Need to start with a little background info before my question...
I started swimming laps for the first time last July. I have had a lot of lessons, stroke clinics, I took an advanced TI based class, I've been video taped with coaching afterwards. I think my technique is pretty good (not great, but decent for a relatively new swimmer). I was swimming 1 hour 3 times per week, recently I cut that back to 2 times per week due to shoulder problems.
I also kickbox, step aerobics, mountain bike, lift weights, yoga. I can do high intensity land-based aerobic activity for 1 hour with no problem. I workout 1-2 hours a day 4-5 days per week. I have lost 62 lbs., still have 35 to go. Weight is coming off nicely, about 1 lb. per week.
I recently had a fitness test and I came back good on flexibility and cardio, and excellent on 2 different strength tests.
Now that you have my background and fitness info here is my problem. First, I run out of breath swimming. I can keep going but the first 10 laps or so I feel like I'm suffocating. I noticed it a lot in a recent stroke clinic. Everyone there said my technique was the best in the class, yet after just 25 yds. I was breathing heavy and they were not. Second problem is I'm really slow which I'm starting to think is related to the first problem. It's hard to go faster when you feel like you have run out of air. My lap time is about 53 seconds best time, more like 1:10 on average. Terrible I know.
I talked to a friend recently who does a lot of different exercises and she said you know maybe you are just a slow swimmer. Some people aren't "built" to swim fast just like some people aren't "built" to run fast.
Do you think this is right? Is my problem bad breathing technique? I've had the coach look at it and she seems to think I'm doing fine. Am I rushing it? It's been almost a year since I started swimming. Is it the 35 remaining lbs. holding me back in the water? If so why doesn't it hold me back on land aerobics? Any tips, ideas, suggestions are welcome. I don't compete so it's not about having a "winning" speed, but I'd like to be able to swim further in the same amount of time. Call it a personal goal. I'd also like to be able to swim without feeling out of air all the time.
Thanks!
I betcha it's a breathing thing. My guess is people w/o a lot of swimming background tend to hold their breath way too much, and consequently just get a tiny sip of air when they breath. Make sure you breath in deeply, then exhale thoroughly in between breaths. You should never feel like you're holding your breath in the water.
Being that youre otherwise strong and athletic, I'm thinking you're probably rushing it.
Also, you may be trying to muscle through the swim, as if you're pumping weights or running.
Swimming is more about being relaxed and in rythm. If you try to muscle trhough it, you will tire out quickly and go nowhere fast.
Take your time, and learn to feel yuor way through the water, rather that speeding through it.
Speed comes from efficiency, especially for those people who already have the strength and cardio conditioning.
Efficiency comes from lots and lots of practice,and to get fast in swimming, unless you're exceptionally gfted, it takes few years. There is a lot of technique in swimming that needs to be learned, and then refined.
I see a lot of people on your team that are very strong and athletic, but swim slow. To me they all seem to either rush through the water or slightly thrash in it.
Then I see other people, who may even have near identical body composition (low fat, lot of muscle) and they seem very relaxed and glide through the water very easily, and fast. No body sinking issues.
Extra fat, especially 35 lb aren't going to hold you back all that much, if anything, will help your bouyancy a little bit.
When you breathe, do you exhale the whole time under water? Is your exhaling relaxed, or is your face all tense?
Lap time, what kind of a lap? Is that for 50 yards? 50 meters? Short course? Long course?
Jsut a thought... you said you has a lot of classes and lessons... Perhaps you're spending too much time trying to learn new things, and not enough time practicing what you learned?
How often do you swim?
First of all, let me say that I have about a year and a half of swimming experience. But let me tell you what I have noticed in my own swimming.
I also struggle during the first 10 laps or so(500 yards). It seems it takes that long for my cardio systems to wake up. After 500, it gradually improves to the point where I do my best (between the 1500 and 2500 yard marks). After the first 10 laps, are you able to catch your breath?
I have about 20 pounds of extra fat, but don't feel that it is a major hinderance to my cardio at this point. I am down about 35 so far and steadily losing about 2-3 pounds a month still. I do think it slows me down though - more drag!
I also know that after several days off, my first swim back is tough for me with respect to cardio. Muscles are different, but cardio is off. I swim 4 or 5 days a week (I just moved up yardage a bit to about 3300 average), usually not on weekends. So Monday's are typically bad cardio for me. Then Tuesdays are better. Wednesdays the best. Thursday almost as good as Wednesday. Then by Friday, my whole body is drained - especially if I didn't miss any days. If you are only going in the pool twice a week, maybe your cardio doesn't ever "get back on track". Even though you do other activities, swimming cardio seems to be very specific in my mind. My cardio in the pool feels far better than my cardio running. You could be the opposite at this time. (I also find that my swimming cardio is specific - I just started to do backstroke regularly each week and it wipes me out quickly.)
I also agree with Connie. Sometimes, I catch myself not exhaling completely. So each breath is short - less air/oxygen going in. If I find myself doing this, I stop, rest for a 30 seconds or a minute then start again paying close attention to my exhale. In my case, I don't get this with freestyle too much, but frequently with ***.
Anyway, these are observations I have made in my swimming. Hope they help.
It sounds like you are in good shape with all the other activities. Swimming does make special demands but I think it is your breathing rythum or maybe your just trying to push too hard. Try taking a "good swim" thinking about your stroke without trying to go too fast.See if the same thing happens. If it does not then keep at the breathing rythum and stroke and speed will come.
One other thing to consider about breathing. You breathe differently when you swim than you do for any other aerobic activity. When you swim, you primarily inhale through the mouth and exhale through the nose. This is the opposite of what every aerobics instructor has every told me! So I have the opposite problem from you. I can swim all day without getting out of breath (assuming I'm not swimming hard), but I am sucking air within 30 seconds in my step aerobics class! And running? Forget about it! I can't even run to the mailbox!
Meg
Drills, drills,drills! Try doing slow to moderate effort swims using lots of stroke drills. Concentrate on your feel for the water and your breathing. Catch-up stroke is my favorite for freestyle. It helps you get the feel for a long, efficient and powerful freestyle stroke. Make sure you are blowing ALL your air out so you can take a BIG breath in. Lots of times that is the problem, not taking a big enough breath in.
You DO exhale through your mouth some, but you should be exhaling forcefully through your nose so you don't get water up your nose. Of course, if you wear a noseclip, you can't exhale through your nose. I wouldn't worry that you're doing something wrong. I'm just saying that a lot of land-based aerobics teaches you to inhale through your nose, and you don't have time to do that when you're swimming.
Meg
Also remember, swimming uses different muscles then any other exercise. You might be in shape for running, but that does not necessarily equate to being fast in the water. If you want to get better at swimming, you have to do more of it. Like Connie said, "Perhaps you're spending too much time trying to learn new things, and not enough time practicing what you learned?
Relax and enjoy it:D It's great exercise!!
Thank you all for your wonderful input and advice!
Connie, I do think I struggle through the water. At one point, shortly after the TI class, I felt like I slid through the water. However, in my attempt to gain speed, I think I've compromised that slipping through the water feeling. I do exhale completely underwater, but I don't think it's relaxed. I think it's forced. My lap is a 50 yd. short course. You could be right about trying to learn new things. I purposely have made myself learn all 4 strokes to try and avoid RUIs (I have bad shoulders). I read that varying your workout can help avoid more problems. However, I do frequently feel like I am jumping all over the place instead of focusing on one thing. I do practice more than I take classes, but I practice a lot of things, rather than focusing on just one stroke or technique.
Scansy, after the first 10 laps or so, sometimes longer, I do catch my breath and things seem to flow much better. I guess when I think about it this happens during kickboxing...first 10-20 minutes I'm really having to push myself then I get a second wind and the rest of the workout, while not easy, just seems to flow. Congratulations on your weight loss! I agree, I think the 35 does create drag. I'm short also, so I feel like it really exacerbates the wide barge-like feeling. What you said about the 2 days a week makes a lot of sense to me. I used to swim 5 days a week until I developed shoulder problems, then cut back to 3, and now to 2. I think I swam better when I swam the 5 days a week. I don't recall it being such a struggle. If that's just how it's going to be, I can accept that. I just wanted to be sure I wasn't doing something really wrong.
Knelson, very likely I think too. I'm going to a clinic Friday on freestyle and breath control so I'm hoping to get some help there. Breathing has never become natural for me while swimming. It is very mechanical. When I started I would hyperventalate when I put my face in the water, so I've come a long way, but I have a long way to go. One of the down sides of learning to swim for the first time at 33.
Lapswimmr, I tried that this morning and still felt like I was struggling. I had a "good swim" at some point but lost it along the way. I think I'm fighting the water even if it may not look like it to others and the fighting causes my breathing to get off. I am going to take a step back and really focus on long, smooth strokes and good technique.
Thanks again everyone, really helpful to get some honest advice!
