Tuesday 17th September 2013 - Shivery when wet

By far the weakest link in my very weak triathlon chain is the swimming leg.  It consists of a 2.4  mile open water swim.  That's 3,860 metres; or just over 154 lengths of a standard sized pool.  Of course pool swimming is a lot easier because there are no waves and you get to push off the side with your feet at least 153 times more often over that distance than you do in an open water swim.

I have no idea how to translate the effort in a pool to the equivalent effort at sea but that won't stop me from guessing.  I reckon the equivalent time and effort would be to do around 200 lengths of the pool.  It's a completely uneducated guess but I've never let ignorance hold me back in the past and I'm not going to start now!

So today's workout was pool based.  I went to the new(ish) leisure centre in Oswestry.  After breaking the layer of ice that sits atop the water I climbed in and got going.  Actually the water isn't all that cold.  It's a good temperature for exercising in.  There's no way I'd want to sit still in it for too long though!

I have two immediate goals with my swimming.  The first is to create a habit of going to the pool at least three times a week.  Even if I'm only there an hour each time and even if I don't make great progress in those hours I need swimming to be as much as part of my life as running is.  At least for the next year. 

My second immediate goal is to improve my technique.  I can say without any false modesty that I am a horrible swimmer.  I swim in exactly the way a fish doesn't.  I've watched a few swimming videos on you tube and got some immediate pointers.  The first is that when doing the front crawl you are supposed to breath bilaterally.  That means breathing on both sides.  I've spent my whole entire life breathing only when my right arm is out of the water (excluding time spent in the bath, shower, or jacuzzi when I allow myself to breath with a wet right arm).  Apparently this one sided breathing can cause a whole host of issues with swim form. 

So now, at the age of 43, it's time for this old dog to learn some new tricks!  I alternated my breathing from left to right and took a breath every three strokes.  At first it seemed horrible and un-natural and I felt as though I would swallow water (or sink without trace) each time I tried to get my head and my left arm out of the water at the same time.  I also had to count constantly to three as it never felt like a natural thing to lift my head to the left and I never felt 'ready' to breath on that side.  I did 74 lengths in total and by the end of it breathing on my left side felt exactly as awkward and wrong as it did on length one.  Oh well, practice makes perfect and I'll focus solely on getting this right over the next few sessions until it feels natural. 

Peace, out.

JUST THE FACTS:

TODAY
Run Distance: 0 miles
Swimming: 1850 m
Cycling: 0 miles 
Workout time:  1:00 hrs
Press-ups: 0
Core workouts: 0

TOTAL
Run Distance: 4.81 miles
Swimming: 1850 m
Cycling: 0 miles 
Workout time:  2:00 hrs
Press-ups: 26
Core workouts: 1