|
|
| |
Cliff "Irongeezer" Eggink, age 73, just finishing a 2.4 mile open water swim. "If I can be this active, you can do it too!
For More Swimming Go To > www.irongeezer.org <
|
How to Swim From Wikipedia Swimming is a fun activity enjoyed by people of all ages all over the world. For many people, swimming comes naturally. But never try to learn by yourself. Swimming should be taught by a professional lifeguard in controlled environment. Of course, many parents choose to teach their own children how to swim, but in all other circumstances a lifeguard should be sought out. Many YMCA's, community centers, gyms, and country clubs offer lessons. Once you've learned to swim the activity is no more dangerous than riding in a car. But, like riding in a car, if you choose not to use common sense your risk of serious injury or death greatly increases. Therefore, always swim with a friend, and especially when you are first learning. If possible, do not swim when lifeguards are off duty. 1. Warm up your body. It is very important. 2. Get into the water, making sure that it is not too deep for you. Holding on to the side of the pool, or someone you trust, let your head go under water. When you start swimming you must remember to keep your head steady. Remember to hold your breath. If you blow bubbles out of your nose then water will not go up your nose.
3. Grab onto the side of the pool and let your legs float out behind you. This will be easier if you put your face in the water. Start kicking your feet and get a feel for how it's done. You must remember to kick with your thigh muscle, without bending your knees. Make sure that your toes are pointing, like a ballerina. When you're ready, stop kicking and proceed to step #4.
4. Turn around so you are facing the open water. 5. Slightly jump off the ground and bring your right arm in front of you, cup your hand and push your arm through the water until it's at your side. Repeat the process with your other arm. You are pushing yourself through the water with your arms.
6. At the same time, kick with your feet, like you did in step #3. This will make you move faster.
7. If your arms get tired, do not panic! You can flip over onto your back, let your arms float out to your sides, like a 'T', and let your feet float out in front of you. Relax, then just kick with your feet to keep moving, or just kick your leg 8. Once you have mastered all of the steps, you can try to do more advanced swimming patterns like the butterfly and the breaststroke. There are many more. Warnings Don't panic! If you get exhausted, flip over onto your back and float - as described in Step #6. Until you are comfortable in the water do not go into water that will be deeper than your chest. That way, if you get scared or tired, you can put your feet down without too much of a struggle. If you are really skinny, you will not be able to float, because fat is what keeps you buoyant. You may want to try wearing a life jacket. When you first learn to swim, you are using your muscles in new ways, and this is extremely tiring. Always have someone nearby who can swim well. Underwater breathing contests are very dangerous. Although you might think, "we are only a couple feet in the water," if you stay underwater for too long, you can drown quite easily. But don't be scared, just say politely, "No thanks," if someone asks you to have an underwater breathing contest. Things You'll Need
a person that is able to swim. swimsuit or short pants (if necessary, otherwise optional) goggles (optional) cap (optional) nose plug (optional) ear plugs (optional) Patience (Required) Perseverance (Required) A pool or beach (Required) This message will be posted here thru 2010, tell a friend.
|
Triathlon
Are you a triathlon beginner intimidated by the swim? Don't feel bad - most beginners find the swim the toughest of the three disciplines. Here are 6 swimming tips to help you perform well during the swim at your first triathlon or to improve your swim time as you advance. 1. Swim technique. The more time you work on your technique, the more efficient your stroke and the less energy you will use during your swim. You can find 5 key techniques on the triathlon swim tips page on my site. You can also seek out help from a masters swim program. Sometimes even places that teach kids how to swim will also help adults who want to swim competitively. One of the best self-taught programs I've seen is from the "Tri Swim Coach" Kevin Koskella. 2. Repetition is the key to becoming a strong swimmer. The only way to improve your swimming is to keep doing it. If you are doing a race with an open water swim you should definitely add some practice open water swims to your training plan - you especially need to practice "sighting" in the water (swimming straight to a location). The good news is that swimming is a low-impact way to build your cardiovascular system. 3. Swimming with a group can keep you motivated. A group can keep you challenged to improve. A coached group is also a good place to start. A coach can give you feedback about your form or technique. 4. Upper body strength will help your swimming. As you develop your weight training program, don't forget to work on upper body and core strength. This will definitely help your swimming. 5. What to wear during triathlon swimming. A snug fitting swimsuit - some people wear bike shorts - is best. This makes sure it doesn't catch water during the swim. For lake swims, if the water temperature is 78 degrees or below you can wear a wetsuit. Most people will wear one if they have the option because a wetsuit helps add to your buoyancy in the water and keeps you warm. If you don't have a wetsuit you need to get used to swimming in cold water. 6. How far do I have to swim to do my first triathlon? This is probably the number one question I get from beginners. It's obviously a good idea to be able to swim at least the race distance (usually 500 meters in a sprint race) before you do your first triathlon. However, if your race has a pool swim don't be worried if you're not sure you'll be able to swim without stopping - most pool swims allow you to hold onto the wall at the end of the pool to rest (just remember to keep your feet off the bottom of the pool - check with the race director before your race). Triathlon Coach Janet Wilson is a USAT certified triathlon coach and ACE certified personal trainer. Janet is an accomplished and nationally-ranked amateur triathlete and she coaches triathletes of all skill levels, from a triathlon beginner to Hawaii Ironman qualifiers. To learn more about triathlon training, swim tips, coaching programs or just great tips on how to stay in shape visit her website at http://www.coach-janet.com
This message wil be posted here thru 2010, refer to it as often as needed.
|
Half Iron distance Swim = 1900m - 1.2 miles Brain Work: 1900m swim as a steady, sustainable, non-stop effort. Your total time should go down as you get fitter; you might also find your time stays the same but you feel stronger at the end of the swim, an indicator of increased technique proficiency. Over time, add 100m to 300m to these swims until the full distance is covered. Race Simulation: 1900m swim with varied efforts to simulate the early, mid, and late portions of the race. The first 50 strokes at a moderate to high level, the mid-portion at a moderate, sustainable level, and the closing section at a moderate to moderately higher level (not as fast as the first 50 strokes). At the end of this swim, check your heart rate; check it again at 30, 60, and 90 seconds. As you get fitter, heart rate should go down faster and/or your total swim time will get faster. Technique Golf: Swim 10x 25m (or 50m) with: 15s-30s rest, count strokes for each length. Add stroke count and time n seconds. Aim to decrease total for each 25 (or 50) within a workout and over the weeks. Sustainable Pace: The 50-50 workout. Divide the race distance into two parts (2x 950m). Swim segment at an easy to moderate effort, an effort that results in a time slower than segment two. Rest for 60s and check your heart rate at 0s, 20s, and 40s. If it is not going down, continue resting and re-checking every 20s until it starts to go down, then wait an additional 20s. Swim segment two at a moderate effort that results in a time faster than segment one. The pace for segment one should be consistent throughout that segment; the pace for segment two should be consistent throughout that segment. As you gain fitness, attempt to make the time (and pace) for each segment equal without slowing down the time for the second segment, then attempt to decrease the rest between segments. Don't try to do both at the same time, focus on increasing the pace for segment one first. Once the speed for segment one is about the same as segment two, you should be able to decrease rest between segments. Remember to use the heart rate check every 20s. Hold a Pace: 10x 50m (or 10x 25m, 10x 75m, 10x 100m, 10x 150m, or 10x 200m; looking for a total time of about 20m), with 10s rest, at the fastest possible even pace. These should all be the same speed, with the goal of feeling like you might be able to do one or two more once you finish the set, but you could not do more. At the end of this swim, check your heart rate; check it again at 30s, 60s, and 90s. As you get fitter, heart rate should go down faster and/or your total swim time will get faster. Count-down: swim 1900m as a 550, 450, 350, 250, 150, 100, 50; rest 10s to 20s between each segment. Aim to go faster as the segments get shorter. Over time, aim to decrease total swim time. Hard-Easy-Hard: All of the repeats in this set should be the same distance. Swim 4x 25m at a fast, almost un-sustainable speed (or 4x 50, 4x 75, 4x 100, 4x 125, or 4x 150; looking for a total time of about 9-10 minutes for the 4 swims including rest), 2x 25m very easy focusing on technique (or 4x 50, 4x 75, 4x 100, 4x 125, or 4x 150; looking for a total time of about 6 minutes), and 4x 25m at a fast, almost un-sustainable speed (or 4x 50, 4x 75, 4x 100, 4x 125, or 4x 150; again looking for a total time of about 9-10 minutes) all on 20s-30s rest. At the end of this set, check your heart rate; check it again at 30s, 60s, and 90s. As you get fitter, your fast times should get faster, your speed fall-off between repeats will decrease, and your heart rate should go down faster. How often, and how fast, should you swim these workouts? Click here to read the the specifics on swimming speeds and the frequncy of doing these swim workout sets
Source: swmplan.com
Iron distance Swim = 3800m - 2.4 miles Brain Work: 3800m swim as a steady, sustainable, non-stop effort. Your total time should go down as you get fitter; you might also find your time stays the same but you feel stronger at the end of the swim, an indicator of increased technique proficiency. Initially, non-stop efforts of shorter distances should be preformed. Over time, add 100m to 300m to these swims until the full distance is covered. Race Simulation: 3800m swim with varied efforts to simulate the early, mid, and late portions of the race. The first 50 strokes at a moderate to high level, the mid-portion at a moderate, sustainable level, and the closing section at a moderate to moderately higher level (not as fast as the first 50 strokes). At the end of this swim, check your heart rate; check it again at 30, 60, and 90 seconds. As you get fitter, heart rate should go down faster and/or your total swim time will get faster. Technique Golf: Swim 10x 25m (or 50m) with: 15-30s rest, count strokes each length. Add stroke count and time in seconds. Decrease total for each 25 (or 50) within a workout and over the weeks. Sustainable Pace: The 50-50 workout. Divide the race distance into two parts (2x 1900m). Swim part one at an easy to moderate effort, an effort that results in a time slower than part two. Rest for 60s and check your heart rate at 0s, 20s, and 40s. If it is not going down, continue resting and re-checking every 20s until it starts to go down, then wait an additional 20s. Swim part two at a moderate effort that results in a time faster than part one. The pace for part one should be consistent throughout that part; the pace for part two should be consistent throughout that segment. As you gain fitness, attempt to make the time (and pace) for each part equal without slowing down the time for the second segment, then attempt to decrease the rest between segments. Don't try to do both at the same time, focus on increasing the pace for segment one first. Once the speed for segment one is about the same as segment two, you should be able to decrease rest between segments. Remember to use the heart rate check every 20s. Hold a Pace: 10x 50m (or 10x 25m, 10x 75m, 10x 100m, 10x 150m, or 10x 200m; looking for a total time of about 20m), with 10s rest, at the fastest possible even pace. These should all be the same speed, with the goal of feeling like you might be able to do one or two more once you finish the set, but you could not do more. At the end of this swim, check your heart rate; check it again at 30s, 60s, and 90s. As you get fitter, heart rate should go down faster and/or your total swim time will get faster. Count-down: swim a 900, 800, 600, 500, 400, 300, 200, 100; rest 10s to 20s between each segment. Aim to go faster as the segments get shorter. Over time, aim to decrease total swim time. Hard-Easy-Hard: All of the repeats in this set should be the same distance. Swim 4x 25m at a fast, almost un-sustainable speed (or 4x 50, 4x 75, 4x 100, 4x 125, or 4x 150; looking for a total time of about 9-10 minutes for the 4 swims including rest), 2x 25m very easy focusing on technique (or 4x 50, 4x 75, 4x 100, 4x 125, or 4x 150; looking for a total time of about 6 minutes), and 4x 25m at a fast, almost un-sustainable speed (or 4x 50, 4x 75, 4x 100, 4x 125, or 4x 150; again looking for a total time of about 9-10 minutes) all on 20s-30s rest. At the end of this set, check your heart rate; check it again at 30s, 60s, and 90s. As you get fitter, your fast times should get faster, your speed fall-off between repeats will decrease, and your heart rate should go down faster. Source: swimplan.com
|
Triathlon Key Swim Workouts
Your Guide to Swimming. How Often and How Fast. Brain Work:
Speed= race pace or slower, but always the same speed through the entire swim.
Frequency= every 2-3 weeks - remember to start with less distance and build-up. Race Simulation:
Speed= race pace.
Frequency= every 3-6 weeks - remember to start with less distance and build-up. Technique Golf:
Speed= varied speed from slower to faster than race pace to experiment with stroke rate, stroke distances, etc. As experience is gained moves to a narrower range, and moves towards race pace or slightly slower early in the set to race pace or faster later within the set.
Frequency= every week. Sustainable Pace:
Speed= overall race pace, with variation between segments narrowing with experience.
Frequency= every 1-2 weeks. Hold a Pace:
Speed= Fastest speed that can be sustained for all repeats.
Frequency= every 1-2 weeks. Count-down:
Speed= average race pace, starting below race pace and ending faster than race pace, with the variance narrowing with experience.
Frequency= every 3-6 weeks - remember to start with less distance and build-up Hard-Easy-Hard:
Speed= As fast as can be done for four swims in a row. It might be so fast you cannot hold that speed for every repeat; speed could decrease 5s-10s from first to fourth swim and from 5th to 8th swim, but if the slow-down is greater, then the initial speed was too great!
Frequency= every 1-2 weeks.
I also have a few random thoughts to add... Swim is not the place to try and win unless it is a drafting race, then still better not to win but draft off the leader in the swim! Balance of effort and speed - much more to come in the race after the swim is over. Swimmers will often say that the swim leg of a triathlon is too short, and non-swimmers will say the opposite - this probably relates to the level of technical proficiency of the swimmer, not necessarily their fitness. Not taking into account the benefits of a wetsuit, you will not swim faster in a race than you swim in practice (and still be able to bike and run well afterwards). You must do some swimming in practice at efforts below, at, and above race pace. Short races require a bit more emphasis on swimming at or faster than race pace, and longer races slide down to an emphasis on race pace and below. Works the same way as training for a run of 1 mile or 26.2 miles - training for the longer race tends to have less running at race pace!
Source: Matt Luebbers. About Us
|
Open Water Swimming.
By Tatjana Eggink
This information will be posted here thru 2011 so that you may refer back to it at "reminder time."
Lakes, Rivers, Ocean
”The water is your friend. You don't have to fight with water, just share the same spirit as the water, and it will help you move.”
Alexander Popov
Fears and Anxieties: They are natural. Admit them. Learn to overcome them.
Identify: What is my fear?
1. The Madding Crowd
2. Murky water – What no lane lines? 3. The Food Chain.
4. The Unknown.
5. Water quality.
6. Water and weather conditions.
7. Temperature, waves, surf.
Why? Because it is all so different than on land or the pool.
What Happens?
Any fear or anxiety may lead hyperventilating at the start of the race. Breathing – breathing while swimming is usually the most difficult part of swimming technique. The breathing stroke, even in the pool, is the worst stroke. Technique, the ability to bi-laterally breathe and practice for open water swimming in the pool, if open water practice is impossible or impractical, will provide the skills necessary to breath properly and avoid hyperventilating due to anxiety.
Pool Drills for Tri-Specific Open Water Swimming:
1. Get in the pool with a bunch of mates and share a lane. Practice following each other (drafting is legal). Variation: Swim shoulder to shoulder.
2. Simulate wetsuit swimming – use a pull buoy to give yourself horizontal body position. 3. Get in the deep end where there are no lane lines, if possible, and make sure there are no divers – swim in circles there with out touching the walls. 4. Instead of pushing off hard, push off softly, or turn before the wall – there is no wall in the open water.
5. Do push-ups on the pool deck, then swim race pace for 50 yards. Hop on deck, repeat. Pay attention to your fatigue level and heart rate, please when doing this. 6. Get in the pool. Tread water, pretending you are at the start of your in water start race, then start as fast as your fastest pace for 50 yards, then settle down into a comfortable pace you can maintain.
7. Practice bi-lateral breathing.
8. Practice rolling over on your back to adjust your goggles.
9. Close your eyes while swimming the length of the pool. Do this in a lane by yourself.
10. Learn to sight while breathing.
11. Heads-up swimming – like the old Tarzan films.
12. Play water polo.
13. Serpentine swim with others.
14. Visualize your swim in the open water. 15. Practice swimming with the wetsuit in the pool.
16. Swim the distance of your race, straight-through, no breaks, - even go over-distance.
The Goal: Relaxation!
The ability to swim long distances and remain relaxed is a key to triathlon swimming. Unlike competitive swimming in a pool, you will need to learn to conserve energy and relax during your swim. When you finish the swim, you should feel race ready, not frazzled, exhausted or spent. You should feel warmed-up and ready for the bike.
Equipment for Open Water Swimming:
If the event is wetsuit legal, swim with the wetsuit…no discussion on this point. The best triathlete swimmers do this. Up to and including 78 degrees F. >78, but<84 degrees, you can still wear the wet suit, but you are not eliglible for awards. (USAT Rules)
Wetsuit: Shorty, Sleeveless, Full.
Swim Cap, Brightly Colored.
Neoprene Cap. Neoprene Booties.
Body Glide, Cooking Spray.
Goggles.
The Event:
1. If there are practice swims prior to the triathlon, do them.
2. Check the course – the buoy set - as soon as you get there. Pick your sighting landmarks.
3. Check out the start and finish of swim. 4. Understand the entry and exit points of the swim to bike transition. 5. Take your time putting on your wetsuit.
6. Don’t miss your wave start.
7. Line up according to your ability level. 8. If conditions are tougher than you expected, high surf, for instance, and out of your ability range, call it a day. That’s the smart and safe triathlete’s decisions. Safety, first: Never Swim Alone! -Select a supervised area. A trained lifeguard who can help in an emergency is the best safety factor. -Select an area that has good water quality and safe natural conditions. Murky water, hidden underwater objects, unexpected drop-offs, and aquatic plant life are hazards. Water pollution can cause health problems for swimmers. Strong tides, big waves, and currents can turn an event that began as fun into a tragedy. -Enter feet first, don’t dive in. Always look before jumping off a dock or raft to be sure no one is in the way. -Never swim under a raft or dock. Avoid drainage ditches and arroyos. Drainage ditches and arroyos for water run-off are not good places for swimming or playing in the water. After heavy rains, they can quickly change into raging rivers that can easily take a human life. Even the strongest swimmers are no match for the power of the water. Fast water and debris in the current make ditches and arroyos very dangerous. -Check the surf conditions before you enter the water. Check to see if a warning flag is up or check with a lifeguard for water conditions, beach conditions, or any potential hazards. -Keep a lookout for aquatic life: Avoid patches of plants. Leave animals alone. -Make sure you always have enough energy to swim back to shore. -Don’t try to swim against a current if caught in one. Swim gradually out of the current, by swimming across it.
Source: American Red Cross Water Safety. Other Resources:
*Swimming to Antarctica: Tales of a Long-Distance Swimmer
Lynne Cox.
*Triathlon Swimming Made Easy: The Total Immersion Way for Anyone to Master Open-Water Swimming. Terry Laughlin.
*DVD: Freestyle Made Easy. Terry Laughlin. *DVD: Swimming Upstream. (Against the odds, he found the strength to become a champion.) Movie.
*DVD: The Big Bad Swim. Movie.
|
|
|
