Hey there, new an alone : )

My name is Quenby and I am brand new to usms. I train on my own and live in a rural area in Oklahoma. I would love to compete again (swam all through high school) but of course college, marriage and kiddos happened. I know I am not incredibly fast but I am driven and dedicated. Any suggestions at all would be much appreciated. Welcome Quenby! Check out this thread: Ande's Swimming Tips: Swimming Faster Faster - U.S. Masters Swimming Discussion Forums

Keep looking at our forums & you will get ALL types of info & maybe a group to swim with! Welcome!:applaud:

:welcome: We have access to seven coaches in the workouts area of the forums, with different focuses on training. All good. Also, check out the member blogs to see what other swimmers are doing, and maybe even swipe some sets. :D I've been back in the water for three years, and would encourage you to start out with a little less intensity than where you think you should be. Let your body respond to the workouts and then build up from there. Most importantly, have fun! Posting here helps to that end. :thewave:

Welcome, Quenby! :wave: The other posters have led you down the right path. That Guy was spot-on with directing you to Ande's thread. Check out Ande's "Ask Ande", as well. Two years ago, I was new to USMS and had only been a high school swimmer, as well. I was away from swimming for 31 years, so I understand where you are at. The best advice I can give you is to hang out here on the forums and become one of the Forumites. There is a wealth of great information in the existing threads. And, if you can't find what you are looking for, you can always post a new question. Several of the Forumites are great about giving excellent advice. And, unlike me, they are great swimmers! Several world and national record holders are active here and willing to answer your questions. Another thing: If you ever have the opportunity to go to Nationals, do so! My second meet ever as a Masters swimmer was 2010 Short Course Nationals, at Georgia Tech. I felt like a deer in the headlights, but it was a blast. I met several of the other Forumites and had a wonderful experience. Since then, I have been to three more, including here in Greensboro, where Nationals just wrapped up. I can honestly say they have been the highlights of my USMS swimming, over the past two years. And, seeing the other Forumites and cheering each other on made it a fun and memorable experience. They are a great bunch! Finally, do as I say, not as I do: Stick with the default font and do not discuss tech suits on the Forums! :afraid: :worms: ;) (Hi 'Geek ! :wave:) Hmmm, on second thought, ignore that last tip. :D Hey, Q, good luck! :cheerleader:

I agree with everthing said so far. This forum is a great resource. When you get back in the water, I have found it is important to simply enjoy it again. This will help keep you motivated. All the best

Don't be overwhelmed by the expectation of competition. In USMS, it is only as intense as you want to make it for yourself. Most people balance their desire to go faster by socializing with other competitors. Are there local meets near you? If so, try one. You will find plenty of supportive people and probably some in your same situation. Welcome!

Welcome Quenby!! :) I don't have a whole lot to add because most everyone else covered it, but I wanted to say welcome! Also, the first (and only so far) masters swim meet I went to was in Oklahoma at the Rose State meet and having only swum one year in high school I didn't have much expereince (or speed) under my belt, but everyone was extremely friendly and welcoming at the meet. It was a blast! Cheers and good luck! J PS.. I'd like to reiterate what Ande said, that making a schedule for yourself is KEY.. especially if you're working out on your own like many of us. Also the workout threads are a great help and a great place to start finding some focus.

Greetings. Getting started can be a bit rough, but yeah, easing back into it is the way to go. It's possible to get competitive by training on your own, but unless you remember all your workouts from back in the day, then looking at other bloggers workouts is a good place to start. I also train on my own, and I've found that if I pick some meets throughout the year, that keeps me motivated to get in the pool and put forth some effort. One benefit of training on your own is you can tailor your workout to meet your particular needs. There are several meets in Oklahoma, just need to check their local OK masters website. My wife and I grew up in Tulsa, but have made western AR our current home. We use the April Pools meet (April) and OK Memorial meet (August) in Tulsa as an excuse to visit family and get some racing in. Currently both meets are held in Jenks (basically south Tulsa) which has a new 50m indoor pool that's 7' deep and pretty nice. OKC has three meets that I'm aware of, and we've gone to the Lighthouse meet in November in the past. Also, if you're in the rural eastern side of the state, you might also visit Bentonville AR for their long-course meet in June. All the meets I've been to have been in either OK or AR, and everyone's been very nice. It really is a mixed bag, with some fast, some medium, and some slow racing, but it's all relative and as far as I can tell, pretty low-key. It's all good. :applaud:

My name is Quenby and I am brand new to usms. I train on my own and live in a rural area in Oklahoma. I would love to compete again (swam all through high school) but of course college, marriage and kiddos happened. I know I am not incredibly fast but I am driven and dedicated. Any suggestions at all would be much appreciated. Welcome It's great that you are driven and dedicated, that will help you get far and hang on when you feel like giving up. My suggestions to you are: 1) start swimming regularly and create your daily and weekly routine. 2) be patient, it takes time to get back in shape, and overcome your eagerness, you might be tempted to do too much too soon, which could lead you to injuries and possibly burn out 3) set goals and plans, you can help youself more and get more help from others if you know exactly what you want to do, stuff like: I want to: + improve my times in the 50 & 100 free or + swim an open water race or + lose 50 pounds or + get back in shape and be healthy again or + prepare for a postal swim, 5k, 10k, 3k or 6k or + swim __ times per week or + (it's your goal, write what you want) 4) assess where you are / your current abilities focus on improving and celebrate each time you do 5) Study USMS and : Thanks That Guy for mentioning SFF here's a link to the latest SFF Index 6) have fun, swimming is fun 7) also learn stuff about USMS & swimming like there's 3 meet seasons in masters: SCY Jun 1st - May 31st LCM Sep 1st - Aug 31st SCM Jan 1st - Dec 31st btw SCY is short course yards 25 yard pool, SCM is short course meters 25 meter pool, LCM is long course meters 50 meter pool each year there are 2 national meets SCY & LCM There are zone and local meets there tends to be focus meets near the end of each season. you can find meets at: www.usms.org/.../event_search.php USMS has zones & Local Masters Swim Committees (LMSCs) you can learn alot just by reading old threads here and exploring usms.org Welcome to the masters swimming community! Ande

Links: Oklahoma Masters Swimming Main website for the LMSC. Oklahoma Memorial State Championships Saturday, August 13 Jenks Aquatic Center (south of Tulsa) There's a social immediately after the meet. You won't be alone for long!