Lots of folks on this board are pretty experienced competitive swimmers (and you're awesome), but I'm wondering how many of us are in it just for fun/fitness. Is Masters really about competition, or is there room for the fitness swimmer, too?
Of course, I'm looking to get better, improve my stroke and kick and get a little faster. But only because it ups the fitness quotient. I didn't get into swimming to compete, but because my hereditary arthritis started kicking in and I figured it was a safe, effective way to exercise and drop those pounds my doctor's been hounding me about.
Who out there is a non-competitor, how many times a week to you swim, and do you count laps, time, or just do whatever feels good?
So FindingMyInnerFish, do you still run, and does it help with your swimming endurance?
I do still run, Denise, though I think it's more the opposite--that swimming helps my running. I did a lot of swim training during the summer for a long o.w. swim, and of late I'm doing more running. I notice that some of the hamstring and knee issues that I had in the spring were gone, and while I wasn't running very fast, I was running without the twinges I'd been having. I want to keep both because when I'm focused on running, I get more injury prone--and yet as I go back to teaching in the fall, time for swimming becomes more scarce and running involves only throwing on some running clothes/shoes and stepping out the door, whereas swimming involves getting to the pool when it's available for lap swimming or masters practice, remembering all my gear and such, showering/changing afterward... I sometimes wish I lived next to a lake or bay where I could just walk out of the house and into the water--with home as my "locker room." But that said, I love the challenge of swimming workouts especially with a compatible coach (the guy I found this past spring/summer s great--he pushes hard but he believes in me too, which is very cool, and gives me excellent technique feedback). I try to get in meets when possible, but there aren't many close to where I live. So whatever comes along, I'm ready to give it a try if time allows! And I'll set more personal goals, not for winning but just to improve on a particular race or "process" goals like trying to remember/apply the technique tips I've gotten through the years. Someday, if I win the powerball (ha ha), I'll do nothing but run, swim, and write a book. But meanwhile in the real world.... ;)
So FindingMyInnerFish, do you still run, and does it help with your swimming endurance?
I do still run, Denise, though I think it's more the opposite--that swimming helps my running. I did a lot of swim training during the summer for a long o.w. swim, and of late I'm doing more running. I notice that some of the hamstring and knee issues that I had in the spring were gone, and while I wasn't running very fast, I was running without the twinges I'd been having. I want to keep both because when I'm focused on running, I get more injury prone--and yet as I go back to teaching in the fall, time for swimming becomes more scarce and running involves only throwing on some running clothes/shoes and stepping out the door, whereas swimming involves getting to the pool when it's available for lap swimming or masters practice, remembering all my gear and such, showering/changing afterward... I sometimes wish I lived next to a lake or bay where I could just walk out of the house and into the water--with home as my "locker room." But that said, I love the challenge of swimming workouts especially with a compatible coach (the guy I found this past spring/summer s great--he pushes hard but he believes in me too, which is very cool, and gives me excellent technique feedback). I try to get in meets when possible, but there aren't many close to where I live. So whatever comes along, I'm ready to give it a try if time allows! And I'll set more personal goals, not for winning but just to improve on a particular race or "process" goals like trying to remember/apply the technique tips I've gotten through the years. Someday, if I win the powerball (ha ha), I'll do nothing but run, swim, and write a book. But meanwhile in the real world.... ;)
