Swimming

Finally found somewhere in Nottingham to go outdoor swimming.
Exciting.

Nice, swimming outdoors is good for the soul swim mining indoors in the summer can >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Lovely swim at Bray this morning, it's lovely being the first one in and having nothing but completely calm water all the way around, I still get perplexed by people who are bobbing around as I catch them up and then sprint off and get in my way only tonsil again but I suppose they are doing intervals - personally just swimming and focussing on technique feels much more productive!

I've got my routine just about nailed to be able to do 2.5k and still make it to work on time, can't wait until I start my new job 500m away from little marlow lake for post work sessions!

Hello internet sports physios,

After 10 mins of crawl, my ankle tends to get a bit sore.
Is this likely to be because I am kicking too much? (I find I kick 3-4 times per stroke)

Sounds like a flexibility issue to me. Some people say that doing kicking drills with fins may help. I haven't done that since I find fins and paddles demotivating.

Does anyone have any experience of swimming watches/lap counters? I'm shit at counting in the pool.

Figured out the solution to this is antihistamine tablets for hayfever from behind the counter at the chemist.

Although @Sainsburys_Ed is right you build up a tolerance if you swim regularly, but you loose it almost straight away if you miss a week.

Infact I don't think its really a tolerance as so much your already blocked so you can't blocked any further.

The pills work well, still feel a little funny but being able to breathe is the main thing.

In my long standing experience of bad swimming.

The fact you can identify and count the number of kicks to me suggests you are kicking wrong.

It should be a flutter / flutter almost continuous
not swipe / swipe like a football

If i'm honest i don't kick too much, I find that I end up getting ragged both with breathing and coordination if i go full speed with arms and legs, so i rely on the buoyacy of my wetsuit and only really use my legs for currents, waves and other times when a bit more gas is needed...

I only really have one pace for swimming but thankfully I've got fit enough that i can hold it for long enough, did 3.75k in 1hour and 2 minutes tonight, and other finding some new parts of my body to chafe - My collar bones tonight ffs - it was pretty comfortable.

hopefully 1.05-1.10 will be about my time for wales, although the Australian exit may help with speed for a bit...

After a bit of online reading on proper kick technique, I realised I wasn't pointing my feet properly when swimming. They must have been flapping about previously and probably ther cause of soreness.

I've established that I kick 3 times per stroke (bilateral) BTW.

1st swim today, just a short one to ease my way back into it. Amazing how unfit I am.

Swimtag stats are fun to play with (although they don't cope with doing some lengths in the 33.3m direction before they changed the lanes round to the 25m orientation. The pool in Putney is L shaped.)

swam in the sea of the Welsh sea a few times on holiday, enlivening :-)

note to self: must visit the sea more often....

(although the initial one minute of so of acclimatisation did tempt an early retreat to shore!)

A friend swam the English Channel recently. She wrote about it here.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-08-08/my-english-channel-swim-jellyfish-and-lights-in-the-distance.html

"Reopen Peckham Rye Lido"

Does this count as 'wild swimming'?

This new campaign is gaining lots of attention and now Harriet Harman has given it her thumbs up too. See / sign petition at http://tinyurl.com/nes7972

"Peckham Rye Lido opened in 1923 on Peckham Rye Common, opposite what is now The Rye pub. It measured 180 feet long and 60 feet wide. Swimmers entered the pool area through an iron turnstile and there was a diving board and changing rooms.

The lido closed in 1987 and fell derelict. It was put up for sale but failed to attract a buyer, so the site was cleared and re-made part of Peckham Rye Common. The big blue fountain that stood at the northern end of the pool is all that remains today. The pool wasn't demolished but is still buried under Peckham Rye Common.

London Fields Lido and Charlton Lido have both opened in the last 10 years due to public pressue, let's get some momentum going so that we can pressure Southwark Council, local councillors and MPs to work with us to make sure we are all swimming in Peckham Rye Lido as soon as possible!"

Swim #2. A massive 500m (slowly building up). Slightly faster, more freestyle less breastroke/backstroke (recovery), less time resting. Will aim for 750m next time (if I count properly).

Recommendations needed please, for:
a) shampoo that will get chlorine out (I have extremely blonde hair and don't want it going green).
b) a cheap waterproof watch, nothing fancy but ideally actually waterproof unlike the Casio I ruined this morning (it said it was waterproof... it wasn't).

b) Wiggle have this swimming watch at 77% discount:-

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/speedo-aquacoach-watch/

So that's £23 for a watch that'll count/time laps, recognise different strokes, etc.

(Never used that particular watch so I'd google around for some reviews/comments)

Anyone here in the Serpentine Swimming Club?

I just joined and did my first race with them this morning.

The reviews of these unanimously seem to say that it doesn't count laps, at least not at all reliably. Lots of frustrated user reviews. The Garmin Swim does seem to reliably count laps, but costs a ton. Otherwise I'd snap one of those up for £22.

Still, a watch that should actually be properly waterproof isn't bad for £22 anyway. Although Wiggle lies, the price is meant to drop by 1% every midnight but it was £22 yesterday evening and is still £22 now...

I was quite tempted by this but decided against it as I'm totally blind in the pool and wouldn't be able to see the screen, which would be the only thing lap counting would be good for (if it does it). At least counting laps gives me something to think about other than "is that... is that a chunk of hair on the bottom of the pool?".

I bought another cheap casio, I reckon the waterproofing on my old one gave up as I got a guy in Brixton market to change the battery for me. Also I can wear the watch all day and have people admire my retro styling, rather than wearing a swimming watch and looking like (more of) a dork.

I was quite tempted by this but decided against it as I'm totally blind in the pool

I used to do that, and I can't wear contact lenses so I went for:-

http://www.optilabs.com/site/prods.php?pfid=0,8,24,25

£52 if your prescription is close enough to any of their "ready made" lenses.
£90 if not (I have these as I have bolloxed eyes)

They make a world of difference to my swimming. I could swim without them but I'd be unable to read the big clock on the wall which would be annoying for training.

With them I can easily tell if that's a chunk of hair on the bottom of the pool or something even more disgusting.

Swimming in Brockwell Lido - what is the best time for this if I just want to some lengths without a million people there? Work is fairly flexible for me so I can do pretty much any time if I plan in advance.

I've got something weird going on with my eyes where even if I have my contact lenses in I'm not able to see as my eyes start working independently of each other and I get double vision. The opticians I've spoken to have no idea why it happens. After I get out of the pool I have double vision for about an hour, even if I put my glasses on immediately.

It's why I will (never again) drive to a swimming pool, just too dangerous trying to drive home...

Your eyes start working independently - Like a chameleon!?
Awesome - Half human, half lizard.

If you're wearing normal goggles have you tried the bigger mask style goggles like http://www.wiggle.co.uk/aqua-sphere-womens-seal-xp-clear-lens-goggles/ that don't put any pressure on the eye muscles?

Actually I did think this morning that my legs move side-to-side a bit too much when I swim, kind of lizard like...

Found this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3HhNlysFDs

Am guessing this is vastly different from my current technique...