Swimming for fitness (part 4). Everyone welcome.

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Old thread here

Anyone interesting in swimming for fitness welcome here.
Newbies, experiences, the fast, the slow - we're all sharing, learning and most of all supporting each other.

Germs have conspired against my mission to get started and I've been sofa bound for the past 10 days. Off to the drs today. It's taking me all my energy to get the kids to school and do meals and laundry. Bastard back to school germs.

Thanks for the tip about lying on my back and checking my legs. I have noodles so maybe I could use that instead of a float? My back is in chronic spasm which I think might be why I'm twisted and wonky.

DtPeabodysLoosePants you have my sympathy I’m in the same position day 9 of the cold that just won’t go but has left my head full of snot, cotton wool and zero energy Hopefully we will feel better soon!

Meant to say try some gentle yoga to help your back try Yoga with Adrienne on you tube it could help release the muscle spasms in your back. Plus swimming back stroke in the pool could help. I always end on 4L of backstroke to switch my arm rotation and release my back at the end of a swim.

Gp has diagnosed supersnot also known as sinusitis and prescribed me heavy duty antibiotics. Hopefully next week I'll be back to normal. Hope all the other snot infested posters get well soon

Two questions for you lovely people:

• why does my Fitbit suggest I use more calories on the short walk to the pool than the swimming I do. I swim roughly 70 lengths in roughly 50 mins. The walk there and back totals 30 mins.
• I have a dodgy shoulder which the physio suggested Swimming as a good exercise for. My shoulder much much better but occasionally I get pain returning (I think due to stress and typing at work). Recently both shoulders are very stuff so wondered if anyone could suggest some good stretching post swimming.

Thanks

I've never taken much notice of the calorie estimates on my fit bit, but looking now a 55 min swim is 430 calories whilst 30 mins walking is 150 calories. It does seem to use the time per 100m somehow in the calorie counts. Where I have sessions with a lot of kicking, which the fitbit doesn't count, the calorie count is a lot lower for the same time. Still double a 30 min walk though

I swim for fitness but just do 40mins to 1H depending on time available. Lately I have only had time for 40-50mins.

I try not to stop but this week am tired and pause at each end.

My problem is my legs. DH says I don't kick enough. If I try to kick more or harder then It ruins my stroke and My foot gets crampy.

I feel starving and knackered after so must be doing something, right?

Slowly noticing I am swimming further-1100m yesterday in 26mins all FC with paddles and fins, feels great to be making progress but still only managing once a week

Anyone on here swim Total Immersion. I'm self taught (as I think we all start off) but I'm looking for a coach in Yorkshire..A lot of the courses seem to be down south at the moment. Love swimming..💕

My family members who do triathlons and Iron men competitions say they don’t kick much if at all Zen. Kicking affects drag and because the leg muscles are so large they use up more oxygen and tire you out quicker. Or so I’m told.

It’s quite quiet on this thread, what is everyone up to? I’m cranking up the training now spring is here. I’ve also joined a strength and conditioning gym in the hope to stay strong and injury free this season.

Entries open soon and i’m planning on finally doing this marathon swim solo:

porttopub.com.au/

I’ve done teams of 2,4 and 6 but never managed a solo crossing. I’m quite daunted but also excited.

Wow, that looks amazing Corrigan

You are braver than me. I’m going to do my 1k in the pool later, after I’ve done the hoovering.

wet weather, nights drawing in, I've been swimming a lot, actually! It's more of a winter thing, for me.

I'm trying to swim 2km twice a week. Most weeks I manage it but this Friday I was on my way to a yoga/hiking weekend.

Next year I want to do the Rutland Water 4km swim. I'm thinking of trying a 2.5 mile sea swim in Pembrokeshire.

Did your family members enjoy the Pembrokeshire ironman BestIsWest? My friend's DF was gutted that next year's entries sold out in a day.

They adored it Minnie. Second time for one, first for the other. I’m honestly in awe of them.

I had contemplated the Tenfoot swim next year (Tenby to Saundersfoot) which is 5k but I think it might be a bit much for me.

Do you know anyone who's done the Caldey to Tenby swim BestIsWest? That's the one I'm thinking of doing.

No, unfortunately. There were good reports on Twitter and the weather was good.

Sorry, misread that Minnie, no I don’t sorry.

My swimsuit has died this weekend. I pretty much only ever have one that's actually any good On-The-Go. I've got lots of old swim suits that are already faded.

This one was a Speedo endurance and it's just gone so bad so quickly I'm really annoyed. Overnight it has faded and the fabric has started to show show white Lycra threads etc. I barely got 6 months out of it.

I've ordered a zoggs one but if anybody has any recommendations for better suits Id be interested.

I had a Speedo sculpt one that lasted absolutely forever. But when I repurchased it in Navy the colour faded so fast it was embarrassing because it faded most on my bulgy bits!

Zen my costumes never seem to last more than 3-4mths despite me rinsing them every time. I get through 3 a year normally and swim 1-2x a week. I just don’t think they have a long life anymore. My DD swims 3-4x a week and her last a similar time before they go all see through.

I have a Speedo Endurance one still going from a few years ago, I usually get a year out of mine. I bought a cool Funkita one last year but the elastic has gone in the legs and it gives me a wedgie, which is not a good look. They have some really wacky designs www.funkita.com/

HI all, can I cautiously swim up and splutter hello? This thread is actually a little awe-inspiring (even intimidating?) for a beginner. After swimming (sort of) for 42 years I had my first ever proper swimming lesson Monday and finally learned how to do crawl and the sidewards breathing thing. Badly, obv, but it's a start. My base position right now is 20 x 25m in 20 mins doing sidestroke, of all things. But learning crawl means going right back to the start, very slowly, length by length. I HATE breathing out under water and having the bubbles go up my nose, but I suppose you get used to it. I bought goggles on Saturday and put my head under water for the first time in many years - who knew, goggles are much better now than 40 years ago.

Any tips for a first-time crawler?

Welcome Mentounasc Ive taught myself front crawl over the last 2-3yrs. I didn’t like putting my head in the water to breathe out and did lots of lengths practicing with a float breathing out. Good googles & lots of practice really helped me. Plus getting comfortable using a pull buoy the float which goes between your legs so you don’t have to think about kicking at all but just focus on breathing and arms. I found the effortless swimming videos on you tube really helpful too. Good luck it’s great learning something new in your 40s it led on to me doing a couple of triathlons as well, which I never thought I’d do.

Mentounac Welcome. It was lessons in my 40s that got me going again as well. Though I’m no great shakes still, I love it.

Wow just found this thread! Can I join? Crazily I started my back-to-fitness swimmng by signing up for the Aspire swim challenge of swimming 22 miles in 3 months.