Does swimming ever get any easier?
joolzd
Posts: 245
in General Chat
I've been at it a while now and I just can't seem to get to grips with this swim thing...seriously, does it ever get any easier or is it always like an uphill struggle (unless of course you were born in the water?). My main issues are:
1. I really dislike it as I don't seem to ever have enough oxygen in my lungs to let me go faster
2. Although my last tri time was infinitely better... I still feel like a steam train in the water and everyone whizzes past me in the next lane and I am dreading my next 800m ow (which is tomorrow)...
3. I can't seem to get out of the habit of counting every length..& I find i dull
4. I never seem to get over the 32 length barrier...at this point I always get bored and am usually fed up at my lack of ability...and so the list goes on!![&o]
So my question is how on earth do you make it interesting whilst at the same time actually improving technique, stroke, breathing and not becoming disheartened every time? Should you always get in and do a fixed amount of lengths? Are there certain exercises you can do to improve your swim outside/in the gym....????
Any help & tips gratefully received at this stage, as would love to be able to do an OD (bike/run not a problem) but my swim issue is getting the better of me! [:)]
1. I really dislike it as I don't seem to ever have enough oxygen in my lungs to let me go faster
2. Although my last tri time was infinitely better... I still feel like a steam train in the water and everyone whizzes past me in the next lane and I am dreading my next 800m ow (which is tomorrow)...
3. I can't seem to get out of the habit of counting every length..& I find i dull
4. I never seem to get over the 32 length barrier...at this point I always get bored and am usually fed up at my lack of ability...and so the list goes on!![&o]
So my question is how on earth do you make it interesting whilst at the same time actually improving technique, stroke, breathing and not becoming disheartened every time? Should you always get in and do a fixed amount of lengths? Are there certain exercises you can do to improve your swim outside/in the gym....????
Any help & tips gratefully received at this stage, as would love to be able to do an OD (bike/run not a problem) but my swim issue is getting the better of me! [:)]
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Comments
i nearly always go for an hour and try to do about 110-130 laps, in mixes of strokes and paces depending on how i feel. i used to do 'swim for fitness' and having a programme to work to really helped me get out of my comfort zone and improve stamina and breathing.
i'll do things like racing the clock, fartleks, bouy/float drills, stroke combinations, catch-up drills and medleys to add variety if i'm getting bored. i find there are drills i prefer and use them as bribes to do the ones i hate. i rarely do the same sets in the water in the same order.
i found that even swimming 3 1hr sessions a week it took time for my stamina to improve. the swim for fitness i did was run by instructors who helped correct technique and give encouragement, and i still think i could do with that sort of guidance.
stick at it, it will come with time. if you want to go further you will need to push through the 32lap barrier though!
Hey,
I'm no expert, I train myself and this how I do it!
open to any opinions!
to build up to longer distances, I used to throw in some lengths of breast stoke as recovery, then slowly reducing B.S lengths until I could do 1500 front crawl.
Intervals also work well, there's heaps of threads on this forum (from much better swimmers than me!) on different work outs.
I keep it simple though,
for intervals
10 lengths against the clock, 1 min rest then again (usually just under 4 mins) 6-10 times then finish with a pryamid against the clock 10-8-6-4-2 (2 min rest between set).
Because the individual sets are short and against the clock, I stay interested (and don't lose count!) and because I'm against the clock the work rate is high.
I use a timex watch that stores intervals, so it easy to keep count of total lengths I keep tack week by week of any improvements.
2 sessions per week
1 endurance
1 Interval
should see your swimming improve.
hope this helps!
It does get easier and more enjoyable trust me.
Keep this in perspective. Look at the time difference between the fastest swimmer of your sex and age group and yourself, it's probably only a couple of minutes. I have seen many instances where the fastest person in the swim is beaten overall by someone who has come about midfeld in the swim. Powerful arms and shoulders are deadweight on the bike and run.
I found that in the OW swim I was having problems with breathing until in one race I unzipped my trisuit underneath the wetsuit and hoorah much improved in fact 3 minutes faster for the 750m.
Now as a member of the multi-tasking enabled sex you do have - ahem - extra constrictive clothing to be worn and perhaps one of the girls can advise you better than us boys in that department.
Have you thought about breathing every second stroke? The aim is not to get tired or into oxygen debt at the end of the swim.
When counting laps what I do is to include it as a form of mantra with my strokes e.g lap 6 would be 6. 2, 3, 4 (breathe), that way I am reminding myself of the lap constantly. Additionally as a pyshcological trick I count 2 lengths as one i.e. there and back so instead of counting off 16 lengths I count 8 there and backs.
You get bored after 32 lenghts - you don't say you have to drag yourself out of the pool 'cos you are knackered so clearly a boredom thing, how about a waterproof MP3 player for training?
Technique, technique, technique. As I lift my arm out I pause ever so slightly and glide, less strokes, less effort, you will see oodles of threads here and on the rest of the interweb on technique. It works for me, I have only been doing it a short while and I seem to be more relaxed, my technique seems to have improved and I have gotten a tad faster, did 1500m in 33mins yesterday (in the pool) in my wetsuit (a trifle warm!) which for me is a big improvement, I was not huffing or puffing and could have gone on for longer but was beginning to feel like a 'boil in the bag'.
So don't give up, it will happen and I must say that you look stunning in your wetsuit, far better than me.
Swimming isn't natural.
Nothing else is done horizontal, in a viscous medium.
It's very difficult to have awareness of what you are really doing: You might think you in a nice position, but are you really. You might think you are lifting those elbows etc. etc.
So swimming is something that you can really really do with some outside help. Just having someone, who knows what they are doing, watching you and telling you whats wrong will pay dividends.
Anyway, I've booked myself in for a session at swimtherapy, for 9th June.
1) They are used to tri coaching
2) You get to swim in an "endless pool"
3) You are videoed, from underneath as well as above, so you get to see what you are doing
The video bit is key. I've been through the TI books and video.. so I understand the theory, a bit. But the practice.. can't tell if I am doing it quite right. So, really looking forward to the video (which you get to keep, together with coaches commentary).
It's a bit of a trek down to Leicester... but really looking forward to it. And I expect to write up a review afterwards.
I have problems with breathing... it's just really confidence, timing and putting it together now.. Doing all the things like breathing out hard well before et. etc.
Off for a swim now!
It also means doing different drills to isolate techniques and sets of lengths at different speeds which is much less boring than slogging up and down for hours. It has changed the swim from being something I dreaded into the part I enjoy most.
Mike
it's in an endless pool and you are videoed (which is slightly freaky but well worth it). They show you a vid of dan bullock who makes it look sooo effortless..the tips and drills you are given are great and I'm planning to try them out this week...i think this will help with the boredom you're experiencing...it's a bit like running...concentrating on something helps the time go faster (well it does me for me anyway)
http://www.swimfortri.com/
like zacnici i also count every second length...makes it go quicker....also trying to beat the clock is another thing that works for me....
I'm going to buy that DVD too Mikey, thanks.....and Zacnici, I'm never tired when I've done the lengths just fed up I'm not faster...get very easily disheartened...I should really try to find someone to train with to push me a little bit more as I'm not one for working out of my comfort zone..I have been to the tri group at my gym, but whimped out with lack of confidence - they were all much faster than me (actually it's training at 8h30pm that puts me off)! The mp3 thing is something I've thought of but never sure what to get as would hate to spend £70+and discover it doesn't work after one outting..so if you have any to recommend I would be grateful!
Still, yesterday I did manage 800m ow and in 18mins something (was aiming for 16mins but panicked as ever!) Oh..... and thanks for the wetsuit compliment Zancnici...sod high fashion I say!![:D][:D]
Re MP3 player, did a quick trawl - found this on Amazon
http://www.amazon.co.uk/product-reviews/B000V9F3C0/ref=dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1
Re compliment - no problemo - come to think of it where else can a group of people parade about wearing rubber without coming under the spotlight of the Sunday Sport!
The ladies of the pool might be spared my perving if I can listen to music...either that or ill stop swimming and listen to music whilst perving...
I can now do 3k in a session so fitness / stamina improves and can improve reasonably quickly if you do the right type of training.
Technique can improve and speed can improve.
However, in my personal experience and what is currently causing me grief, is that while I can swim for ages I can't maintain my good stroke and my length times.
take my 60m Lido times:
My sprint time is 58 seconds, equivalent to about 24 secs in a 25m pool.
My "moderate" time is 65 seconds (so well south of 30 mins for 1500m) which I feel is sustainable.
However, when I time my lengths in the middle of a session I'm 75 seconds which is annoyingly slow for me.
I feel that after 5-600m my catch and pull just isn't propelling me. I'm adding 10 strokes-per-length to what I started out doing. I'm at a loss to explain whether my technique has just gone to pot or whether I just haven't got the strength anymore, implying I still have fitness improvement to work on.
Any suggestions? Anything under 70 seconds per lap average would be my desired result.
Re swim, I am concentrating heavily on technique; I do a little glide before powering through with the stroke and I am now doing 1500m - 2000m (in my wet suit), not getting out of puff and pulling in an average of 1000m in 22mins. Just a few weeks back I was getting into all sorts of problems and having to breathe every second stroke etc and now do every 4 no problems. Still slow compared to the pack but I am improving, I am less tired and that will mean my bike will be better which means that my run, which is my best discipline, will be better.
i think you are completely right, i can swim a couple of miles in an hour session without too much pain and grief but conversely i struggle improve my 1500 swim time to much below 30mins. it seems like i have a default speed that i can't shake myself out of. i know the only way to break it is to do more intense speed sets but then i feel like i'm short changing my sessions.
so much of it is in the head, making yourself do things you don't want and breaking old habits!
I can now swim 1900m in 37 minutes in continuous front crawl (so a similar time to you). I am not fast at all at shorter distances but I can maintain the same speed for a longer period of time. I still find that if I don't get into the pool for a week or so I regress quite considerably and it takes me quite a lot of lengths before I relax and start to feel the flow a little better so I would recommend sticking with it. For me, I find that once I have crawled through the 750m mark its all easy from there as long as I don't try to analyse what I'm doing as it all goes sh*t faced at that point!
I went from absolutely hating swimming two months ago to loving it now!