06/11/2026
Raise your hand if you've ever watched your swimmer walk up to the block and immediately forget everything. Their event. Their heat. Their lane. Their own name. 😂
It happens. Meet nerves are real and they are powerful. Which is why swim parents have been solving this problem the same way for decades — with a Sharpie and their kid's forearm.
📝 HERE'S WHAT TO WRITE AND WHY
Before every meet, grab a permanent marker and write three things on your swimmer's forearm where they can easily see it:
EVENT # — This is the number of the race they're swimming in the overall meet lineup. Events are listed in order on the heat sheet, so knowing their event number tells them exactly when to start paying attention and getting ready.
HEAT # — Multiple swimmers compete in the same event in groups called heats. Your swimmer's heat number tells them which group they're in and when they swim. Heat 1 goes first, Heat 2 goes second, and so on. Miss your heat and you miss your race — so this number matters.
LANE # — This is the lane they'll be swimming in. Lanes are numbered 1 through 6 (or 8 at bigger meets), with lane 1 on the far left when facing the pool. Knowing their lane number means your swimmer walks straight to the right spot on the block with confidence — no scrambling, no confusion.
So the arm might look something like: Event 12 / Heat 3 / Lane 4. Simple. Clear. Impossible to forget when it's written right there in black marker.
📝 PRO TIPS FROM VETERAN SWIM FAMILIES
• Use a permanent marker — a regular pen will wash off in the warm-up pool before they even get to the block.
• Write it big enough to read in a hurry. Meet nerves make small print very hard to process.
• If your swimmer has multiple events, write them all — one per line, in order.
• Check the numbers together before you part ways on the pool deck. One quick confirmation saves a lot of chaos later.
First year swim families — this is one of those tips that seems small but makes a genuinely big difference on meet day. A confident swimmer who knows exactly where to go is a faster swimmer. Trust us.
Grab your Sharpie. You've got this. 🌊💙
