Swimming for fitness (part 3). Dive in!

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Ohh la la....2nd thread filled up. Hopefully this Subject line will make it easy enough to find.

Everyone welcome.

Another one splashing in....
I've started swimming in a local lake. It's quite a nice way to spend an evening and you get to swim past the ducks.
How the bloody hell do you crack front crawl?
I had a few lessons and I get the principals... But I do about 6 strokes, get a bit weirded out and stop.
Do I just need to keep going it and suddenly I'll be doing it for longer distances?

I practiced with a float for the kick and breathing then used a bull buoy to work on the arm pull. Lots of practice and watched several you tube videos like effortless swimming or swim smooth I found useful glitteryfrog

lljkk laughing at the coast guard checking you're OK! sounds like a lovely swim!!

SkiGirl007 I can't swim butterfly, although it IS something I am getting better at... SLOWLY (while trying not to drown) I'm nearly there....

I have only learnt this SINCE joining Masters a year ago. As is the case with many Masters, there are bits of us that don't work too well, so we can't do x or y for risk of injury, and that is OK. To begin with, I swam the fly part of the IM in FC, and then swam the correct strokes for the remainder.

I know other Masters in higher lanes than I (and MUCH faster), that don't do FC kick (knee/back issues) or will only do some drills due to shoulder issues. If they are keen to get you onboard - and I can't tell you how much I've benefitted from being part of the Masters squad, it's AWESOME - then have a chat with them and see. I think they will be happy to have you.

Glitteryfrog Absolutely just keep going, it will get easier. I can swim thousands of metres in a pool, but stick me outside and my head kicks in and tells me I need to stop. I've worked hard on it this summer and have managed to get a few hundred metres of continuous open water swimming without freaking out. Slow down to go faster/further :D Focus on being as streamlined as poss, legs and feet up, breath out fully and take your 6 strokes, then another and another and you will get there. for 6 strokes, try 9, then 12, breath on every three to pace yourself through it.

Thanks hissy I’m may explore further with them. But tonight I did several lots of 10m of proper butterfly I did it a few times and my DD gave me some tips with head angle as the water went up my nose which I hate. But I was so pleased I’d managed it. Helps we are in a clubpool which was only us and I can touch the bottom. Me middle age woman learning butterfly! Heeheee

My old masters club sounds much the same as what hissy describes.

Butterfly not essential but they liked people to have a go at learning it and even in the higher lanes there'd always be some people doing butterfly drill instead of the full stroke or other alternative due to injury (other people) or laziness (me ).

I'm really pleased I've managed to keep up swimming every week day since starting my new job but I can only really do a half hour session each day. Wondering if longer sessions less often would be more beneficial than a little every day...

ski I was 50 this year and have the same experience with trying to get it. I did try it a bit in the sea, but salty water is revolting so I didn’t do much, I’m nearly there... keep at it! I can just about do 25m badly. It’s all about legs and feet together, timing of kick/entry/pull and the head shoulders entry. It’s too complicated for me to get my head around but eventually it’ll get easier

I hope 🤣

Thanks hissy that’s inspiring I’m mid 40s and yes I too tried it in the sea the other day and was nearly sick as salt water went up my nose ugh! My DD is brill giving me tips and my 6yr old is learning so it’s neen inspiring me to have ago. I’ve had to drastically cut back on running due to injury again so I need a new swimming goal this may be it conquer a length of butterfly

That’s a great goal to have ski! Keep at it!!!

Wouldn’t it be a laugh if we could all be splashy and inadequate together in pool - perhaps we already are!!

Although in true MN tradition, perhaps we ought to work out a MN sign...

Popping in to report a swim in the Med. Swam out as far as the buoy with 2 of my nieces. Lots of fishes to see. Lovely.

The drowning mid-aged woman doing butterfly signal hissy 😂I tried again today but was tired and water up my nose everytime I tried to focus on arm shape I forgot to tuck my chin in arrhhh my DD was encouraging though

Sounds a fab swim rights hope it’s a restful break.

I call my Butterfly more of a Moth tbf... :D

keep at it...

Which is excellent advice I myself need to follow.. I have 2 weeks before masters starts again and I said i'd have cracked it... eek

not helped by being in crappy gen pub sessions.... argh the swim rage

I want/need/demand another holiday!

Super quiet swim tonight had lane to myself. Did a length of butterfly kick with breaststroke arms gosh I was puffing at the end. No idea how my youngest DD did 8L of that the other week in her lesson. Tried a few 50m sprints with 30sec rests as well to get heart rate up. We also tried a sea swim at lunchtime but it was bit choppy and murky I couldn’t swim with my face in as couldn’t see anything and it was really disorienting.

NICE!!

Although I hear you on the murky stuff! Freaks me out every time. OWS is a bit of a battle unless it’s clear to the bottom...

There is one benefit of summer holidays in that sometimes, just sometimes we get a pool/lane to ourselves

OH and I train together, so not the pool to myself anymore, but sometimes we get a lane each

And sometimes we get the really stupid idiots who can’t work out that they aren’t even close to being the same pace as the lane they pick...

So after a bloody awful session earlier in the week, I had the genius idea of an early sesh at the 50m pool.

It was fab, we had about an hour, met with a couple of the (top performance) swimmers from our club, and met back up with them on Sunday, so all in all had some uninterrupted 50m lanes where it was just so relaxing and I racked up a shed load of continuous distance

I’m going to make sure we feature the 50m pool in our week, it really is a lovely space to be in, mentally and physically. So even if we’re technically not training at the club, we did over 6k for the week. And a good strong positive 6k at that.

Can’t wait to get back in. 🏊🏻‍♀️ The ta been a while since I’ve said that tbh

Wow sounds fab hissy 6k and a 50m pool. Our nearest 50m pool is an hours drive so not really an option. I’ve only swam a couple of times in a 50m pool was lovely though, when on hols my then 10yr old & I swam in the London Olympic pool it was fab. She’s tiny looks about 8 then, and we ended up in lane 3 swimming past the adults was proud a mamma

it was 2.5k on Sunday and about 2k on the Friday. it's done wonders for confidence and once i was warmed up and in the zone, it really was like i could swim forever, have not felt that for a while, it's been good. It's hard when you swim in a club full of good, very good and GB medal winning swimmers, it's easy to feel rubbish all the time, but we have worked v hard this last year and now i think we can say we are decent swimmers. I'm looking forward to seeing how things improve with another year of training :D

OH did a sprint off the blocks and made it half way, it's a LOOONG way when you are trying to swim as fast as you can.

Sea swim yesterday in Cornwall good 3-400m my best yet back n forth front crawl between lifeguard flags- a couple of months ago I’d not put my face in sea water for 30+years it was perfect conditions as I could get out a good 20m+ from the shore but still see the bottom easily. Today conditions were rolling surf so no a go.

Today’s swimming pool but really cold even in a shortie wetsuit.

Ski that looks amazing - where is it?

I'm getting better at this front crawl malarkey. I'm starting to cover a bit more distance and when I get weirded out I stick my head up, look for a buoy and do a bit more.

Cornwall

Lane to myself yesterday in pool near holiday, wracked up a mile before was kicked out for the over 50s session. Laughed inside as give me a couple more years and I’ll qualify, my lovely DH did say “no I don’t think you can pass for 50 yet “ when I joked do you think I can stay in bless him I was feeling 50 with my creaky joints the last few weeks!

Good for you Ski! You have done really well, and swimming in cold water isnt easy, and you have come so far!

OH and I went to pool last night and had a lane to ourselves for most of it, then someone got in..

Bless him he put in a blistering 50m to show us he could.. but then couldn't sustain it and had to rest, while we just pushed off and kept going.

He was a good swimmer, just out of condition, and we were on a mission to be ready for the return to Masters on Sunday. We did about 90 mins and came out with 2.5k with 300m of that kick drills with fins

Overall, I've improved my stamina over the summer, thanks to all the long course swimming I've been doing here and there. Last night for the first time ever I was able to do a straight 400m FC warm up with no stops. this is the standard start from our coach, so I know come Sunday, she will start off with that, and this time I'll do it without the pause for a couple of gulps of air halfway through.

I know my speed may have slipped a bit, but I've worked on strength overall, and a lot of leg strength too. I know she'll have us racing and dying working on speed, but what she doesn't get to work on are endurance and distance.

In a good swimming place. bring it on :D

Seriously impressed with the open water swimming. I'd love to but am scared it would be too cold for me (I have Raynaud's).

First swim in 3 weeks and had the luxury of an entire pool to myself this morning! Did 1km and am pleased to see my times improving. I'm easing back into running now after 3 months off with an ankle injury. I'm keen to keep swimming once a week if I can. I need to work on core strength too: does swimming contribute to that?

Core strength... oh yeah.... it works EVERYTHING!!

My OH has a 6 pack! first time in over 30 years.

I do too, but it's shy and prefers to hide under about 2inches of blubber skin

Morning all. I fell off the thread and swimming during my holiday, then we all got sick. I’ve managed a few sporadic swims but I’m now back in the game. A few of us have been ocean swimming when the weather’s been calm enough, and it’s been beautiful. Chuffing cold though. I have to wear a wetsuit but everyone else has just been wearing their budgie smugglers. We’re going again tomorrow. Air temp 9 degrees, water 16-17.

I’ve been struggling with medial elbow pain, coach says I drop my elbows on the catch and pull through. It’s better when I make a real effort to try not to, but that’s hard to sustain for a 4K set.