Swimming-- Where do I start
Discussion
Been a cyclist all my life, and pretty fit for my age , had a nasty crash recently which has robbed me of my front teeth and TBH I dont want to see a bike for a while (first time ever I've felt this way). Therefore I want to stay fit and keep my cardio good, I dont fancy running, which leaves me with swimming.
I can swim, but have never done it much, or been good. quick at it, any posters have any beginner tips? I think if I give it a go I might have some lessons on technique, but just looking to try it first of all
Whats the standard costume, is it speedos?
Any starter tips, or training plans?
Can you get waterproof mp3 players and headphones, any cheap recommendations?
Cheers all, apologies for the stupid questions!
I can swim, but have never done it much, or been good. quick at it, any posters have any beginner tips? I think if I give it a go I might have some lessons on technique, but just looking to try it first of all
Whats the standard costume, is it speedos?
Any starter tips, or training plans?
Can you get waterproof mp3 players and headphones, any cheap recommendations?
Cheers all, apologies for the stupid questions!
You are in "good" company here - riding (or not riding) a bike has robbed me of my front teeth, multiple times.
I do like swimming, though do not do it for long term cardio. All I will say is watch your knees on breaststroke! I have never seen in ear music being used, you can really tire yourself out fairly quickly, so you don't really get bored.
Find a local place with a nice long pool and see what they have available! - Good luck!
I do like swimming, though do not do it for long term cardio. All I will say is watch your knees on breaststroke! I have never seen in ear music being used, you can really tire yourself out fairly quickly, so you don't really get bored.
Find a local place with a nice long pool and see what they have available! - Good luck!
I wear jammers - skin tight shorts - to swim. Apparently the audio for swimming isn't all that yet, so I didn't bother, but I only swim 1km usually, sometimes 2.
You say that you are left with swimming because you don't want to run or cycle - why not spinning or rowing? Or a bit of everything? Squash?
You say that you are left with swimming because you don't want to run or cycle - why not spinning or rowing? Or a bit of everything? Squash?
Cheers for the quick replies, I feel your pain Peanut, my face is currently a complete mess.
Rowing sounds a good shout , i will try that as well, i'm probably better suited to it than swimming
Spinning is an option, but tbh ive never been a fan of indoor cycling, it will probably just remind me how much I miss proper cycling.
Jammers look a good shout will give a pair of them a go, cheers
Rowing sounds a good shout , i will try that as well, i'm probably better suited to it than swimming
Spinning is an option, but tbh ive never been a fan of indoor cycling, it will probably just remind me how much I miss proper cycling.
Jammers look a good shout will give a pair of them a go, cheers
TwistingMyMelon said:
Been a cyclist all my life, and pretty fit for my age , had a nasty crash recently which has robbed me of my front teeth and TBH I dont want to see a bike for a while (first time ever I've felt this way). Therefore I want to stay fit and keep my cardio good, I dont fancy running, which leaves me with swimming.
I can swim, but have never done it much, or been good. quick at it, any posters have any beginner tips? I think if I give it a go I might have some lessons on technique, but just looking to try it first of all
Whats the standard costume, is it speedos?
Any starter tips, or training plans?
Can you get waterproof mp3 players and headphones, any cheap recommendations?
Cheers all, apologies for the stupid questions!
Look at TI (Total Immersion) swimming, makes sense to develop an effecient stroke while the speed builds naturally.I can swim, but have never done it much, or been good. quick at it, any posters have any beginner tips? I think if I give it a go I might have some lessons on technique, but just looking to try it first of all
Whats the standard costume, is it speedos?
Any starter tips, or training plans?
Can you get waterproof mp3 players and headphones, any cheap recommendations?
Cheers all, apologies for the stupid questions!
Start going to your local pool lanes session a couple of times a week. Work out the right speed lane for you, and build up your endurance and speed.
Aerodynamics are important, but hydrodynamics are even more critical for swimming, so make sure you have that in mind as you swim. After a few sessions of getting used to it you'll be concentrating less on breathing, rhythm and where the end of the pool is and you'll be able to think about your body position in the water, and how you can move yourself through / past it.
Consider some lessons. Perhaps try Triathlon Clubs to get ideas of who might be able to teach you...
Aerodynamics are important, but hydrodynamics are even more critical for swimming, so make sure you have that in mind as you swim. After a few sessions of getting used to it you'll be concentrating less on breathing, rhythm and where the end of the pool is and you'll be able to think about your body position in the water, and how you can move yourself through / past it.
Consider some lessons. Perhaps try Triathlon Clubs to get ideas of who might be able to teach you...
Getting your technique analysed and some corrective drills given will be a massive help. Without good body position you will be working much harder than you need to be. Which is ok if all you are interested in is improving CV fitness and not actually getting much faster. But as you get fit you want to push yourself further and that is difficult if your technique sucks.
If you are anywhere near Milton Keynes I can recommend my coach who will do a 1-2-1, analyse your technique and tell you what to fix and a training plan and sessions. With a few 1-2-1s from him I went from not being able to do more than 2 lengths to a sub 6-min 400m FS in a couple of years. He also does remote video analysis so you can get someone else to film you and send to him.
You can get bone conduction headphones and waterproof MP3s. No idea what they are like though. Swimming is done in sets usually so there is little time to get bored. Its not like pounding the pavements for miles and miles.
Jammers defo the way to go. No one should be seen in speedos and lose shorts will be draggy and get on your tits.
If you are anywhere near Milton Keynes I can recommend my coach who will do a 1-2-1, analyse your technique and tell you what to fix and a training plan and sessions. With a few 1-2-1s from him I went from not being able to do more than 2 lengths to a sub 6-min 400m FS in a couple of years. He also does remote video analysis so you can get someone else to film you and send to him.
You can get bone conduction headphones and waterproof MP3s. No idea what they are like though. Swimming is done in sets usually so there is little time to get bored. Its not like pounding the pavements for miles and miles.
Jammers defo the way to go. No one should be seen in speedos and lose shorts will be draggy and get on your tits.
I’ve been swimming for a very long time now.
I would suggest swim every other day give or take.
Pick a stroke ( front crawl worked for me times etc below change if you choose a different stroke)
Start with ten lengths in s normal pool (25 metres)
Add an extra five each time
Then when you get to a mile keep to that number
Aim to do that in 30 to 35 minutes ( which you will in about a year or two at the longest)
Then keep that up.
Eventually (it took me 20 years) you’ll want to do more
This is an approach that worked for me whilst working and keeping all the other stuff going.
Recommended
I would suggest swim every other day give or take.
Pick a stroke ( front crawl worked for me times etc below change if you choose a different stroke)
Start with ten lengths in s normal pool (25 metres)
Add an extra five each time
Then when you get to a mile keep to that number
Aim to do that in 30 to 35 minutes ( which you will in about a year or two at the longest)
Then keep that up.
Eventually (it took me 20 years) you’ll want to do more
This is an approach that worked for me whilst working and keeping all the other stuff going.
Recommended
Anyone got any tips on how to find the help needed to improve your swimming. For me specifically, I need someone to teach me how to do front crawl properly - i.e. head in the water, breath every second stroke. I'd be happy with 1-1 or as part of a small group session. I googled and phoned around about a year ago, and didn't manage to find anything - everything seemed to be aimed at kids. I'm in South Bucks.
omniflow said:
Anyone got any tips on how to find the help needed to improve your swimming. For me specifically, I need someone to teach me how to do front crawl properly - i.e. head in the water, breath every second stroke. I'd be happy with 1-1 or as part of a small group session. I googled and phoned around about a year ago, and didn't manage to find anything - everything seemed to be aimed at kids. I'm in South Bucks.
Maybe see if there are any local triathlon clubs and contact them to see if they can recommend anyone?I know quite a few triathletes and many have had swimming lessons to improve their technique
omniflow said:
Anyone got any tips on how to find the help needed to improve your swimming. For me specifically, I need someone to teach me how to do front crawl properly - i.e. head in the water, breath every second stroke. I'd be happy with 1-1 or as part of a small group session. I googled and phoned around about a year ago, and didn't manage to find anything - everything seemed to be aimed at kids. I'm in South Bucks.
My coach does 1-2-1 in Milton Keynes if that's not too far? Can PM you the details.I took up swimming a couple of years ago (at 37) because my children started and I wanted to feel their pain lol.
I started at Bannatynes in a nice warm 20m pool. When you start out, you don't tend to get far, so I used to do 20 mins then sauna myself.
With cycling, you'll have a respect for air resistance, so in the pool, water is 700 x more dense than air and in order to get going, you need to remember that technique is everything! Youtube is great, Total Immersion as mentioned a great start.
Body position....stay flat....stretch, kick for balance, cannot stress enough that youtube is awesome.
I repeat 100m comfortably on just over 1:30 for 2km and am doing my first Open Water Championships in July....the first time i'll have ever competed at swimming, i'm terrified. Never done a timed sprint, but i'm hoping to do a 50m sprint later this year and aiming for a sub 30 second.
Jammers are essential, budgies are fine as long as you're not swimming anywhere near kids.
I wear these.
https://www.funkytrunks.com/
Decent googles.
Kick board, this is better for teaching body position https://www.proswimwear.co.uk//finis-alignment-kic...
Pull Buoy
Wouldn't worry about fins and paddles just yet, although paddles can help with 'the catch'.
Takes time, but the better you get, the more you enjoy it and it's very rewarding getting in a public pool and cruising past people at twice their speed and doing half the strokes!
I started at Bannatynes in a nice warm 20m pool. When you start out, you don't tend to get far, so I used to do 20 mins then sauna myself.
With cycling, you'll have a respect for air resistance, so in the pool, water is 700 x more dense than air and in order to get going, you need to remember that technique is everything! Youtube is great, Total Immersion as mentioned a great start.
Body position....stay flat....stretch, kick for balance, cannot stress enough that youtube is awesome.
I repeat 100m comfortably on just over 1:30 for 2km and am doing my first Open Water Championships in July....the first time i'll have ever competed at swimming, i'm terrified. Never done a timed sprint, but i'm hoping to do a 50m sprint later this year and aiming for a sub 30 second.
Jammers are essential, budgies are fine as long as you're not swimming anywhere near kids.
I wear these.
https://www.funkytrunks.com/
Decent googles.
Kick board, this is better for teaching body position https://www.proswimwear.co.uk//finis-alignment-kic...
Pull Buoy
Wouldn't worry about fins and paddles just yet, although paddles can help with 'the catch'.
Takes time, but the better you get, the more you enjoy it and it's very rewarding getting in a public pool and cruising past people at twice their speed and doing half the strokes!
You could try your local swimming club? Quite a few have a Masters squad. See https://www.swimming.org/masters/getting-into-mast...
Many thanks everyone for all the great advice , much appreciated , always easier to get real world advice than google .
Just found out the holiday park I'm staying at in a few weeks has a couple of pools , so that's an obvious starting point for me! Will have a decent look into the options and advice posted
Just found out the holiday park I'm staying at in a few weeks has a couple of pools , so that's an obvious starting point for me! Will have a decent look into the options and advice posted
omniflow said:
Anyone got any tips on how to find the help needed to improve your swimming. For me specifically, I need someone to teach me how to do front crawl properly
Here’s a great answer:WinstonWolf said:
Look at TI (Total Immersion) swimming, makes sense to develop an effecient stroke while the speed builds naturally.
SVS said:
omniflow said:
Anyone got any tips on how to find the help needed to improve your swimming. For me specifically, I need someone to teach me how to do front crawl properly
Here’s a great answer:WinstonWolf said:
Look at TI (Total Immersion) swimming, makes sense to develop an effecient stroke while the speed builds naturally.
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