to think swimming pool = swimming?

[thevassal]

I love swimming. The pools by me have been closed or as good as throughout the pandemic and have only recently opened, which is great however has caused me to remember how annoying other people are!

I should clarify that I always go to a session called 'swimming for fitness' which is described as 'lane swimming for competent swimmers aged 11 plus.' The pool is set up only in lanes with signs saying what directions to swim in etc. There are lots of other sessions for families and general 'swim for all,' etc. which I tend to avoid.

AIBU to think if you are attending a swim session clearly marketed as swimming for fitness you should spend most of the time, well, swimming, and following the rules of the session, not standing chatting at the ends, floating aimlessly, glaring at people who overtake you, walking up and down, ignoring the 'clockwise/anticlockwise' 'slow/fast' directions and just swimming determinedly in "your" half of a lane at whatever speed you fancy, clearly not showering before entry so the whole pool can smell your stale smoke/overpowering perfume, etc etc. Or am I BU to expect too much from a public pool (unfortunately I cant afford to pay for my own, that would be the lottery winning dream!)

I get you, I'm a fitness / tri swimmer but now as the owner of kids who haven't been able to go to a pool for nearly 18 months and the only sessions are fitness I want to get my kids in the water.

Drives me mad too, but generally my local pool is fairly well self regulated. I choose the session to suit my workout and people jogging or generally faffing around should choose the session to suit that. Did u say it to the lifeguard/attandents?

YABU to expect people to be reasonable.

I have just swam got moaned up for slightly splashing stones hair

Yanbu that's why I stopped lane swimming. Really annoying of people.

And the ones who don't want to get their hair wet 😡

Where we are there is too much demand for family swimming or swimming for all sessions, and not enough for lane swimming, so people just book wherever they can get a slot. Not ideal, but we need more public pools open more regularly.

Am completely with you. My personal pet hate is those who 'jog' up and down the pool. I mean, why??

Oh I hear ya. Drives me nuts. There is no solution to this. People in swimming pools lose all reason.

@chocolatesaltyballs22 often this is a rehab exercise. It would also be inappropriate for them to do this in a family swim session... so when are they supposed to do their physio or rehab if they can't go at fitness swim time?

This would also drive me crackers.

The pool at my gym is currently open on a one person per lane, booking only basis. It’s a bugger to get a slot, but it means you never have to share a medium speed lane with someone who would make a sloth look like Speedy Gonzalez; plus it keeps away the teens who think they’re at Butlins.

Try different times if you can. I swim in a local private school pool. It’s much cheaper on an annual membership that local council pool and free parking plus it’s all lane swimming- slow, medium, fast. Through trial and error know best sessions.

You are so right.

I've finally managed to start lane swimming again.

Normally I'd go in the medium lane but sadly because of social distancing there are only two lanes - slow and fast. I'm too fast for the slow lane and too fast for the slow lane. Not wishing to cause a traffic jam I've been using slow lane - so sloooooow.....

People paddling about, stopping two abreast for a "chat" in the middle of the pool, hanging about the ends. I like to swim 30 lengths and get out of there - I don't want to stop and start and dodge round people... yesterday I nearly lost my mind as a couple stood in the middle of the slow lane having a long snog... FFS.

Next week I'm going in fast lane and they'll just have to live with it - sooner all this distancing stops and I can have my medium lane back the happier I'll be

Humph

3 lines where I swim - fast, medium and slow, plus plenty of milling around space for rehabers, etc. Slow = barely moving, wall clogged with chatters; medium = bit faster, wall half clogged, fast = medium. I'm not fast - I'm going 60% of a club swimmer - but it would be nice to have a bit of space to actually swim :)

My mum always recommended a couple of lengths of splashy butterfly to clear some space!

@chocolatesaltyballs22 Lots of people get told to do that for physio and rehab.

[quote HercwasanEnemyofEducation]@chocolatesaltyballs22 Lots of people get told to do that for physio and rehab.[/quote]
It's not lane swimming though. They are doing it at the wrong time.

I've often said there should be a minimum capacity test to use the lanes. Obstructing, going too slow for the lane and constantly stopping is dangerous both to yourself and other swimmers.

I want to start going swimming soon for fitness and this would drive me up the wall. It's not fair at all. Rude and entitled.

Can I ask OP, are the people who do the swim for fitness very slim and athletic? I'm not at the minute (would like to be) and I'm put off by the lane swimming because I think I'll be slow and am not in shape.

Oh how I miss swimming pool rage. How can such a relaxing activity be so stressful?

Yanbu. I’ve been at the London aquatics centre before and people have got into the slow lane of the main (competition) pool to faff about when it’s pretty clearly for serious swimming - it is 3m deep the whole way ffs, get in the training pool which is normally shallower and actually set up for family/leisure swimming.

I joined a small private pool the winter before covid. It was like a warzone. One guy was threatening to rip people's heads off. Supposedly a "naice" gym & pool on a very upmarket caravan park.

I swim front crawl, I hate tasting the aroma of a perfume/sweat entrenched person.

@Whitchurch it depends on your pool but the only option where I am is lane swimming or kids lessons. I don't blame people for booking "lanes" for rehab. Vital they can keep moving.

We aren't allowed to use pool showers.

OP: What are the lifeguards doing in the lanes sessions?

Ours would enforce OP's expectations in medium & fast lanes, allowing for 'rests' (ie chatting) at shallow end.

Slow lane is a bit looser. More flotsam there.

CarnationCat you’d be fine in ours. Slow lane is mainly older people/bigger people - m & s swim suits. Medium is fitter people/speedo swimming costumes and fast lane splashy men and women with hats and floats/gloves on hands. No chatting in pool there’s a lifeguard who walks around. Pace wise (breaststroke) I’m between slow and medium so gauge before getting in.

@CarnationCat the people in the slow lane in the pool I go to now are definitely not athletes. Slow lane is fairly unfit or old people, medium lane is averagely fit and fast is men in speedos doing butterfly. A lot of people in the slow and medium lanes take a rest at the end of the lane as well. I find myself going between slow and medium as I don’t have the stamina to keep the medium pace for the whole session but the slow lane is really slow.