Hello,
This will be a somewhat long post, but I'm a little confused.
I am a relatively beginner swimmer. I have known how to swim since I was young, but never done it tons. I also run a summer camp, however, and it's been getting more and more difficult to secure aquatics staff. So, I've decided to train so that I can be certified with lifeguard and WSI.
I've been having trouble getting the required distance of non-stop swim, however. I worked on my strokes and such, but I can't non-stop swim. I could do freestyle about 50m or so, and then I'm done. I take a thirty second break, and then I'm good for another 50m or so. I kept thinking it was a cardio issue, but I was complaining to my husband about it and he brought up a good point. "You're a competition Irish dancer. You can keep dancing without stopping for 15 minutes, and can have 1-2 hour practices no sweat. You have a resting HR of 45 bpm. This is not a cardiac endurance issue."
Then...I paid attention to it. He's right. I'm not tired. My heart isn't even elevated. I'm just am feeling light-headed and like I need to come up for air. Either I'm not exhaling enough/taking too big of breaths, or I'm not inhaling enough. BUT...how do I know which it is?
I exhale throughout my entire stroke. Someone else in my lane suggested trying to not breath every cycle. I was side breathing every right-handed stroke, and upped to every third right-handed stroke. It seemed to help a little bit...but...I'm lost. Thoughts?
I think your husband is spot-on with regard to your stamina from your dancing. But as you clearly point out...dancing and swimming are like apples and oranges. Though we swimmers have developed the ability to swim efficiently for longer distances...we surely couldn't dance for two hours (although video of a group of swimmers, in Speedos, caps, and goggles, doing an Irish jig would surely be entertaining). Nevertheless, it will take you some time (i.e. practice) to perfect your stroke, and breathing, enough for it to be efficient. IMO, I think you should first determine which side you want to breathe on...which side is most comfortable for you (I wouldn't worry about bilateral...breathing on both sides...for now). And if you're not using goggles...IMO you should. Get a good pair and use them. For some reason being able to see clearly in the water seems to make breathing easier too. There are surely enough instruction videos on the internet (even here on the USMS sight) that give good instruction on breathing...so I'm not going to reiterate them here. Find a good one, study it, and try to emulate it in the pool. Good luck.
P.S. Is the swimming for the camp you run on a lake? If so, you'll likely have different/separate lifeguard qualifications than for a pool. If it's in a lake, just be advised that open water swimming takes on even more issues to overcome/master.
Dan
I think your husband is spot-on with regard to your stamina from your dancing. But as you clearly point out...dancing and swimming are like apples and oranges. Though we swimmers have developed the ability to swim efficiently for longer distances...we surely couldn't dance for two hours (although video of a group of swimmers, in Speedos, caps, and goggles, doing an Irish jig would surely be entertaining). Nevertheless, it will take you some time (i.e. practice) to perfect your stroke, and breathing, enough for it to be efficient. IMO, I think you should first determine which side you want to breathe on...which side is most comfortable for you (I wouldn't worry about bilateral...breathing on both sides...for now). And if you're not using goggles...IMO you should. Get a good pair and use them. For some reason being able to see clearly in the water seems to make breathing easier too. There are surely enough instruction videos on the internet (even here on the USMS sight) that give good instruction on breathing...so I'm not going to reiterate them here. Find a good one, study it, and try to emulate it in the pool. Good luck.
P.S. Is the swimming for the camp you run on a lake? If so, you'll likely have different/separate lifeguard qualifications than for a pool. If it's in a lake, just be advised that open water swimming takes on even more issues to overcome/master.
Dan
