Swimming

Didnt think of that, I Would recomend lido too

good stuff man. the tangible progress is another great thing about swimming. where do you swim?

I go to Ironmonger Row baths just behind the Church on Old Street.

counting is deadly.
*learning to let my breathing dictate the pace rather than the other way round. *

*that was the key. *totally changed the way i thought about swimming and suddenly instead of doing 20 or 30 laps i was doing 100 or 150.

only then was i really able to start concentrating on efficiency and technique in a way that i couldn't when i was purple-faced thrashing and struggling for air.

This is very useful information. I have based my level of improvement on counting. I know I am improving if I can swim 2 more lengths tomorrow than today. However, this has got me into a mind set where I am thinking right, only 6 to go, for example, and yes this does seem to have a negative effect as my concentration then wavers.

How can I tell if I am improving if I do not count laps then?

Also, the bit about breathing, what do you mean by that? When I get tired I slow down and slow my breathing down. When I have recovered I speed up and my breathing speeds up. Have I got the wrong idea?

Stick with it and your running fitness will build from there. If you start getting into it get proper trainers - to support your gait - and read around a bit more about training plans for building distances effectively etc.

Running is higher impact than swim or bike - except crashes! - so be more wary of niggles and the like.

Good luck if you decide to go for it, sorry to have taken this so far from the swimming topic. Maybe a running thread is needed too!

A.

I intend to start running in the new year as its my intention to start doing triathlons once I have a geared bike sorted. But not having run for around 8 years. I am a bit daunted by the task, as I remember how much I used to hate it ( so boring )

i like ironmonger row baths just off old street/city road.

tried a bunch of other pools but i still ride right across london (well from NW6) to go to this one.

double width lanes, 33 metres, cool and clean water more than make up for cold showers and draughty changing rooms. they're closing it for a big refurb soon and i'm going to have to find somewhere else. sob

i'd been recommended swiss cottage leisure centre but i can't stand that place. yeah it's all new and brightly coloured and sells coffee and cake etc , but it gets ridiculously overcrowded, it's only 25 metres, has only one single witdh "fast" lane, the water is blood temperature and so filthy you can hardly see the bottom. i just cannot get any rhythm going in there as it's too narrow to pass and you invariably get caught in traffic pretty much every lap. it's so narrow that i've banged hands with people passing in the other direction just in normal non-overtaking. absolutely detest that place.

anyone know of any decent 30+ metre pools in town?

I like the pool, it's always a good time.

Most recently I've been taking two 20kg kettle bells and running lengths underwater to build lung capacity and get the anaerobic levels up; it's awesome.

Swimming lengths is good I guess but get underwater, that's where the magic happens.

I swam four hours a day, with fridays off for six years. I got to a stage where there was nothing more relaxing than being up and swimming at six in the morning in an empty pool and I felt so good about myself walking home afterwards, but then i got to a stage where I started to absolutely hate being in a pool. I now only swim in a pool if i have to (for training or something) but I go swimming in the sea about twice a week and still love doing that.

Chug_It earlier.

Crystal Palace pool is being lengthened, but that won't happen until April 09 (if you believe them, they've f-cked it up for long enough).

Brockwell Lido is 50m, but closed now for the season (they're talking about some sort of ambient heating system in the future).

I go swimming in the sea about twice a week and still love doing that.

wow! how lucky are you...

i used to swim loads.
now i go through phases... one year on, one year off.
it's time to get back on it.
liking the tips on breathing / speed etc.
could never really get past about 40-50
it can be the most relaxing, meditative exercise, but busy pools can make it the most stressful. early mornings are the key... or more private pools, but cost keeps me out of these.
good to hear other cyclists dig it.

@mikec. probably seen you down there then. i go after work three times a week and occasionally on saturdays. usually try and get there early to avoid the crowds that start to build up from 5:30.

regarding the breathing thing, i used to start of at an arbitrary pace, and very quickly get out of breath and then either fight it till i couldn't go on or be forced to slow down (by which time my stroke would have gone to shit).

now i start off really slowly with a really stretched stroke, trying to glide as far as possible between each pull and maintaining a fully stretched out position for as long as possible. that way you can concentrate on your posture and stroke while getting momentum going. your breathing should be entirely comfortable at that stage. for normal swimming i breath bilaterally every three strokes. i breath to the right, hold it for the next stroke, breathe out slowly during the next stroke then rotate to the other side and breathe to the left on (actually just after) the third stroke. it also helps for me to concentrate on a controlled exhale leaving the inhale as an almost automatic. i find that avoids the gasping for a big breath thing or counting the seconds till you can breathe again. it's all about rhythm.

once you've got a good steady rhythm going you can gradually start to up the cadence till you're working the lungs a bit harder then keep upping it till you're really steaming along. oh and i usually start with little or no kick. i just use the occasional bit to keep balance and position in the water. as i'm upping the pace somewhere in the middle of the swim i usually start to bring a steady kick in. that's another morale boost. it's like, wow i'm really ticking along nicely now, then you bring the legs in and hey, i'm suddenly going another 20% faster for seemingly very little additional effort. very satisfying.

i have a few other key thing sthat i try and concentrate on during a swim but getting the breathing under control in that way was the big one for me.

Where do people swim in London? Can anyone reccomend any decent and/or cheap pools, preferably north or east. Used to swim loads as a teenager, got my Bronze Medalion and all that. Looking to get back into it.

Saturday mornings at the Serpentine!

Hi Dooks, thanks for your informative response
I aim to get in the pool for about 8 and out just before 9. I never go in the evenings though, as like you, I get a bit hassled when there are too many people all splashing around me and swimming into me!

I know what you mean about starting off and really stretching into the stroke. I used to just get in the water, flap around for a few lengths and be completely knackered.

Now I really concentrate on going slowly and stretching my whole body through the stroke, turning my hips from side to side on each pull. And I have the bi-lateral breathing thing nailed now too! Though when I get out of breath, I start breathing every two strokes, just to get the breath back. But then, yes, this starts to throw my rythym. Once you lose the rythym, its hard to get it back without stopping and having a rest and a stretch for a few minutes.

I also try not to use my legs at all, just for balance like you say. Its strange though, my legs are very strong, but as soon as I start kicking really hard, I get tired really quickly. Again, maybe its a technique thing? I also do a bit of breast stroke as I find that has really strengthened by shoulder muscles, and funnily enough, I can go faster with this stroke, because I find the kick so powerful. But I understand that I burn way more calories like this as it is a far less efficient stroke and would not be suitable for using in a triathlon. I suppose thats why, the really serious swimmers, who are there every day, never seem to do it, and only ever swim crawl!

@mikec. probably seen you down there then. i go after work three times a week and occasionally on saturdays. usually try and get there early to avoid the crowds that start to build up from 5:30.

regarding the breathing thing, i used to start of at an arbitrary pace, and very quickly get out of breath and then either fight it till i couldn't go on or be forced to slow down (by which time my stroke would have gone to shit).

now i start off really slowly with a really stretched stroke, trying to glide as far as possible between each pull and maintaining a fully stretched out position for as long as possible. that way you can concentrate on your posture and stroke while getting momentum going. your breathing should be entirely comfortable at that stage. for normal swimming i breath bilaterally every three strokes. i breath to the right, hold it for the next stroke, breathe out slowly during the next stroke then rotate to the other side and breathe to the left on (actually just after) the third stroke. it also helps for me to concentrate on a controlled exhale leaving the inhale as an almost automatic. i find that avoids the gasping for a big breath thing or counting the seconds till you can breathe again. it's all about rhythm.

once you've got a good steady rhythm going you can gradually start to up the cadence till you're working the lungs a bit harder then keep upping it till you're really steaming along. oh and i usually start with little or no kick. i just use the occasional bit to keep balance and position in the water. as i'm upping the pace somewhere in the middle of the swim i usually start to bring a steady kick in. that's another morale boost. it's like, wow i'm really ticking along nicely now, then you bring the legs in and hey, i'm suddenly going another 20% faster for seemingly very little additional effort. very satisfying.

i have a few other key thing sthat i try and concentrate on during a swim but getting the breathing under control in that way was the big one for me.

better keep your fingers crossed that dale hasnt seen this thread or he'll be at your swimming pool like a "rat up a drain pipe" ;)

Where do people swim in London? Can anyone reccomend any decent and/or cheap pools, preferably north or east. Used to swim loads as a teenager, got my Bronze Medalion and all that. Looking to get back into it.

York Hall, Old Ford Road is pretty nice.

Any regular swimmers tried one of these?

• Or can suggest summink similar, that is comfortable and works well whilst in the pool?
  
  

YouTube- Speedo Aquabeat

doesn't michael phelps use one?
should make you swim like him.... or do bong hits like him. either or. win win.

I have started swimming 3-4 times a week ***before ***work and I am loving it............

@mikec. probably seen you down there then. i go ***after ***work three times a week and occasionally on saturdays. ........

sorry if i missed something.

The out door pool at the oasis centre looked pretty appealing today with the steam coming off it and the snow coming down, plus it was nice and empty.

I'd never seen this thread before, even though I think I searched for a swimming related one once.

I love Ironmonger Row and used to swim there all the time as I worked in Angel. Unfortunately (or more generally, fortunately) I now work in Covent Garden and going to Ironmonger regularly just wasn't working. So I now swim regularly at Oasis. The outdoor pool is best (and slightly longer, 27.5 metres) but I find the indoor one ok too, I seem to be ok with 25 metre pools at the moment but that could be the lack of swimming I've done recently!

Since I got seriously into riding fixed I haven't done as much as I used to because it used to be my only form of exercise before I started cycling again. Sometimes I find lots of swimming + lots of cycling + not enough sleep = too darn tired.

@CoppiThat, that was November 2008, they have probably been searching for each other for over a year!

On kit, I would like one of those mp3 players.

I find these amazing:

Best goggles I've ever had by far.

@fox thats a lorra lorra searching

@shootthebreeze those things are not cheap are they,,,, given what they are.

Honestly I did try! Maybe I dreamt it.

@Fox... yup. Got those, after I lost my aquasphere's. Very nice they are too.
@coppi... yeah, i know... but dem is like waterproof innit. Show me another...that isn't gonna break after a week... go on...

Any regular swimmers tried one of these?

• Or can suggest summink similar, that is comfortable and works well whilst in the pool?
  
  

YouTube- Speedo Aquabeat

[grumpy]

I find it baffling that people feel they want / need something like this to enhance the experience of swimming. Waste of money, and the best way to ruin a good swim IMO - short of discovering a choccy-floater by your face when your turn to breathe...

[/grumpy]

Fox, what goggles are those?

Click the image - but they're Aquasphere Kayenne's. You just *put *them on your face (you don't have to press hard) and they stay sealed and don't leak. *Actually * don't mist up and really easy to adjust when they're on your face. Highly recommend.

Excellent thread dredge. Yes mister coppiThat, I did seem to miss something. Or someone. Well spotted.

Signed up for this year's Swimathon yesterday. Be my third consecutive one. In need of much training after a fat and boozy December. It'll be my last one at Ironmonger for a while as it's closing in May for two years.

It's been fun there this week so far, Monday the pool was only three quarters full and freezing fricking cold, yesterday it was about normal and today it was like a hot tub. Still, at least the crappy weather, broken pool and freezing changing rooms seem to have put off the usual rush of temporary new-year resolutioners. It's been wonderfully quiet.

Just double checked my times from last year too. I came 200th* or so out of about 3000 overall in the individual 5k. 82 minutes. Not too bad but I was woefully underprepared last year so I'm really hoping to get under 75 minutes this year. Just been watching a Swim for Tri training DVD too. Some useful tips. I think my stroke has got lazy recently as I've been concetrating too much on power over technique. Must work some drills into the endless laps this time.

*Not that I pay too much attention to the results. Half of them seem made-up anyway. Lots of world-record beating times and suspiciously round numbers in the top end of the table.

Anyone else up for doing it with? LFGSS 5k challenge? It's for a good cause (Marie Curie).