build over the 100?

Martin Klein: 15:54

take, it out. Quite what's your strategy? Do you take it out very fast or do you build over the hundred? I'm in taking always very fast and try to comb, uh, try to um just everything on the on the last 25 meters, but it's, it's always challenging the last 15 meters I'm just dying um, you know every time but uh, yeah, that's um, that's my strategy. I can. I can go as slow at the more at the beginning back, because it's not like 20 years ago I could swim. My best time long course, 200 meter backstroke, was two minutes 12. I could start with 106 and could come back with 106.

Danielle Spurling: 16:41

Wow, that's impressive.

Martin Klein: 16:43

Yeah, but at master swimming I can't do this anymore. I don't know why, but my best time was eight years ago in London on the European Masters Streaming Championships. I was 2.8, I swam 2.18, I go 1.07 at the beginning and then 1.11, so it's four seconds and I can't close the gap. I don't know why. It's just maybe a part of ageing or getting older and, yeah, I don't know, everybody's struggling.

Danielle Spurling: 17:27

Yeah, yeah, definitely. Well, I mean to swim the 200 backstroke. You've got to do a lot of work.

Martin Klein: 17:33

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Danielle Spurling: 17:35

And you're probably not doing like. When you swam back as an age group, you probably were swimming a lot more and you know you recover so much quicker as a younger person. What do you do for your recovery? How do you what works for you?

Martin Klein: 17:52

Yeah, that's also a very important part of the the whole process to recover. Well, so I'm doing some ride with and doing something else, you know, so bike and going to just to the nature and going to some hijacking, you know, and yeah, that's just to go out and and and Relax for my mind. You know that's the most, maybe, just to forget that I have a work, forget to swim, just relax in my mind and that's working well for me just then. Yeah.

Danielle Spurling: 18:56

We'll be back with Martin after this short break. Did you know that you could now subscribe to the show by becoming a supporter of the show? It helps us continue to put out our weekly content which is free to all who listen. You can become a subscriber through following the link in our Instagram bio at Torpedo Swim Talk Podcast or via the button on our Torpedo Swim Talk website. It's as little as $3 and the subscription will give you extra content which I know you're going to enjoy. As part of the subscription, you'll get advanced notification that a new episode is dropped. You'll receive four swim training workouts a month. Become a member of our private WhatsApp group where we chat about lots of things swimming, and we'll get a shout out on the show.

Danielle Spurling: 19:43

Now back to martin. I, yeah, I understand. That's what I like about going swimming, because you can't. You can't be contacted on your phone and you don't have to answer it, and you don't have to answer texts or emails, so it does give your mind a real break right, yeah, that's, that's that's really important today, just to relax you, uh, your mind, and and and clear your mind, you know yes, yeah, absolutely.

Danielle Spurling: 20:09

Do you swim any other um events other than your backstroke and anything else that you have as your favorites?

Martin Klein: 20:15

yeah, yeah, I'm doing also a medley, 100 200 meter medley. Uh, I'm um one month ago in the european uh championships um in belgium. It's a big meeting, uh, european uh, it's uh. If you're looking at the times, uh, there's uh, you can compare the times with the world champions. So it's it's, it's, it's really uh heavy, yeah, um to get uh. So I I take I um from 229, so it was not bad, but um, my priests walk, though, was very, very slow, so I have no idea why, and I also swam 100 priest walk. It was better than my 50 priest walk in the medley. I swam one minute 15.

Danielle Spurling: 21:13

Yeah, okay, and tell us a little bit about that European Championships. It was in Belgrade. You said, yeah, was that long course or short course?

Martin Klein: 21:23

Yeah, it was long course, of course. Yeah, it's always long course and it's a big meeting. This year was not so big. Usually it's bigger. If you remember, I don't know, eight years ago in London there was so many people waiting to get to the swimming pool. It was crazy. It was about, I think, 10,000 people yeah, 10,000, it's it's wasn't, and warm up was just selected in three parts 20 minutes and you have to go out, and the next it was. But yeah, this year was about, I think, people, so it was more relaxed and but the times, especially in my age group 45 if you're looking at best times in 100 meter backstroke or 200 meter backstroke it was crazy.

Danielle Spurling: 22:32

How many days does that European championship go over?

Martin Klein: 22:36

One week, so seven days.

Danielle Spurling: 22:39

And is there qualifying times for that?

Martin Klein: 22:41

No, just very slow times, so almost everybody can compete.

Danielle Spurling: 22:50

And have you been to a World Masters Championships before?

Martin Klein: 22:54

Yeah, I've never been there, but my goal next year is Singapore it's I never went to Asia, so I will. It will be my first trip to Asia and and I hope Singapore is a nice city. Singapore is a nice city and, yeah, I'm looking forward and, yeah, I focus on the 200-meter backstroke and 100-meter backstroke now in the next couple months and to make some improvements there and to get some good results then next year, I hope. But then the way to go to the you know the way it's for me, uh, the most important part, not to looking can I get a medal or can I? Uh, you know, just enjoy my way, yeah and with with your 100 and 200 backstroke.

Danielle Spurling: 24:00

What's your mindset like when you go out behind the blocks just before you race? What are you thinking and and how do you sort of calm your nerves down?

Martin Klein: 24:09

that's. That's good question. Uh, it's called visual visualization. You know, uh, if you're doing this before you meet, maybe one week it's not one week ago you're going through your ways in your mind. One, it's just one time per day, you know, and that's helped me a lot to to stay calm and to improve well at the main meeting, because I'm going through my ways in my mind and so I know now I can, I know what I can and I know I can swim well, I was good in training, I have good workouts and to be self-awareness, you know that's the most key part. Just believe in yourself and it's just master swimming, you know it's not going for Olympian or you know it's having fun, and just remember this every time.

Danielle Spurling: 25:23

Yeah, and are you a good turner? Are you good at backstroke turns?

Martin Klein: 25:35

Yeah, maybe I can improve some parts there. Just to after the turn, I think I can make the can start a little bit quicker to get more acceleration, you know, to get more speed after the, after the hitting the, the wall, you know how many?

Danielle Spurling: 26:11

how many kicks do you do off the wall on each of your turns underwater?

Martin Klein: 26:15

usually at the beginning, if it's a short course, metre After the first wall I'm doing 10 metres. After the second wall, maybe just nine metres, and then after the third wall it's maybe five or six metres. It's maybe five or six meters.

Danielle Spurling: 26:39

Yeah, and what do you find in your lifting or your strength workouts? What kind of exercises are you doing? What specific exercises do you do there to help your swimming in the water?

Martin Klein: 26:55

Yeah, it's a good question. It's a big area, know, and for swimming it's it's difficult or it's hard to find the right workout. So I'm doing some research and looking around what it's, what can I improve, and looking at the shift. Maybe this year I would take a coach in this area just to get some new idea and some new you know what I can improve and what. Just to get yeah, to get new impact here for my whole workouts.

Danielle Spurling: 27:52

Yeah, yeah, look, I think it's a really good idea. I mean, there is a lot of information on social media, but a lot of the people that put that information on are not experts in the field, so it is always good to get an expert opinion from someone who's got a qualification as well.

Martin Klein: 28:13

Yeah, that's very good, very important, because if you work out you're doing every time the same thing and it's not good because you have to do something else to improve. Yeah, and if somebody looking at you from the outside, you know that's very important just to change your mindset here, you know, to change every time, to make something different, just to improve in this area.

Danielle Spurling: 28:57

Yeah, yeah, yeah, absolutely Now. Martin, everyone that comes on the podcast, I like to ask them the deep dive five, which is five favourite things about your swimming? So just tell me the first thing that pops into your head what is your favourite pool that you've ever swum in?

Martin Klein: 29:13

My favourite pool was in Monte Carlo Monaco.

Danielle Spurling: 29:20

Is that the one down on the water? The outdoor one?

Martin Klein: 29:24

Yeah, it was in the yeah.

Danielle Spurling: 29:29

Yeah, I've swum at that one. It's beautiful, isn't it?

Martin Klein: 29:31

Yeah, beautiful location there.

Danielle Spurling: 29:33

Yes, very nice. What's your favourite backstroke drill?

Martin Klein: 29:43

location there. Very nice. What's your favorite backstroke? Drill 200 meter fast, then two time 100 meter fast, and then two time 50 meter fast. So after that I'm done how much rest?

Danielle Spurling: 29:52

how much rest do you take in between?

Martin Klein: 29:54

that Just after the 200 metre, one minute, after the 100 metre, just 30 seconds, and after 15 metres, just 15 seconds.

Danielle Spurling: 30:17

It's not much, but then after this, I'm done for for the day, and so that was your favorite set. What about your favorite drill? Your favorite backstroke drill?

Martin Klein: 30:24

so like breaking down the stroke so yeah, some just for the technique. I'm doing some uh with my fins, I'm doing some special like this, just with single arm with 25 metres and with another single arm, 25 metres, just to stay here stable and just to get a feeling for my arms, you know.

Danielle Spurling: 30:56

Yeah, no, that's a good one. How about your favourite psych-up song, musical song that you like to listen to to get yourself fired up?

Martin Klein: 31:09

Oh, that's what is my, maybe from the movie Wookiee Wookiee Balboaa Eye of the Tiger.

Danielle Spurling: 31:21

Oh, Eye of the Tiger. Yes, that's a good one. That's a good one. And how about you? What was your favourite swimming moment from the Paris Olympics that we just had?

Martin Klein: 31:33

Maybe the most was. I'm a very big fan of the kelly mess from canada and she gets third place in 200 meter backs work and I'm rooting for her, you know, and I was uh, um, because, uh, the last two years she had a difficult time to, uh, you know, to, to stay with the fastest, uh, um, women's there, the this big competition, and she got third in 200 meter back now in paris and, and, uh, I was happy for her yeah she, she looks like a lovely, a lovely swimmer yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I following her on on instagram and and, um, yeah, the was was uh very uh, um, um, yeah, exciting to to uh that she, she, she gets the medal.

Martin Klein: 32:38

Yeah, yeah.

Danielle Spurling: 32:39

Yeah, she seems very nice.

Martin Klein: 32:41

Yes, yeah, yeah.

Danielle Spurling: 32:43

Well, Martin, thank you so much for joining us on the podcast today. It's been lovely hearing about Master Swimming in Germany and your swimming journey yourself and wishing you lots of success and good wishes for all your training for Singapore next year.

Martin Klein: 32:59

Yeah, cool. Thank you very much to be here.

Danielle Spurling: 33:02

Yeah, it's been lovely, lovely. Okay, see you later. Bye.

Martin Klein: 33:06

See you later. Bye.

Danielle Spurling: 33:10

Thanks for listening into today's episode. I hope you enjoyed hearing all about Martin's journey and a little bit about swimming in Germany, and hopefully this has inspired you to check out some meets right over Europe and maybe the next European Masters Championships. Thank you also to our new subscribers, steph and Eric. Welcome to the Swim Talkers group and I hope you enjoy the inside lane Till next time. Happy swimming and bye for now.