Swimmers

1

Ready for my first low key triathlon (Read 257 times)


Bugs

    Swam for 35 minutes today and it was GREAT. Some ironmen were helping me, (nice to be female sometimes) and they said I looked good, and honestly it felt easy and natural today.

     

    I need to swim 15 minutes for this indoor triathlon. My main concern is jumping in water and being able to swim comfortably. Sometimes that first lap is ackward, goggles might not be just right or I get that water up nose feeling in the beginning and need a warm-up before I can really workout. I remember hearing that Michael Phelps use to practice with water in his goggles when it happened, because it can happen in a race. So that is what I am doing, if something is not quite right I try to work through it, not stop and adjust. I hate that water up nose feeling, but seems if you keep breathing out it goes away. Any tips??

     

    Sometimes when I stop swimming I really cough, almost like I took water in but I'm not sure I did. So embarrassing. Hoping just more time in the water will fix.

     

    This may be silly but should my swimming cap be over my ears? I swear I can blow out better with the ears not covered. Weird.

     

    Do you guys swim with headphones? Think I'd like this, worst problem for me right now is I need to just relax and keep going and maybe music would help. Other problem is that often my legs are dead from running, but that is just the way it is going to be for me most days.

     

    Bugs

    Slo


      1st....Good Luck.

       

      I'm sure you'll have some warm up time so I wouldn't worry to much about starting out cold.

       

      I hate wearing my cap over my ears so for my workouts I fold the bottom up and cover just enough of my ear to keep them pinned to my head. When I'm swimming competitively I pull the cap all the way down. The reason for this is extremely anal......I like to think I'm more stream line if I don't have a fold in my cap.....

       

      I do not wear headphones.....I don't wear headphones when I'm running either.

       

      Learning to relax comes with time.....lots and lots of time. You have to learn how to be comfortable in the water. I've said this before....swimming is one of the least natural things we do and to swimming efficiently means we need to learn to be counter initutive. Everything your body wants to do is wrong....you have to learn how to do things that do not come naturally.....like holding your face under water !

       

      You don't need a strong kick to be a good distance swimmer so having "dead" legs shouldn't hurt.....I would try to get some workouts in though with good fresh strong legs and learn how to swim fast....short length repeats with a good strong kick.

       

      It can take years to really feel comfortable......stick with it. wether your doing Tris or not. Swimming is very rewarding.  Besides.....having a bunch of Ironmen telling you you look good can't be all that bad.....I'm just curious what they thought about your swimming?

      T-Bone


      Puttin' on the foil

        having a bunch of Ironmen telling you you look good can't be all that bad.....I'm just curious what they thought about your swimming?

         

         

        HA!  Seriously, you will do fine.  The key to getting more comfortable is consistency.  Try to swim 3x per week.  If you swim 35 minutes 3x per week I bet you'll feel more comfortable by the end of the second week. 

         

        I wear my swim cap over the tops of the ears, but not over the ear hole itself.

         

        I don't use headphones in the pool.  I do when I run.  I haven't been up to spending the money for the swim MP3 just yet.  I would like to try then though.

         

        Good luck!

         

        Don't be obsessed with your desires Danny. The Zen philosopher Basha once wrote, 'A flute with no holes, is not a flute. A donut with no hole, is a Danish.'

        aellopous


          I wear my cap over my ears, but it's not really that big a deal.

           

          If you really hate the feel of water up your nose, they do make noseclips. I'd get one of the synchro-styled ones without the dorky strap.

           

          I desperately want a swimp3, but I can't afford one at all. Some day!

           

          Good luck with your tri! I really want to do one, but I killed my bike last winter and can't afford a new one.


          Bugs

            I know why those ironmen have such amazing chests, this swimming really works the core. I am so very sore today, I'm afraid to go bowling later today.  Each of you has helped me already, thank you.

             

            Slo,

            I had not thought to fold that extra swim cap and your advice made is much more comfortable. Ironman Brad said that I looked very relaxed and not struggling. He's done this indoor TRI before, and he said it perfect for a beginner. But been told, I have an extreme runner's kick. Not sure what to do about that. I know I have weak glutes, and tight hamstrings, both of which I'm working on. My left arm tends to flop down on the water a bit, especially as I tire. I breath only on my right side. I'm guessing I should do drills for the left side.

             

            T-Bone,

            You in my head yesterday. I had biked hard in the morning, and forced myself to get another swim in. Ugh.. the second workout is so easily to give up on. But I held out for 35 minutes, the whole time telling myself "Look at you swim girl, you are so cool'. I had to glide a little more between strokes, but nothing wrong with that right?

             

            Dark,

            It is indoor tr, I'll be on bikes at the Y. Sorry to hear about the bike death. No injury I hope?

             

            Next week I count laps. (Miss my garmin) Thinking of hiring a life guard to teach me how to do those flips because I am loosing big time on the turns. How hard are the flips to learn?

            Bugs

            aellopous


              Nah, no injury. Basically, only the back brake works, and it's such a cheap bike that it's not worth it to get it fixed. It did not survive a winter commute.

               

               Flipturns are pretty easy, but it takes a while to really whip them around fast. I know my flipturns aren't as fast as they could be. For me, the hardest thing is getting my cadence down to make them efficient. After taking about a year off of swimming, I've been having a really hard time getting used to the pool again this month; my strokes aren't matching up to the pool length and I either end up too close or too far from the wall to do a proper turn. To say nothing of backstroke.

                Nothing really to add, except good luck!  When is the tri?
                Ginny 'Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there' Will Rogers


                Bugs

                  Feb 27th. My only goal is to feel good about the swimming, and have something left for the run. I'm good at 5Ks but will probably have dead legs by the time I get there. I got quite a line-up going on. I have a 5K March 6th, and a 10 mile race March 13th.

                   

                  I know it is not a real TRI, but hey it is winter in Minnesota so humor me that this is a big deal. I am trying to put a team together for this summer where I do the swim and run.

                   

                  My legs were sore today and yesterday. Going to the pool. I was going to use one of those floating devices you put between your legs, they are called what? That should make this core and upper body workout right? I really need to let legs rest because I want a fast run later this week.

                  Bugs

                  Slo


                    Going to the pool. I was going to use one of those floating devices you put between your legs, they are called what?

                     

                    A Pull Bouy. An excellent training device. Keeps your lower torso and legs up so you can concentrate on whats happening up front.

                     

                    It also allows you to feel the proper position in the water when your legs are up and not slipping "down hill".

                     

                    And....just as you mentioned, allows you to swim without using your legs....a nice upper body workout. I like to combine hand paddles with the pull bouy.

                     

                    Let us know how you do and how much fun you had.

                      Feb 27th. My only goal is to feel good about the swimming, and have something left for the run. I'm good at 5Ks but will probably have dead legs by the time I get there. I got quite a line-up going on. I have a 5K March 6th, and a 10 mile race March 13th.

                       

                      I know it is not a real TRI, but hey it is winter in Minnesota so humor me that this is a big deal. I am trying to put a team together for this summer where I do the swim and run.

                       

                      My legs were sore today and yesterday. Going to the pool. I was going to use one of those floating devices you put between your legs, they are called what? That should make this core and upper body workout right? I really need to let legs rest because I want a fast run later this week.

                       It most definitely is a big deal!  I just started tri's last year, they become addicting quick!  Good luck, keep us posted.

                      Ginny 'Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there' Will Rogers


                      Bugs

                        Thought I'd be rocket fast with the Pull Bouy but instead I was very slow and it was more ackward than I expected. First I could only flop my arms like a dog, it wasn't pretty. I got better but still it felt like my rotation was a little off, but I was also sharing a lane with a worse swimmer than me who making tidle waves for me to deal with. The pull buoy is going to take a little practice.

                         

                        Ironman Lon observed me swim today, said my stroke crosses my face and I'm loosing lots of power. So then I did it his way. Well that is going to take some practice. I just don't have much or any upper body strength and the arms get way tired before the lungs. He also said not to use that buoy too much, can hurt you?

                         

                        Also observed today, that it is possible to REALLY push off the wall on the turn. Think I was dogging it before. Another thing I need to practice, on a day my legs are not recovering I'm guessing.

                        Bugs