How can I make swimming less dreadful

[Curlewwoohoo]

I need to start swimming on a Sunday morning, to help recovery from a back injury. I can swim OK, middle lane front crawl I can get to 50 lengths if I keep at it long enough. But I hate it. Firstly I hate that it costs money. Secondly it's just boring, up and down. And tiring. Although that's pretty much the point of it. Thirdly I particularly hate the faff afterwards. The showers suck. They don't stay on if you don't hold the button. There is barely any water pressure. I can't get the shampoo out of my long hair. The changing rooms are mixed sex. Often full of kids. And the floors are dirty. I hate hair. Any tips to make me hate it less?!

Wash your hair when you get back home.

Cost- you and your health are worth it.

Could you vary your stroke?

When I swim I have a rule that I can’t think of anything negative, if something pops into my head then I say to myself no this is time for yourself don’t think of negative things. For example if I’m like oh shite it’s starting to rain I’ve left the washing out I say to myself well there’s not much I can do about that and I move on.
. I do a lot of ‘sorting out’ as I swim and plan my week ahead or mentally work out other things I need to sort out. Baisically I don’t think about the swimming too much and use the activity as an hour or whatever for myself.

Swimming hats are not designed to keep your hair dry but to reduce drag and for hygiene reasons. silicone caps are better than rubber ones. Some people wear two caps together with a silicone one on top, but I find that really claustrophobic.

Is swimming the only exercise that would help? I find it boring too.

I’m at David Lloyd, so all the facilities are nice but I hate getting cold whilst getting into/out of the pool and definitely prefer to shower at home, as this saves carting a load of toiletries to the gym

use daily lenses and discard them after the pool.

@Theothername please don't do this - I got a horrible eye infection after wearing lenses in the pool. The eye specialist told me never to do that! I haven't since as it was awful.

I don’t think there is such a thing.

40 minutes of swimming done! 🐟
It was actually very clean and reasonable so a good slot I think, better than the end of the day.

Dry robe alternative
Towelling robe
flip flops for manky floor
Good swimming cap

Take swim suit off, stick towelling rob on, then dry robe and head home for your shower.

Both my children got verrucas at swimming, I hated taking them but I never learnt to swim so I was determined they would

I feel the same op, I can't stand the faff.

Go to the very first session in the morning, I go at 6:30 and the hygiene is just about bearable.

Go wearing your costume but don't forget clean underwear!

No it doesn't. It's recommended to wet your hair first with normal water, before putting the swimming cap on to stop the chlorine from soaking into your hair.

You’re right, it’s a total faff. The swimming itself isn't too bad, it’s what comes afterwards!

You need to do swim sets just swimming up and do for as long as you can is mind numbing and also you won’t improve

do a quick warm up 200m

the 4 x100m alternating between fast and slow

8 x25m do this in time I do every 30sec so depending how quick I am how much rest I get

get some handle paddles and a pull bouy do some 100m with them

rest is important

you can do pyramid workouts
100m 30sec rest
200m 30sec rest
all the way upto 500m then back down

mountain warehouse do a dry robe they were selling them at £35 other week
dry off put that on and drive home

I have a gogglebox with two pairs in that I leave at the end of the lane. Put my glasses in it and swim in one pair of goggles until they fog up and then repeat with the other pair. Use glasses for walking around.

i like a swimming cap made from swimsuit material - decathlon do them. It doesn’t pull my hair but keeps it out of the way.

does your pool have a sauna? (Some of the council pools here do)

can you look for a swim buddy - I always find that helps other than that swim hat for hair, go in swimmers and as others have said some kind of robe thing over the head and off you go home for wash up etc. Footwear to avoid skanky floors and complain about the cleanliness etc

Get a dry robe. Just put it on after and go home with your costume still on. Assuming you drove to the pool

Get yourself a kick board and a pull boy just for variety

I was going to suggest the same - until recently I went to swimming lessons once a week but I'd been bored with it for ages - years, even. I didn't miss it at all when covid happened and the pools closed.

Anyway I decided that I will go every 3-4 weeks for a stretch-out and I got myself a kickboard and pullbuoy from Amazon (Decathlon also good). A short lunchtime session of about 25-30 minutes is

8 swim
8 pull
8 kick
8 pull
8 swim and get out. You can do the pull and kick in a different order.

Last time I did 10 swim and then a pyramid mixing between front and back stroke, and then cooled down until I had done 40 lengths in total.

If you do yourself a little programme like that, it is less boring.

I have found a slot when the pool is quiet between the lunchtime crew and the post-school swimming lessons. But I work part-time and from home.

I am also going to look for outdoor pools as the weather gets better. Open water isn't for me, but outside is.

Know this is a bit of an old thread but wanted to thank OP and all those who posted. Your tips have got me back into swimming regularly after 45 years, and transformed the experience!

I used to be a reluctant pre-teen who got sore throats; and with bad sight so could never see much. What I've now embraced from your tips:

• cheap prescription goggles!! Oh my. Who knew these were a thing! Fantastic being able to see once I've left my glasses.
• a flannel to stand on in the changing rooms
• easy clothes for afterwards
• swimming hat and earplugs (another brilliant new innovation I hadn't known about)
• Our local pool has swimtag - wearable watch you borrow. It uploads your splits, distance, cals used etc, and you can enter competitions in your local pool or nationally. Coming 400th in 400m breaststroke nationally (at my slow pace) has been incredibly motivating to get me to put my all into it, to aim for 399th next week.
• vitamin D tablet and defence tea to keep the sore throats at bay. So far so good.

Feels lifechanging to have rediscovered this and to be getting so much from it. I don't think I'd have persevered if it weren't for the tips in this thread, and a month in I've gone from finding 200m a push, to regularly swimming 1000m+, big steps for me. Thanks all.

That all sounds amazing, well done! I am unwell just now and missing the pool...you have inspired me to get back as soon as I can.
Have never heard of the swimtag watch thing, off to Google!

These are a game changer honestly.

I second this! I am blind as a bat without my glasses so prescription goggles are such a a big help.
@Theothername Not sure if you have tried this, you can buy anti fogging spray from Amazon and put that on your goggles and let it dry. It might be your goggles had coating but it came off. Mine came off after I stupidly washed them in hot water 😅
You have to reapply every couple weeks.

These were utterly transformational for me. I get them from here: www.prescription-swimming-goggles.co.uk/swimming-goggles

Another vote for Shokz headphones, I listen to podcasts because it's more absorbing than songs. Also, you need to transfer mp3s and I've not owned music since 2010. You'll always be able to find most podcasts in a download version - it's a bit of a faff but I put a load of podcasts to keep me going for a few weeks. Word of warning, make sure anything you listen to isn't too funny because laughing with your face in the water isn't fun!

Prescription goggles and anti-fog spray (used each time because no goggles are actually anti fog despite what they say!)

Do you really have to swim, OP? It sounds like you really dislike it. There must be other exercise you could do which would have the same effect but you hate less.

What about a gym cardio workout with some rowing and cross trainer? - That would target similar areas of your body.

I was thinking this too, I don’t think many people stick to something they don’t enjoy?