Tri Spotlight: Swimming

This is the beginning of Week 3 in the training regimen - with only 5 more weeks left to go before Mountain Medley, we're packing heat now!

Emergency: Padded spandex
needed ASAP!!
...But the view was totally worth it.

Last week I talked about pacing yourself through each activity, and being comfortable and appreciative of every accomplishment you've made thus far in your training. Since then I ran a 10K to see how it felt (terrific!) and did the 4-mile up-hill bike ride to Jump Off Rock (okay!). If you were to tell me "crotchitis" was a real affliction that happened to bikers before this weekend, I would have laaaughed and laughed...
But not now. Now I'll be damned if I ever forget that term. Ladies, you'll do right to heed my advice and read up on how to prevent saddle sores and the likes here. (Just get ready for some "Ew.") I will be going more in depth on how to safely practice biking in next week's post, so stay tuned for more tips in this department.

Last week was also the week I decided to "get serious" about swimming, and went to the pool twice in one week! Woo-ha, look at that progress right there! After my second pair of loaner goggles from the Y snapped on me (literally), I stomped on over to an overpriced sporting goods store and bought me some bona fide swimmer's gear.

No shame, no gain! 

For those of you allergic to latex, the silicone swim cap is the preferred alternative. The silicone also allows your scalp to breathe better which is always nice. If you haven't purchased any accessories yet, I would recommend looking online first rather than going to a sporting goods store. Swim Outlet has great deals, and as long as you know the length of your hair or diameter of your head, you shouldn't have any problems with the fit. Though I will say, the snugness of silicone around my brain was a bit alarming at first. I thought my head would implode if I went too deep beneath the surface. Beginner's anxiety, I suppose.

As for goggles, the Aqua Sphere Kaiman Goggles are recommended for open-water triathletes because the eye-piece is wider, allowing more visibility of the depth of the water and of the other competitors lashing wildly next to you. I went with the basic Speedo variety, mainly because it was the only kind available at this shop, and also because, well I didn't do my homework until I sat down to write this post. Really, it's whatever you're comfortable with. Some like adjustable straps, others scoff at the thought of it. Many prefer the color blue to match the optimistic color of the sky, others won't take a stroke unless their eye-wear is black. Up to you what you prefer.

To further prove my gung-ho attitude, I signed up along with my supervisor for a 3-day swim clinic, taught by triathlete and highly acclaimed Carmichael Training Systems coach, Steve Brandes.  In our first class, I stood unsure of myself in my unshapely onesy next to my supervisor, her two friends, the Director of Membership at the YMCA, and two confident 7th-graders. I was nervous of being shown up by the latter two participants until Brandes opened up the first session with the line, "Swimming is supposed to be comfortable."  Hmm, last time I checked, inhaling chlorine instead of oxygen, and one-pieces, as a rule, are not items one would list as "comfortable." But he went on to explain that once you master efficiency of form and the propulsion of your movement, the task should become inherently easy. Being told that I shouldn't be struggling in the water was being given permission to take it easy.  

To a former varsity rower, the word "train" connotes fatigue, despair, an unfounded moral compulsion to always ache at every moment of every day. But when you're still figuring out the basic form of swimming, an extremely technical sport, you can't afford to miss any opportunity to slow down and concentrate on how you are performing each action.  So that's what we did: we took things at a slow pace and concentrated on generating power through the basic motions.  Here I will walk you through some drills he taught us that should definitely help guide you to have a better pool experience before you hit open water.

Before doing anything though, warm up in the pool with 4 laps of 25m or 50m (depending on the length of your pool), resting 10 seconds or so in between. This is just to get the muscle memory warmed up and ready to be molded. Every time you jump in the water, start with this leisurely warm-up. No use in tuckering yourself out after the first ten minutes of practice.

The following two drills are helpful to practice power in your stroke:

Drill One: Sculling hands

Start by standing in the shallow end, and move your arms in a figure-eight motion under the water and around your waist, as fast as you can. (Video demonstration) Fingers are closed and your palms are slightly facing each other as they are pulled in, and slightly facing away from each other as your push them out. Do this for 1 minute to get the feel of it.  You should feel the muscles in your forearm tighten as that is where most of the pressure is coming from.  

After the minute is up, lie on your back and do the same sculling motion around your hips as fast as you can to propel yourself across the length of the pool. Try not to kick during this drill - you want to rely solely on the power of your forearms.  Once you reach the end, free-style back. Do this set (1st lap sculling + 2nd lap free-style = 1 set) 3-4 times. 

Drill Two: Fist Free-style

For the first 6 strokes use only your fists to pull you through the free-style stroke, then alternate with a regular palm for another 6 full strokes. Concentrate on how your elbow bends at the "catch," or when you pull your arm back. Here is a good video that shows how the arm should not be pulled directly underneath your body but rather as close to your side as possible. Do a full set 3-4 times. 

After these we worked on breathing.  If this is your first triathlon, not only do you have beginner's adrenaline (read: anxiety) to quell, you have everyone else's physical and mental energy to sift through. Therefore, Brandes recommended that beginners practice taking a breath every stroke on your strong arm. 

Another great tip we learned from the clinic was to slightly rotate your body in order to turn your head to the side to breathe.  Brandes demonstrated that when you pick your head up out of the water to breathe, your hips react by dipping lower, off-setting your horizontal position. And when your horizontal position is compromised, you are just creating more surface area to pull through the water. Your goal is also to bring only half of your face out of the water to breathe. 

Drill Three: Side kicking

A good drill to practice the half-face breathing as well as keeping your hips level is a kicking drill (video here). Kick off the wall and swim on your side, one arm leading your stroke for 6-8 kicks. Turn your head to the side every 6 kicks, again with half your face turned out of the water. Rotate and lead with your other arm while kicking 6-10 times. Do this 4-6 lengths of the pool. 

Pool buoys, like many things in life,
come in all shapes and sizes.

The last item we worked on was managing our physical effort.  Towards the end of a practice when you're beginning to tire out, and your arms and flailing and your form is failing, that is an ideal time to whip out the pool buoys.  Pool buoys are foam blocks that you stick in between your legs (yep, aaall the way up there) to control your buoyancy. This allows you to focus on your arm and breathing techniques without spending all your energy keeping your hips afloat. Finish your pool practice with 4-6 lengths of the pool of free-style using the pool buoys.  Concentrate on your form with every stroke you take.  

It can't be reiterated enough: swimming is purely technique. Once you manage the "efficiency" and "propulsion" of your strokes, then you start experiencing what Steve Brandes said about swimming: comfort. Then you can work on getting faster and going further. Patience, patience, practice, patience, practice patience. 

What drills have worked for you thus far? How is your training progressing? Tell us all about it in the comment box or on our Facebook group page, Mountain Medley Triathlon.

Also, if anyone is interested, there is still space in the "Ready to Tri?" Clinic! Our next session is August 19th at Leila Patterson Center in Fletcher, NC.  Contact Ellen Seagle at 828-674-6087 for more information.