Swimming

Sounds like fun. Just swim walkable shore i.e. if you get hypothermic, you can get out easily. I've made that mistake before, it's pretty dangerous.

This morning's dunk location in Vienna. I'm not really acclimatized this winter so it was too cold for me to do much more than paddle. So many places to swim, must come back.

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Hi all,

Just started swimming regularly again this year after a 10-year absence. It's great! However, I've noticed that my breathing is all over the shop when swimming freestyle/front crawl. It's been a very long time since I did any breathing drills so has anyone got anything they'd recommend?

First question is are you breathing out under water?

Second one is are you breathing every 3 strokes?

After that I’ve exhausted my swim coaching skills..

I'll add:-

Are you fully exhaling under water? You shouldn't be having to exhale anything when you turn your head to breathe in.

(I've got into bad habits and it only feels "normal" to breath on one side, luckily I can maintain my usual pace breathing every 4 strokes.)

It's weird, I breathe one side (to my left) only when sea swimming (regardless of wave direction) but perfectly happy with bilateral breathing in the pool.

I can't think of any exercises, but just slow and steady works. Focus on being consistent and don't 'gulp' air in.

It’s been a long time since I did it, but we used to do the numbers game for 20 lengths.
Length 1: breath every 2 strokes
Length 2 : every 3
3:4
Up to 10 and back down. Then settle on 3 for the last two.
With each breath try and look at the crook of your elbow, and accentuate the breath.
We also used to do the reverse- so you say this lap im going to take (say)10 breaths, then down to no breath lap and back to 10.
Pointless, but quite fun.

When I first started back I found I had no issues breathing in every 3 strokes, but my issue was holding my breath and just letting it all out in one burst before my next inhale. I put a good bit of effort into releasing each breath steadily under water between inhaling and it became much more natural and I felt a lot less out of breath. Think about it, when you’re above land you don’t breath in and hold your breath til you next need to breath in.

I was able to practice this while still swimming but I’ve seen some people practice it just standing in the water at the side of the pool. Deep breath in, face under water, and release air steadily. Since unlocking my breathing I’d have no problem swimming a steady 2 or 3km without stopping.

When I’m really pushing it over shorter distances (50m efforts) I’d breath every 2 strokes.

Another thing that will help, apnea tables. I stared freediving a few years back and did lots of exercises to increase co2 tolerance etc. These also really helped with swimming and breathing.

I don't often look in this thread, but am really glad I did this morning: These are great suggestions!

I've been back in the pool for ~9 months after a long period off for obvious reasons and the 'control' location of being in water and having to breathe three-and-three has really pointed out how shot my lungs seem to be now. I realise I am now almost always swimming at the edge of panic 'that there will not be any more air'. I am grabbing at air, basically. Last week I finally got to see a GP who is putting me through the mid-fifties checks (heart, blood pressure &c &c), but I actually think it's five years of rolling anxiety that's got me in this state (big life change). Whatever. Practical stuff to work at how to breathe is great... thank you.

Cheers, everyone. I think not breathing out properly underwater is where my issue lies. I'll try slowing down and just focusing on that when I go tomorrow morning. I've also developed a bad habit of only breathing on one side, so I'll try and sort that out too.

Main reason for bilateral breathing is that it helps avoid any imbalance in your stroke.

If you always breathe to one side you can end up pulling harder on one side than the other, and then you end up going down the lane slightly askew/crab-like, which increases drag considerably.

Even if you like breathing every 4 strokes you should alternate which side you breathe on each length so that you don't start to compound/train-in any imbalance.

(Must practice what I preach...Haven't been swimming for about 3 weeks now - mostly due to Covid but prior to that it was apathy)

Any tips for early morning swimming nutrition? Don’t want to eat loads and have it sloshing around but felt light headed and queezy after this mornings seasion. Ate an apple and a cereal bar

I usually have a banana about 30 mins before a 2.5k - 3k morning swim

I do 1.6km twice a week at 7:30am.

I don't eat or drink anything beforehand. Seems fine to me; have been doing it for years.

Up to 10 and back down.

Wait so 9 strokes without a breath?! I'd be drowning at that point

Speedo half price or less on sportpursuit at the moment
https://www.sportpursuit.com/products?bid=117&src_search=Speedo

I did not know it was that bad.
The penultimate paragraph is sobering.
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/apr/12/thames-at-oxford-to-get-bathing-status-in-effort-to-clean-up-english-rivers

We need to nationalise the water companies, ASAP, and get FAR more strict about what they're able to pump into rivers. The billions and billions of pounds that currently go to shareholders can cover the cost of improvements.

The previous nationalised water companies weren't much cop either but the current system is definitely failing.

Profit and environmentalism are mutually exclusive incentives. Can't have companies running this stuff. Not unless you want to bring in really strict rules, properly fund the watchdog agencies and legislate to give them real teeth, which is def not the Tory M.O.

Swim Serpentine entered again (will be the 5th time I've done it I think). Will train and aim for sub 1h this time!

Nah, you won’t, honest.
@Greenbank you doing the 6?

On the other extreme I swam for the first time since the pandemic started, 1km, pace was average, (1:38/100) but fuck it hurts now.
And to be honest my shoulders were giving up at the end.
Need to swim more, I had forgotten how much I missed that feeling.
Bonnie Tsui’s book helped .

Another weekend, another open water race. There’s been lots of rain lately so the current was pretty strong, which is a great ego booster looking at the numbers. Done enough to bag 8th out of 75 starts so happy enough with that. Doing a 3km race in the sea this day next week, assuming the stormy weather dies down…

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(Only just spotted this)

you doing the 6?

No, just the 2 mile as normal. The Super 6 was Type 2.5 fun and I'd only enter it again if I was in serious training.

Right now (3 months before the event) I have done two 400m swims in the last few weeks and then nothing else in the 6 months before that. Reminds me, need to book again for tomorrow and get back into it.