I'm 64, slightly asthmatic, in decent shape from years of bicycling, and swim in a pool disinfected with chlorine and ozone. I have a decent freestyle, but can't swim more than 25 yds. without gasping for breath.
My three theories are: 1) my heart muscle just doesn't have the strength to send the blood to my muscles, 2) my wind passages are closing up as an allergic reaction to the ozone, and 3) my stroke technique prevents me from getting a good breath of air. As to No. 2, if you google "ozone allergies", you'll see articles talking about how ozone triggers an asthmatic attack in asthma sufferers.
Does anyone have any theories about why I can't swim more than 25 yds.?
First of all, get a stress test. Eliminate any heart issues. Being in good shape doesn't mean there isn't something going on, though it's unlikely given that you don't have breathing troubles with other forms of exercise. Still, my BIL is a kid's hockey ref and in his 50s, he's in better shape than anybody I know. He had a mild heart attack earlier this year that required a stint. So you never know. Not trying to be a bummer, but it's always a good idea to get checked out when you start a new exercise.
When I started to swim after years out of the pool, it took me ages to build aerobic capacity, even though I'd been an avid cyclist and done a lot of other aerobics. Sojerz et al are right; because we're in water we forget that swimming is highly aerobic. I'd swim a half length, stop, swim back, and build up to a whole length. Like ande said, you might want to swim in another type of environment to see if it's really ozone or just conditioning. I think the links to Total Immersion are a good starting place.
First of all, get a stress test. Eliminate any heart issues. Being in good shape doesn't mean there isn't something going on, though it's unlikely given that you don't have breathing troubles with other forms of exercise. Still, my BIL is a kid's hockey ref and in his 50s, he's in better shape than anybody I know. He had a mild heart attack earlier this year that required a stint. So you never know. Not trying to be a bummer, but it's always a good idea to get checked out when you start a new exercise.
When I started to swim after years out of the pool, it took me ages to build aerobic capacity, even though I'd been an avid cyclist and done a lot of other aerobics. Sojerz et al are right; because we're in water we forget that swimming is highly aerobic. I'd swim a half length, stop, swim back, and build up to a whole length. Like ande said, you might want to swim in another type of environment to see if it's really ozone or just conditioning. I think the links to Total Immersion are a good starting place.
