Hi all:
I am trying to improve my swims (Aren't we all!).
A. I have pulled the trigger to buy a cheap camera so that I can video record my turns and strokes. I have no experience recording so any advise would be helpful. I've had several coaches/retired coaches and swimmer royalty comment to help me. Changing form is tough for me, I have to slow down and change only one thing each practice or I can make it part of my form. I guess I have to break down form and reach for the low hanging fruit (meaning change the worst part of my form that will give me the best time improvements. If anyone knows of a good site or that will help in form deconstruction i'm all ears.
B. Does anyone use headphones to listen to music while working out? If so, post brand and if you are happy or any recommendations.
C. Swim watches. Google came out with a new swim watch. Reviews? Comments. In the past I have tried to use tempo electronics to improve speed ( arm speed leg kick etc). I have also needed some kind of stop watch for 50's, 100's and 200's (the clock is not always visible and I lose track constantly). I am so focused on form and changing arm position and leg kicks that I lose track of distance. Any toy recommendations for this? (Buler, Buler Buler?).
D. Please list any swim tool that you think will help.
Kind Regards to any swimmy that can help.
Swim toys required:
goggles
swimsuit (though you can find some places where even this is optional)
Worth buying - swim snorkel
All else is optional
Now, YMMV, but I think:
Swim watches mess with your form, unless you wear one on each wrist (balance is important in swimming)
Swim headphones are crazy ... swimming is the one place in the world we can immerse ourselves largely free of the aural assault ... enjoy the meditative quality of the sound of water
Swimming as naked as possible is great.
Swim toys required:
goggles
swimsuit (though you can find some places where even this is optional)
Worth buying - swim snorkel
All else is optional
Now, YMMV, but I think:
Swim watches mess with your form, unless you wear one on each wrist (balance is important in swimming)
Swim headphones are crazy ... swimming is the one place in the world we can immerse ourselves largely free of the aural assault ... enjoy the meditative quality of the sound of water
Swimming as naked as possible is great.
Well swimming naked.... Well I could swim naked, but they would cart me away to jail... that would be bad. I don't have a private pool, I could rent out a pool but, I am broke, so that is not an option for me.
As far as all the other toys go... I see many people with swim watches, I am not sure if the technology is easy to use or if it a pain in ...
I used several watches when I trained and did Iron man. I found them to be not user friendly and hard to use. I ended up just using heart rate. The miles swam, run, and biked were just now easy to use (this was in 2004).
I lift now, and swim... so tracking is done manually. Just looking to be one of the cool kids if it is easy and feasible.
When I started wearing a swim watch, my speed and endurance improved immensely. The immediate feedback was crucial to encouraging me to swim longer and faster, and I've been steadily improving ever since I started wearing one. I like my Garmin 735xt - it's great for both open water and pool swims, and since it's built for triathletes has options for running and biking too. I'm not a triathlete, but I do the occasional cross train, and I love having everything I might need in one watch. It's relatively low profile; I haven't noticed it impacting my technique at all.
In terms of equipment, I'm a paddle aficionado. I've had strong legs most of my life, but to increase my speed (especially in open water), I needed to focus on my shoulder and arm strength and my pulling technique. I'm a big fan of the Finis agility paddles.
Marsh-monster. Welcome to the forums! For music, our coach does not like it in practice, but on my own it's great!
I use finis and they stay on in all strokes and flips turns.
I tried swimming with music, and the rush of water, (or maybe it’s my own blood flow, who knows) made it unenjoyable. I also have a smart watch, but it annoys me when I swim breaststroke, because the strap will catch the water, so I only use it for OW races. My favorite toy(s) - other than goggles (remember when goggles were new?!!) are my pull body and paddles. Sometimes I’ll put on fins for a kick set, and I make myself use my snorkel for at least 4-500 every workout, but only because I know it’s good for me.
I've been debating buying one, why do you like them?
A snorkel is my #1 piece of gear, with short fins a distant 2nd.
For me, the snorkel helps with head and body position, constant low level hypoxic training, and has helped me with some pulling technique issues.
During kicking it gives better body position than kicking with a board. Full stroke with a snorkel takes moving your head out of the equation allowing focus on other aspects of the stroke. It also allows for going slower, which can further help isolate mvements. Additionally, if you have a sore neck you can still swim.
I like using the snorkel with paddles - but I use my paddles as a kickboard, so to speak. I keep them well in front of me in a streamlined position and it forces you to use your core a bit more than using a kickboard. Plus it's much easier on the shoulders.
