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WOW, wow, wow........
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 2004-01-06 1:45 PM |
Expert  774    England |  Subject: WOW, wow, wow........Just back from my first swim lesson and it was possibly the best £5.00 I've ever spent (maybe not quite that good, but certainly the best triathlon £5.00....). With a few simple pointers I've already made a massive improvement in my position in the water so I now feel like I'm 'gliding' on top of the water rather than trying to slog through it, and in less than an hour I was swimming 10 secs faster per 25m with no extra effort, and possibly even less. That means about 8 mins for my 400m so thats 3 mins gone from my swim time already. Possibly even more importantly, I can now see the enjoyment in swimming. It was a great feeling to get the position right and feel the extra speed possible and the smoother stroke. It's given me a few things to practice so i can focus on technique rather than just grinding up and down the pool, and I know I've just scratched the surface as well. If you haven't already done it, I strongly recommend you find your local class or coach and get some lessons - after all you've got nothing to lose.....except time from your swim leg! |
| 2004-01-06 2:18 PM in reply to: #3259 |
| Member 40 | Subject: RE: WOW, wow, wow........ |
| 2004-01-06 6:15 PM in reply to: #3259 |
| Central Louisiana | Subject: RE: WOW, wow, wow........ |
| 2004-01-07 12:36 AM in reply to: #3261 |
Expert 774 England | Subject: RE: WOW, wow, wow........ Ssyba - I think they were probably personal to my dreadful technique but if they may be of use, they were: 1. raise my head so water level is just above my goggles (I had my head face down and most of it was underwater so was not streamlined) 2. kick so my heels break the surface and I can hear them splash (my kick was totally underwater so hard work and providing little power & lots of drag) 3. Raise my hips & legs so they are on the surface rather than submerged (see 2 ). I achieved this best by using the TI idea of 'pushing the buoy' or pushing my chest into the water which pops up my hips & legs. When I got this just right I could feel a surge of speed like somebody just pulled me along - totally cool! Still left to get the hang of is: 1. breathing on both sides (used to breath every stroke on the left but that is now much too often with improved technique). Breathing every 4th stroke is just about doable but seems to make it slightly harder work so I'll try and get the hang of both sides and using the 3rd stroke for a more relaxed effort 2. loads more streamlining to be done - will try the TI drills when I get this committed to heart 3. tumble turns rather than the stop & turn - someway into the future yet though!!!!!! Happy swimming from a reformed bored (very slow) swimmer...... |
| 2004-01-07 4:07 AM in reply to: #3259 |
| Member 38 | Subject: RE: WOW, wow, wow........ Sounds good Bigpikle where are you finding all those T1 drills, is there a website for them, my middle name is El, last name Cheapo so don't want to be seen purchasing any books or anything. On the tumble turns, they do make your training quicker, but at the end of the day you don't tumble in a race so I really don't think they are too crucial. waiting on the info for T1 |
| 2004-01-07 4:42 AM in reply to: #3276 |
| Member 40 | Subject: RE: WOW, wow, wow........ Great!!! Thanks for taking the time to type out those. I would imagine that most beginners make relatively similar mistakes. |
| 2004-01-07 5:52 AM in reply to: #3285 |
Expert 774 England | Subject: RE: WOW, wow, wow........ I just went for a quick 15 min swim at lunchtime (I work from home and have the pool 1 mile from the house!) just to practise again and make sure I hadn't forgotten how to do it!! Still worked fine but I need to really sort out this breathing thing as i kept holding my breath and working anaerobically which was too tiring. No doubt more practise will solve it so lots of short swims for a while rather than 2 long sessions a week. I just recently got the TI book so was planning on using that for the various practises. I hear the website has loads of info available but when I looked at the video clips they were poor quality and I couldn't really make out what was going on? Book was cheap on Amazon anyway and I'm sure your local library could get it for you. |
| 2004-01-07 4:27 PM in reply to: #3259 |
| Member 38 | Subject: RE: WOW, wow, wow........ Hey Bigpikle, that's a real swimming name isn't it. I live in Ilsan, 25km outside of Seoul in South Korea, teaching English here and training for triathlons with 3 other friends. The local library only has Korean books. I still have to check out the website, but it doesn't sound good from what you wrote. Still I know a few drills from my competitive swimming days, my focus is to work on bilateral breathing, head position and DPS. Still avoiding the pool need to get back into it before my friends leave me behind. Can't wait for summer! Cheers |
| 2004-01-08 1:58 AM in reply to: #3259 |
Expert 774 England | Subject: RE: WOW, wow, wow........ Hadn't thought of the language issue - I bet they haven't done a Korean translation yet!!! I looked at the web again and found the video clips again, but they give a flavour rather than the full picture - it may be possible to try and add some of the elements to your existing stroke and make a difference. Is there an Ebay in the Far East that might have a copy of the book? There's also a DVD available but it's not cheap.... |
| 2004-01-08 3:27 AM in reply to: #3259 |
| Member 38 | Subject: RE: WOW, wow, wow........ If there is ebay here it'll be in Korean, not much help! I could order it on ebay in the US though and get it shipped here. Was talking to one of my American tri-buddies here this morning and he is thinking of buying it, so I will probably get a look at it second hand (though he might only show me after the season so I don't get the jump on him!). Cheers for the hints, actually swimming is my strongest event (coming from a swimming background), I should really be thinking about the other two a little more. |
| 2004-01-08 4:05 PM in reply to: #3259 |
Extreme Veteran 465 Epworth. Iowa | Subject: RE: WOW, wow, wow........ Thanks for the thread! Swimming will probably be my biggest challenge and I am currently looking for a coach. |
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