Swimming??????

I love coming here and reading everyone's race reports....especially the triathlon reports!  I've been wanting to do a sprint tri for awhile now.  It looks like I'm getting a bike finally, so there's nothing to stop me.  Nothing except I am a HORRIBLE swimmer.  I knew I wasn't great....but didn't realize exactly how bad I was until I got in the water.  One length of a 25 yard pool and I was exhausted!  I ended up swimming 150 yards total, but I had to stop and rest at each end of the pool.  It sure made a 500m swim seem completely impossible.  I think when I was bigger, swimming seemed quite a bit easier.  I seem to have to fight just to keep from sinking now!  LOL   I'm not one to give up easily....I pushed myself through a marathon after a horrible ankle ligament injury......but yikes!!!!  500m doesn't seem like something I'll ever ever EVER be able to do.  I'm currently seeking a coach of some sort to show me technique, but due to money, it will not be able to be a regular thing.  My question for you guys is.....was anyone else out here a horrible swimmer when they started?  I need someone to give me hope before I throw in the towel! 

Yep!  I was AWFUL, and I'm still not great.  The first few times I got in the water I was just the same.  It took actively DECIDING that I was going to make this work.  It will definitely require some time in the pool, but it does get easier with time.  Do get a couple of lessons and it should help you with your confidence as well.

If you read my most recent report, you'll see that one of the things I was happiest about was NOT getting kicked out of the pool because I was too slow.  I DID get kicked out when I did my first and it was an experience I didn't want to repeat.

Hope this helps you some. 

Linn

I'm so glad I'm not the only one!  lol  Most of the training workouts I've seen start with swim lenghs/times that I'm not capable of.  Nowhere can I find something that tells me HOW to get to the level I need to start the program.  How did you do it?

Heh, yeah I was pretty pitiful when I started.   Now I look at 2.4 miles in the drink as a warmup for the bike and run.   The thing about swimming is the more you relax in the water the easier it gets and the less energy you exert.   Technique is SO important and you'd do wonders for your stroke efficiency by getting some lessons or getting involved in a masters swim class.  

You'll surely be able to do 500m and beyond with no issues.   Stick with it and don't get frustrated.

Best of luck.

Chad
www.team464.com

 

I found a masters swim program fairly locally to me.  The fee is $65 a month.  I'm a bit unsure what a program actually entails...and how much "coaching" is usually available.  Could you explain more about what it actually is and if the fee is within normal range?  I haven't had much luck finding lessons or private coaching.

It really depends on the class and the individual.  That fee is on the higher side but not as much as an individual training session would cost.  If you have a good class the coach will give you technique tips throughout the workout and be constantly adjusting your form.  If you are struggling now then it will definately help you improve and put you on the right track so you'll at least no longer be fighting the water.

Good luck!

You won't get a whole lot of individual attention at a Master's swim. They'll throw advice. You need PRIVATE lessons. Just a few.

in the masters swim class I took, she had us do what you are doing. a few laps, a 15-20 second rest, a few more laps, as we built up our endurance.

she said that peole who just jump in and swim a lot of laps are reinforcing bad form, and by resting a bit, you start out right again (except for me i slap the water with my hands lol)

so, hang in there, it gets better!

I did 5 sprint and super-sprint tris this summer and in all 5 there were many struggling swimmers.  Many people switched strokes and did a combination of crawl, side stroke, breast, and even back.  If you are swimming the tri in a pool, I wouldn't worry about it - keep practicing and you'll be fine.  If it is going to be in open water - that's another story - I'd wait to get more confident about your swimming before you take that on.  You won't be able to just stop and stand up or hold on to the wall.

I am lucky in that I swim like a fish ( a really slow fish).  I've never had any trouble with breathing or exhaustion - I could swim forever (but I'm not that fast).  So, I don't really understand the folks here who seem to struggle with it, since I've never experienced that.

I've tried two different Master's programs.  The first was excellent.  There was a coach and he actually coached each person.  We did tons of drills and really worked on efficiency.  The other one was horrible - after the warm up, the leader (not really a coach) announced that we would start off with a 400m butterfly.  Say what??  Like I could even swim two strokes of butterfly, much less 400m.  Everyone else took off and I just stood there stunned.  It didn't get any better after that.  So, my recommendation would be to go to a meeting or two to see what it is all about.  I just found out that there is a Master's group here, but they don't train together.  They just train on their own and then go to competitions as a team - that doesn't sound like what I am looking for.

My local Y had a triathlon class that I took for a couple of sessions.  There was a swimming portion once a week and I learned some stuff there and improved a little, but not as much as I would have liked.  I just sign up for a swimming endurance class at different local Y branch.  It starts next week and says that it focuses on stroke efficiency (which I need) and some other things that I can already do (flip turns), but hopefully getting another perspective on my stroke can help me get faster.

Oh yea- it is true that you swim better when you are bigger - you are more buoyant.  That is the main reason that people like to wear wet suits for triathlons - they provide a lot of buoyancy and so help you go faster.

If worse comes to worse, order the Total Immersion Freestyle DVD. It will help you in the short term.