General Discussion Triathlon Talk » Am I screwed???? Rss Feed  
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2006-02-21 8:16 PM

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Subject: Am I screwed????

    Okay today while sitting in my class (not paying attention of course ) I was thinking about spring break and how that is oh about a month away and then I come to realize how close my first sprint tri is.  Basically almost a month away, and I am getting a little nervous.  To say the least mainly I'm nervous in my swimming.

     My race is a 500m swim, 15 mile bike and a 5 k run.  I'm not worried about the bike or run at all because I have easily completely those so far in my training.  I am worried about my swimming because I have only maxed out at 200m for long distance.  I havent tried to go the complete 500 yet.  The other day (Sunday) I did a simple workout as below:

50x1 warm-up
100x4 drill with 55 second rest in between.
100x1 kick drill
200x1 pool bouy (trying to concentrate on form)
50x1 cool down

  So now my question as I have yet to complete a 500 yet, and being pretty out of breathe after doing a 200 for one set, am I worrying too much or what?

 

 



2006-02-21 8:27 PM
in reply to: #351540

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COURT JESTER
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Subject: RE: Am I screwed????

No Worries.   If you are uncomfortable with doing the entire distance freestyle, you can swim breast stroke, side stroke, or even dog paddle if you have to.  Should be plenty of people in boats to help any swimmers that need it.

Check the race rules and see if you are allowed to hang on to a swim bouy for a few moments rest, or use a boat or canoe to rest on before completing the swim.

my longest pool swim last summer was 500 yards, then I ended up volunteering to do the swim for an Olympic distance relay, .93 miles, and with all certainty I can tell you I did not drown.

Have fun and you'll do great. 

2006-02-21 9:25 PM
in reply to: #351540

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Subject: RE: Am I screwed????
if you can already swim don't worry! just swim an easy 500m in your pool so you know you can do it! In a sprint it is much more important to pace yourself on the swim than on the bike or run. Try to relax and fins a pace you can do w/o wiping yourself out.
2006-02-21 9:27 PM
in reply to: #351540

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Master
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Subject: RE: Am I screwed????
You'll be fine.
2006-02-21 9:34 PM
in reply to: #351540

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Master
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Subject: RE: Am I screwed????
You are worrying too much. You will get through it.
2006-02-21 9:35 PM
in reply to: #351551

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Subject: RE: Am I screwed????
tupuppy - 2006-02-21 9:27 PM

No Worries. If you are uncomfortable with doing the entire distance freestyle, you can swim breast stroke, side stroke, or even dog paddle if you have to. Should be plenty of people in boats to help any swimmers that need it.

Check the race rules and see if you are allowed to hang on to a swim bouy for a few moments rest, or use a boat or canoe to rest on before completing the swim.

my longest pool swim last summer was 500 yards, then I ended up volunteering to do the swim for an Olympic distance relay, .93 miles, and with all certainty I can tell you I did not drown.

Have fun and you'll do great.

my swim is in a pool and I believe that if I don't make it under a certain tiem then I will be DQ'ed...

 

but thanks for the comments.. tomorrow night I'm going to try the 500 and see how fast I do it.. actually just go for total distance 



2006-02-21 9:41 PM
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Subject: RE: Am I screwed????
Dude. Speaking from experience . . . don't worry. RELAX. It's the stress that will kill you before the swim does.
2006-02-21 10:42 PM
in reply to: #351540

Elite
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Subject: RE: Am I screwed????

You should be okay, but instead of just going out and trying to swim 500m to see if you can do it, try this:

Do another workout with 10x50's  with a comfortable rest interval for you.  Say 30 seconds.  Next day (or workout) do the same set, but cut the rest time by 10 seconds.  Do the same set the next time with a rest interval of 5 seconds. (get the picture?)

Then the next week, do the same thing, but with longer sets.  So do 5x100's with 30 sec rest and then taper down to very little rest.  Feel free to do other drills or sets along with it to make your total volume longer.

week 3, try some ladders.  So warm up, then do 100m, 200m, 300m, 200m, 100m with a nominal rest interval (10 to 20 seconds.  Enough to be breathing normal, but not become fully rested).  You can also ladder recovery time.  So do a set of 100's where you go 20, 10, 5, 10, 20.  That would be 500m right there.  End the week by warming up with a few sets of 50's and 100's then swim the entire 500m.

That's just a suggestion of how I'd prep for it.  All three of those workouts can be modified to fit your abilities and feel free to mix and match.  I know the ladders seem like a lot of distance, but you should be able to handle them after two solid weeks in the pool.  If you get there and they still seem to long, then just cut the distance down.

 Also, a lot of effort can be shaved off with technique and I really don't know how well you swim.  So try working some of these drills into your routine.

http://grassrootsswimming.com/cDrillFree.htm 

I found the side kicks and catch drills to be the most benefitial initially and once I got a feel for that, then the shoulder touch really taught me how to roll correctly.

anyway, you have a month.  You can do it, just put in the time and good luck! 

2006-02-22 4:42 AM
in reply to: #351540

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Elite
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Subject: RE: Am I screwed????
I was in the same boat with swimming. I just added in a third swim workout each week and worked on distance without consideration of pace. Swam 2500m straight two weeks later. The pace was slow, but when I looked at the sprint distance I saw that at 2:00 per 100m I would be in the middle of the last year newbie pack. Now I'm not so nervous. So, just another newb sharing your experience! YOU CAN DO IT!
2006-02-22 6:28 AM
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Subject: RE: Am I screwed????

Matt hit the nail on the head ... work your way up to doing that distance comfortably, remembering this simple axiom: The slower you go, the longer you go.

You'll be tempted to blow through the first couple of laps due to race day adrenaline.  Resist that temptation and instead work on extending + gliding through the momentum generated with each stroke - particularly during the hand entry/reach forward position.  (A lot of people - especially me when I first started swimming - cut my stroke short and wasted the momentum generated ... this causes you to "muscle" through the swim + struggle with the water.)

A way to practice gliding + making use of your momentum in the water is to count your strokes for each lap.  The lower the count, the better. This "gliding" + capturing your momentum will not only regulate you to an even pace while preserving energy for your strong suits: biking and running ... but you will probably find that you are a tad bit faster in the end.

Good luck with the Sprint.

2006-02-22 7:00 AM
in reply to: #351540

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Subject: RE: Am I screwed????
thanks guys and girls for all of your help.  I'll update you with a little post of how I do later tonight with my shorter distance with shorter time intervals


2006-02-22 8:40 AM
in reply to: #351540

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, Texas
Subject: RE: Am I screwed????
I was in the exact same boat as you for my first tri. What I found was that the extra adrenaline and the pool congestion got me through it rather easily.
2006-02-22 8:44 AM
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Subject: RE: Am I screwed????
You'll be so pumped about the race that the swim will go by just fine. In the pool your all by yourself with your own thoughts and feelings, but when your in a race you break up thinking about your own swimming to think about the people around you...the thrashing etc. For the next couple of workouts try to concentrate on relaxing while you swim and don't worry so much about the labor of swimming, that's probably why your out of breath in 200m.
GOOD LUCK

Think only positive
2006-02-25 8:37 PM
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Master
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Subject: RE: Am I screwed????
hi dlaxman

thought i'd add some advice in from the other side of the pond.

first of all don't panic! getting out of breath swimming can be scary and worrying will make it worse.

second, if you are training on your swim twice a week go for one set of shorter timed swims with interval breaks as advised above and some (but not all) technique work. but on your other swim set just do a short warm up and then go for the 500. if necessary do one length freestyle and one breast or back whilst you get used to the distance. you will be amazed how soon you can do all of it freestyle. and don't forget - keep your arm entrance high and your stroke count low.

and good luck!

got my first tri in july and its a super sprint but in contrast to you i'm a water baby but loathe running.

saph xx
2006-02-26 2:48 PM
in reply to: #351540

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Subject: RE: Am I screwed????
Also, as others have mentioned, no one has ever won a triathlon in the pool. Your race is a total of 29,640 meters. 500 (1.6%) of that is the swim. Don't go all balls out in the swim and be tired for the rest. Take your time, within reason, swim slowly and confidently and finish it strong. Then get on your bike and get moving.

At least with a pool swim, you know for sure that you won't drown. If you get tired, stand up. No rules against that!
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