Swimming for fitness (part 3). Dive in!

I always have to extract my goggles from my hair after swimming which has the one advantage of being much less likely to lose them!

Yep pretty sure I left at the pool and due to dubious lack of goggles in lost property I think they bin them.... Having said that now Ive ordered more they will probably turn up!!

Wow for GB swimmers.
Yay for 1-1 lesson!

I thought it was bad enough losing my £15 goggles Scaredpad

I had lesson today, friend was away so had teacher to myself. New teacher as my normal teacher was also away. Did a lot of flipper work but was a really good workout. Although someone got into my lane , 2 lanes are closed for lessons, so i shouted down the other end of the pool for her to get out. She was a "dry haired breast stroker" and i wasn't going to wait for her to dawdle back, she had a right go at me for shouting at her. I know my teacher would have done just the same, and the other teacher told her to move as soon as she saw her in the lane. I wouldn't mind but she is there most weeks and would know this is a teaching lane.

Oh no, Scared. Did you leave them at the pool?

I found out that the speedy teenagers on Monday were in training for the GB squad. Made me feel a little better! They will be there again at the morning session tomorrow.

Tiz i love it when i get my own lane!

Ive lost my (stupidly expensive) prescription goggles. Im in a real state about it! Firstly the money - 120 quid - but more that i cant see without them and the thought of not being able to swim today never mind 2 weeks while they make more is driving me loopy.

I think its been about 3 months ive been swimming several times a week and ive obviously become "a swimmer" as im really anxious i cant swim!!

Im trying to work out if i could risk lanes with my kids goggles but unless it really is empty im not going to see the other person at all :(

Evening swim 45min non-stop mostly crawl lost count prob around the 1250m mark. We are blessed with a lovely community run open air pool as well about 10mins away. I went regularly during my lunch break last year but haven’t made it yet this year now I’ve got faster & mostly crawl, as fear I’ll get frustrated by the dry hair breaststokers as there isn’t always a lane up. But it’s a beaut pool.

I had a lane to myself this morning, very quiet at the pool.

I'm sat here wishing I had access to an open air pool though. Would be great with this weather.

Another local pool is shut for refurbishment so today we only had the use of half the pool while the youth squad from the swimming club came to do their training at our pool. They were very impressive – must have been early teens with speed, energy and enthusiasm! Our reduced lanes weren't too bad, but Monday is always a quieter day. Might be busier and trickier later on in the week.

Thanks tiz if I carry on I’ll replace the wetsuit for a swimming one as this one really is old we live by the sea so it will get used a fair bit as we looking at getting a kayak too now the youngest DD is a more confident swimmer.

Be aware, that swimming in a thick, non swim specific wetsuit might be really tiring on your shoulders.

Did my first sea swim this morning I overcome my face in the sea water fear and loved it! Have now ordered a tow float and hope to do many more this summer. My trusty 20yr old super thick wet suit was fab at providing floatation. I didn’t go far but did do frontcrawl which was great to see clear water seabed as it was stony but not confident yet to go too far out of my depth. Some folk swam right out, I will work on my confidence this summer hopefully.

Another good swim this morning bringing my total for the week up to 9.8k. Aiming for 10 next week.

Also managed to pick up a speedo endurance costume for 8 pounds in TK Maxx. Need to sort through and throw some old swimsuits out now.

Wow! I couldn't afford that! Im feeling a bit lucky that our council run (well outsourced) centre is 30quid for 2 centres but because my kids have lessons im paying £24 a month! Im swimming 3 x a week plus 1 or 2 aqua sessions. I cant afford an extra 25quid a month at the moment (but can't make the day anyway!) but the free included session would be ace.... will have to ask at the other pool what they do!

Scared Im paying £52 for 6 weeks on top of my membership of £45 a month, that is a council run leisure centre.

Another vote here for prescriptionswimminggoggles.co.uk - they have transformed my enjoyment of swimming! Plus you can order each eye in a different strength and then you just snap all the pieces together.

Hello Flowery. I use Swimtag.

Welcome Cumber.

Great time Tiz. I do 2km in just under 40 mins (usually 39min something) but I've never stuck at it for 1km more!

54 lengths today. I currently try to do 40 in 30mins ( 31/32 today) and then gently swim a bit.

I might see if i can swim a bit slower but try and swim a mile next week just for fun!

I usually do 10 lengths front crawl/10 butterfly and just alternate and then slow backstroke for 10 at the end. I have no idea about floats or anything.

I asked about classes but the lady wasnt 100% sure. It seems they vary from water confidence and up but all on one night which would be tricky for me. I don't exactly know where I'd fall. Theyd cost 25 pounds a month on top of my membership though.

There's also a one hour slot included in my membership but at 6oclock and she wasnt entirely sure what it was! I dont want to turn u p and find its all super fast swimmers. Im also a reciprocal member at another pool so may see if they do anything.

If im having to pay on top anyway i could look elsewhere too i guess. I think id like some technique guidance or even just soemthing to vary what I do.

Decathlon also do off the shelf prescription goggles, you buy a frame and then separate left and right lenses to clip in. No actual experience but they looked ok.

I'm only -4 so manage without prescription goggles, luckily the timing clock is big enough that I can see it even from 50m away.

That sounds brilliant. I will get brave and investigate when im less self conscious about my size !

I used to love swim lessons as a kid and i feel i need someone to tell me what to do with floats /stroke correction as Ive forgotten most of it. Ill see what they do!

The class i go to is an Adult swim and stamina class. We have all levels from complete beginners to 3 of us who are advanced with 2 teachers.
Today we did warm up of
6 frontcrawl
6 backstroke
6 breaststroke
Then the teacher we had today likes us to do 2 butterfly, but i chickened out and only did the dolphin kick.
Then each week we concentrate on one stroke, this week was breastroke. We do lots of drills ie legs only front, legs only back. Float using one arm etc then put stroke back together and finish off with full stroke. The usually 5 or 10 minutes doing fun stuff like diving, floays or sculling.
Ive been going 15 years and my teachers taught my dc to swim as babies.

Fab kids :) Such a useful skill. Hopefully my daughter will do similar but 16 seems so far off. I guess it will come sooner than i think 😓

Scaredpad
Both DS and Dd did their bronze medallion and then went on to NPLQ at 16.
Ds 22 worked from 16 and in uni as a lifeguard , well worth the price of the course.
Dd 20 didnt use her NPLQ so it ran out after 2 years. The took her on for Camp America as a lifeguard and first week she did the american nplq and 2nd week she did the WSI. She is away until September then off to uni

Thanks for the recommendations - my prescription changes lots every 2 years so can't justify proper prescription goggles but 16 quid is doable!

I've swum in contacts before with no issues (sea and pool) but not proper swimming. I don't think it's recommended as such but they are disposable ones and the optician said if I swim in them I need to take them out straight away, which is what I would do. Although ideally the goggles would stop the pool water touching them.

I've no experience of goggles after my cousin told me they would make a seal and pull my eyeball out when I took them off so it's a bit bewildering!

Well done Bruffin daughter! My 9 year old does rookie lifeguards and has decided it would make a good summer job when shes older. Although its a long way off yet so who knows!

Whats your class like? I might eventually venture into asking if our pool does classes for adults that can swim reasonably okay but not super fast...in my head i assumed it was all beginners or proper club swimming.

You can get prescriotion goggles if you dont want to wear contacts.

I prefer the swim mask goggles like the aquasphere vista or speedo rift (still that someone nicked my rifts) i find them more comfortable.
Had class today which was breaststroke. Had fun doing handstands in the water at the end of the lesson. At 55 felt like a little kid again.
Dd passed her American Red Cross WSI which apparently means she can teach swimming at the camp she is at for summer. Not sure how it translates to uk qualification, would be a good way of earning while she is at uni.