why masters swimming is so great!

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

Summer2 — Sun, 01 Jun 2014 11:37:19 GMT

I did not swim as kid on a team, nor did I swim in college or after. I did not know how to do a flip turn, nor could I swim more than 25 yards comfortably when I started swimming 4 months ago. Now in my early 50s, I am swimming with a masters group and it is great. The coach is terrific, accommodating, and encouraging. I am slow, I am as slow if not slower than most 70 year-olds, but hey, I am in the water and working on getting more endurance, getting faster, and keeping good form.

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

DeniseMW — Sun, 25 May 2014 09:47:27 GMT

Cynthia, I posted a thank you but when I added a comment today the original post was deleted. I appreciate your support and encouragement. It's hard for some folks who have been swimming since childhood to understand what it's like for an adult who's afraid to just jump in the deep end. Your comments are very helpful to me. This journey does take determination. It's nice to know I'm not on my own. I am going to take your advice and put it to good use.

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

DeniseMW — Thu, 22 May 2014 08:48:19 GMT

Wanted to add that I did my first Masters swim with the local group yesterday, and loved it. The coach was awesome. I've officially signed up and look forward to many more swims with them.

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

Cynthia Roeth — Thu, 22 May 2014 07:51:55 GMT

I am glad that you posted about your deep water issue. I have worked with many adults who also have good swimming potential and have some fears that they wrestle with. It is more common than people realize. I would suggest some one-on-one training with an experienced coach or instructor. Together you might work on your ability to tread water (if needed) as that is a great safety skill and should add to your comfort level. I have also had more than one adult swimmer who did not realize how buoyant he or she was. Some private lessons for you to discover how easily you can float (and much work it is to stay under the water) could really help. And please know that even the most advanced and experienced swimmers occasionally have a 'freak out' moment (like if they happen to take in some water), and that is what lane lines are for. In a pinch, you can throw an arm over a lane line and collect yourself. People can support you if they know what you are dealing with. As a coach, I would always want to know about any issue like this in order to support the swimmer properly. Some adults have had bad aquatic experiences as kids, experiences that have stayed with them. It is understandable and in my experience, corrected with some private lessons with the right kind of teacher. I wish you the best.

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

DeniseMW — Tue, 20 May 2014 08:34:44 GMT

Thanks, orca1946. I am working with one of my teachers to get over my deep water phobia, and I can feel my confidence growing. The Masters here are assigned lanes at the whim of the county rec department, and they're not allowed to coach in any but those lanes. So that's the difficulty. If I want to swim with them, I just have to dive in. Fortunately, the group I found uses mostly shallow lanes, so it's a place for me to get started as I gain confidence and skill. Which is all that I was looking for. My apologies to everyone if my initial post was grumpy.

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

Former Member — Mon, 19 May 2014 14:12:11 GMT

Thanks, Anna. I did hear from a local coach whose Masters group is very accommodating and I plan to try them this weekend. He was very kind and has a lot of newbie types like me in his group. Please let me know how it goes! (Email is: Membership (at) usms (dot) org) Anna Lea

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

sunruh — Mon, 19 May 2014 11:40:04 GMT

I can't wait to race against the big boys in the 45-49 age group. It should be fun! i'll make you the same suit offer i made to PWB. :D oh i know, since both of you cloud breathers are the same height, you get to share 1 suit.

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

orca1946 — Mon, 19 May 2014 11:09:04 GMT

Denise - I hope you find a pool/team that will make you feel good. Soon you will feel at home in any depth pool/water. Good luck.

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

DeniseMW — Mon, 19 May 2014 08:14:50 GMT

Thanks, Anna. I did hear from a local coach whose Masters group is very accommodating and I plan to try them this weekend. He was very kind and has a lot of newbie types like me in his group.

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

StewartACarroll — Sun, 18 May 2014 02:48:04 GMT

Well, the other thing you missed in Santa Clara was a petition that all of the 45-49 year old men signed stating that we would NOT allow you to age up next year. Kind of like being the perennial 29-year old, we've all agreed to leave you forever 44 :D Now wouldn't it be nice if we could pick an age and just stay there forever...alas it does not work that way. I can't wait to race against the big boys in the 45-49 age group. It should be fun!

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

Former Member — Sat, 17 May 2014 14:41:49 GMT

pretty darn neat.

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

smontanaro — Fri, 16 May 2014 12:07:16 GMT

The thing is, most teams just don't have an "all-shallow" option for their workouts. Most older, smaller pools like the one my team uses have a shallow end and a deep end. Crosswise is not even an option. The one pool I swam in with this as an option was the pool at Northwestern (50Mx25yd pool). Even during long course season, once the school teams were out of the water, they flipped the pool around so as to accommodate as many swimmers as possible. There was a deep end (3m & 5m platforms, 1m & 3m springboard) www.fitrec.northwestern.edu/.../swimmingpool.jpg and a shallow end (about 4ft deep as I recall). The masters team often practiced in the deep end, but you could always move to shallower water (and practice was often moved more in the direction of the shallower end of the pool when the divers were practicing). I don't know if you can find a team in your area with such a setup, but it might be worth checking around.

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

Patrick W. Brundage — Fri, 16 May 2014 01:16:35 GMT

not only do I miss all the great racing fun when I skip nationals but I miss all the good discussion too!! cant wait for San Antonio next year. I feel like I am going from age group swimming to big boy swimming next year since I age up and swim in the 45-49 age group. Talk about a seriously competitive age group!! Stewart, Well, the other thing you missed in Santa Clara was a petition that all of the 45-49 year old men signed stating that we would NOT allow you to age up next year. Kind of like being the perennial 29-year old, we've all agreed to leave you forever 44 :D

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

knelson — Thu, 15 May 2014 11:57:12 GMT

But I hate to see you faulting local teams for failing to accommodate you when it's not at all clear how they could accommodate your preference regarding pool depth even if they wanted very much to do so. I've got to agree. It would be very difficult for most programs to accommodate this. That doesn't mean there aren't some out there that could, though. It would depend on the facility.

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

ourswimmer — Thu, 15 May 2014 11:33:17 GMT

For a group that says it welcomes new swimmers, the teams here make no accommodation for someone like me who's not confident enough to swim in the deep lanes. The thing is, most teams just don't have an "all-shallow" option for their workouts. Most older, smaller pools like the one my team uses have a shallow end and a deep end. Crosswise is not even an option. A team with access to an all-deep pool usually would grab that scarce opportunity and not let it go, because the huge majority of the team's members would prefer all-deep swimming. This pattern probably is true even for non-organized lap swimming: Part-shallow options are common, but all-shallow options are pretty unusual. Definitely you should contact your local registrar to explore the options. But I hate to see you faulting local teams for failing to accommodate you when it's not at all clear how they could accommodate your preference regarding pool depth even if they wanted very much to do so. And FYI, most teams are either all-volunteer operations, or organizations in which the only employee is a part-time coach. Don't rely on someone to call you. Contact someone by phone or email to confirm the practice time and to establish who you should speak to on deck when you show up for the first time, and then show up and ask for that person. I can't speak for teams in the DC area, but I know that if you followed that protocol and showed up at one of my team's workouts, the coach on deck would find a place for you and do whatever s/he could to help you enjoy the hour.

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

Former Member — Thu, 15 May 2014 06:52:25 GMT

Honestly, I have not found Masters so great, at least not where I live. Perhaps this is a discussion for another thread, but I'm not a competitive swimmer. In fact, I'm a newbie, pretty good swimmer, but I still am not comfortable swimming in deep lanes for a number of reasons (I'm working on it). I've contacted the Masters groups, but I either get mis-directed to a team that's swimming way above my expertise by the diving well, or I get an enthusiastic we'll call you and never hear from them again. For a group that says it welcomes new swimmers, the teams here make no accommodation for someone like me who's not confident enough to swim in the deep lanes, and I feel like I've had a lot of sunshine blown up my skirt trying to find a good fit. So I'm done with them. Hello, DeniseMW, I am the USMS Membership Director. I am going to put you in touch with your local LMSC registrar. He is familiar with the programs in your area and he may have some suggestions for you regarding groups that have workouts tailored to your ability level. His name is Jeff Roddin and his email address is: PVregistrar@usms.org I suggest you send him an email message. I will also send him a message to alert him to your post in this discussion thread. Anna Lea Matysek

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

DeniseMW — Wed, 14 May 2014 02:46:44 GMT

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

sunruh — Wed, 07 May 2014 08:38:12 GMT

cant wait for San Antonio next year. I feel like I am going from age group swimming to big boy swimming next year since I age up and swim in the 45-49 age group. Talk about a seriously competitive age group!! well maybe in San Antonio i wont scare you out of the water at the 175 like what happened at The Woodlands. snicker snicker snicker yes i will remind you of that a few more times as well :D

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

kristilynn — Tue, 06 May 2014 09:39:28 GMT

Kirk, I was coached by an Unruh when I was an age-grouper, but I think that his first name was George. Do you know if there's any relation?

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

StewartACarroll — Tue, 06 May 2014 08:42:08 GMT

kirk, only if our buddy Stewart Carroll walks up for the discussion as well :D not only do I miss all the great racing fun when I skip nationals but I miss all the good discussion too!! cant wait for San Antonio next year. I feel like I am going from age group swimming to big boy swimming next year since I age up and swim in the 45-49 age group. Talk about a seriously competitive age group!!

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

sunruh — Tue, 06 May 2014 07:34:23 GMT

Also worth note is after the meet I was eating in the airport and there are a couple guys standing next to me discussing USRPT. One of them ends up being Glenn Gruber. Then a couple minutes later Steve Unruh walks in. We could have quite the training technique discussion! kirk, only if our buddy Stewart Carroll walks up for the discussion as well :D

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

knelson — Tue, 06 May 2014 05:49:18 GMT

Actually you CAN do USRPT as a team. Rushall has a paper he wrote that shows you how. Of course the difficult part is how to get everyone (or at least a lanes worth) to try it. I'm sure you can, but I'm equally sure my coach isn't interested in trying it. :)

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

Glenn — Tue, 06 May 2014 05:10:47 GMT

I think the ultra short training is great and I've got no (major) issues with it, but I'd much rather swim with a team than on my own. Actually you CAN do USRPT as a team. Rushall has a paper he wrote that shows you how. Of course the difficult part is how to get everyone (or at least a lanes worth) to try it.

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

Former Member — Mon, 05 May 2014 13:45:41 GMT

Similar experience. I finished my 400 IM and hear someone say "Kirk Nelson." I look up and it's a teammate from my age group days I hadn't seen since high school! Also worth note is after the meet I was eating in the airport and there are a couple guys standing next to me discussing USRPT. One of them ends up being Glenn Gruber. Then a couple minutes later Steve Unruh walks in. We could have quite the training technique discussion! Have you decided to forgo your training with the club team and give usrpt a try for your events?

RE: why masters swimming is so great!

knelson — Mon, 05 May 2014 11:15:13 GMT

Have you decided to forgo your training with the club team and give usrpt a try for your events? No. I think the ultra short training is great and I've got no (major) issues with it, but I'd much rather swim with a team than on my own.