4km is about where I start getting cramp too, though I made a point of consuming some sweet and salty snacks on Friday evening last week and didn't have any issues with my 5km on Saturday, will try the same again this weekend in preparation 
Starting swimming, any advice?
- Thread starter Scam
- Start date
Soldato
I've got a swim coach session booked this Friday. Hoping this one goes better than the last one where I spent most of the time out of the water with hypothermia!
Soldato
I aim to do three sessions a week - monday, wednesday and friday mornings before work but tend to skip one out here and there because of my stupid 6am brain reasoning with me that sleep is more important than anything ever.
Anyway, I'm four weeks since skipping a session now so feeling pretty good. Tend to swim 3.2km (2 miles) in a session but have thrown in a few 4kms here and there. Hopefully I can keep it up and get a little fitter.
Anyway, I'm four weeks since skipping a session now so feeling pretty good. Tend to swim 3.2km (2 miles) in a session but have thrown in a few 4kms here and there. Hopefully I can keep it up and get a little fitter.
Soldato
Latest coach says my kick and rotation is fine but my catch & pull is the problem. I suppose I have been working the kick and rotation since I last saw a coach so those things might have improved.
Specifically, I'm not keeping my elbow high and upon entry I'm raising my wrist which lowers my elbow.
Anyone got any tips for preventing this? Other than saying "keep your elbow high", the coach didn't offer much to actually prevent it!
Specifically, I'm not keeping my elbow high and upon entry I'm raising my wrist which lowers my elbow.
Anyone got any tips for preventing this? Other than saying "keep your elbow high", the coach didn't offer much to actually prevent it!
So in prep for my Swimathon on Saturday evening I've been swimming 5km the last couple of Saturdays, been going well, actually did 200 meters too much this week after I kept losing count, then I wake up with a blooming cold this morning 
I really hope it's a mild one as I can't see swimming for the best part of two hours with a stinking cold is going to be much fun...
I really hope it's a mild one as I can't see swimming for the best part of two hours with a stinking cold is going to be much fun...
Associate
Have you got over your cold yet Dano? (It might not be much fun for anyone following you either 
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Man of Honour
That's really good. I'm hitting 10-12k a week swimming 4-5 sessions depending on distances covered on previous days
I've set 100 lengths 2.5km as min distance I swim per day, so I swim this if feeling lazy (which is quite a lot)
5-6 months into swimming now and actually feeling pretty fit
This week switching to higher protein foods to help with it all... best bit, I've gone from 38" jeans to 34"
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Have you got over your cold yet Dano? (It might not be much fun for anyone following you either
Who gets over a cold in 2 days? Not me I can tell you, they usually last around 7 - 10 for me, it's going to be a rubbish swim on Saturday, got informed there could be up to 8 people in my lane yesterday too, one of which is significantly slower than me so yay for getting held up I guess, sorry, I'm on a bit of a downer about the whole thing now, blimmin cold lol
Man of Honour
8 is way to much in one lane
5 at a push
5 at a push
Associate
Who gets over a cold in 2 days? Not me I can tell you, they usually last around 7 - 10 for me, it's going to be a rubbish swim on Saturday, got informed there could be up to 8 people in my lane yesterday too, one of which is significantly slower than me so yay for getting held up I guess, sorry, I'm on a bit of a downer about the whole thing now, blimmin cold lol
Ah, I got the impression that you weren't sure how bad it was going to be, so that's a shame if it takes all the fun out of it. I hope mine is nowhere near 8 per lane.
Soldato
That's what puts me off swimathon. I can cope with 5 or 6 people in my lane in the mornings as I'm swimming in a 50m pool meaning there's space to overtake. Most of those people are quite a lot slower too so they're quick and easy to overtake.
in the swimathon, they pair you up with similar speed swimmers, so if you're in a lane with 8 people in a 25m pool, you're probably going to be stuck behind people for ages (and holding others up).
in the swimathon, they pair you up with similar speed swimmers, so if you're in a lane with 8 people in a 25m pool, you're probably going to be stuck behind people for ages (and holding others up).
Well.... That was a complete mess...
First person they sent it off started swimming on the wrong side so we ended up swimming against the other lanes, nobody in my lane had any clue as to etiquette and ignored being tapped on the feet for a pass which forced me to power past and wear myself out early, then they got the count wrong saying I was at 194 when I'd finished, so had to do an extra 150 meters before "finishing", my swimtag agreed with my count, not theirs.
Still, done now sadly not a great time due to being held up a lot in the first half, not sure I'll do it again unless the organisation is far far better.
First person they sent it off started swimming on the wrong side so we ended up swimming against the other lanes, nobody in my lane had any clue as to etiquette and ignored being tapped on the feet for a pass which forced me to power past and wear myself out early, then they got the count wrong saying I was at 194 when I'd finished, so had to do an extra 150 meters before "finishing", my swimtag agreed with my count, not theirs.
Still, done now sadly not a great time due to being held up a lot in the first half, not sure I'll do it again unless the organisation is far far better.
Associate
In contrast I had a quiet pool and no real issues. A slow and steady swim but got the job done.
Man of Honour
well done guys... must do this next year. Dano... i feel your pain on the 'powering past' bit, if you can't swim steady it destroys you for long distance.
what times did you both get ?
what times did you both get ?
Associate
Thanks. Just under two hours for me including some pauses towards the end for cramp. I've had a bit of a sore shoulder lately so it was a deliberately slow pace.
I pulled a hip-flexor a coupe of weeks back so i've been swimming more than running. Slow but steady improvement, now hitting my 90x25yd=2250 in 1Hr 2minutes. Also I only do 10x25yd breaststroke as a warmup and the rest is continuous front-crawl without any breaststroke recovery lengths. However, I do something go to 2 sided breathing to recover.
I'm still not super comfortable swimming and working out the breathing while doing front-crawl. Without fail though i seem to settle into a rhythm at about 50-60x25yds mark where tiredness slows me down or makes me relax my breathing more. I'm also typically only doing a single length and then holding on for a breath or 2 then every 10lenths I take a 30 second breather.
So the swimming is far form fluid or continuous. But I seem to get about 30secodns faster every time I jump in the pool, so maybe next year I will be on track to commence ironman training!
I'm still not super comfortable swimming and working out the breathing while doing front-crawl. Without fail though i seem to settle into a rhythm at about 50-60x25yds mark where tiredness slows me down or makes me relax my breathing more. I'm also typically only doing a single length and then holding on for a breath or 2 then every 10lenths I take a 30 second breather.
So the swimming is far form fluid or continuous. But I seem to get about 30secodns faster every time I jump in the pool, so maybe next year I will be on track to commence ironman training!
Associate
Hey man, get some technique pointers with your breathing asap - that's a lot of distance to be covering in single lengths if your form isn't down - and it'll take more work to unlearn what you have learned (/yoda)