Let's Talk About Drills

George, I am wondering you would or how you do in fact work stroke correction time into a standard masters practice of one hour.

Originally posted by some_girl See, I think some people just learn things different ways. My technique has gotten much better as of late, and it had nothing to do with drills. Rather, the person I was working with said, "You need to do more X." Then I attempted to do so and said, "Like that?" And he would say yes or no. When he said yes, I memorized what that felt like. However, when I do drills, I spend the time fighting againt my instinct to swim the stroke normally. I know it sounds like justification, but I guess I'm just trying to figure out if anyone else has had this experience. That's a drill you wre doing it just wasn't something you wanted to label as a drill.

We did what coaches call drills before they were called drills, arms only, kicks of all sorts, catch up, dives, streamline, one length no breathe, you name it. I don't think every practice needs to be drills. I know when I give a workout to some one they know what the workout is and don't have to figure out a code to finish it.

Originally posted by craiglll@yahoo.com Tacks meca or tacks gotta haul. those are slang for thank you. Hey Craig, I grew up like you, only instead of Swedes we are Norwegians. If anyone out there thinks "well, that's the same thing, isn't it?" ummmm, nope! but yes, but kinda not... Anyway, I got the definition off a Yahoo dictionary, here's the link: FARTLEK I'm not being picky or know-it-all... I'm just kinda into etymology. And I REALLY like farlek drills! Takk!

Mary, My father was first generation Swedish american and my mother was first generation Norwegian. My Norwegian great-grandfather lived to be 97 years old. He was so strict that when my grandmother pierced her ears, she was forbinded to ever eat inhis dining room. she always ate inthe kitchen of his house with his house keeper. When he died the entire little town where he lived showed up at his funeral. I'll never forget how everyone talked about how he farmed to the end. My father would work all week, we'd get in the car (all six kids, my grandmother, my mother), drive from central Illinois to norhteastern Iowa. My father would do the farming. Then on Sunday night we'd drive back home & my father would go to work onMonday morning. I think all Norwegian (some Swedish also) American immigrants have a fetish for strawberries. My great grandmother, who died 10 days before I wa born (there's nothing like Lutheran guilt) had huge strawberry patches. I don't know what it is? Also, did you know that we of Norwegian descent make up the smallest European ethinic group in the US! There are even fewer of us than Romanians, Slovenians. Also, this morning I talked to the oldest Swedish immigrant I know. He said that fartlek to him would mean something like playing a fast . He also said that it is kind of a nnsense word because you can make so many compound words in Swedish. I then looked in the book on running (I've already forgotten the name) the Swedish track coach who invented the word ment it to mean speed play or fast running play (sometimes in Swedish a word can be induced becaus of what is being done).

Mary, I'm only half offended. When My father was inthe fourth grade, a new boy came to his scholl. the little boy had come from Sweden. His teacher assigned my father to help the new boy fit in becasue the boy spoke no English. The teacher, this was in the early 1920's, actually said that she couldn't understand why all the stupid little Swedes didn't speak English before they came to this contry. They were actually forbidden from speaking Swedish n the school. For almost the entire student body, Swedish was their first language and Galesburg was at the tiem almost 40% Swedish. It amazes me that this issue about bilingual education still exists. On the Norwegian side. My grandmothers name wa Nellie Nelson. Your last name is so Norwegian. My great grandmother's maiden name was Liervik. Where in the US did you grow up? Did you grow up eating ribs? My mother used to work with a woman who married a man ofNorwegian ancestry. this woman used to talk about her mother-in-laws rids. One day i asked why we never ate ribs at Christmas time. My mother repplie to me that we didn't becasue we didn't have to. Also, did anyone ever make upside down pineappple cake? I think I wa in highschool before I realized that you didn't have to eat that for every special occasion. My Swedish great grandfather changed his name from Orling to Johnson because they were kicked out of Sweden for trying to start the revolutin. You know Methodist Swedish immigrnts came to the US becaseu they were poor. Lutherans came here becasue they were kicked out by rich Methodists. Do cartch-up drills for your left arm entry. It will really help.

Craig, Two norwegians were taking a lifeguarding class. One asked the other: "Do you know how to save a Swede from drowning?" the one said. "No," his friend said after a little while. The first Norwegian grinned, "Oh, That's good." :D OK, back to the subject of the thread... Lately I've been trying to dedicate myself to drills more than usual. My freestyle needs a lot of correction, and especially the left arm entry, which I tend to do with my elbow too low, slapping the water instead of entering hand-forearm-elbow-upperarm-shoulder. So today, my program said: "500m freestyle drills"... I did 200, then went on to do a really tough set of 6 x 200m followed by 4 x 100m followed by ... and I realized why drills are not popular: they are HARD! I'd much rather do 6x 200m any day, and 200's are not exactly my faves... But, I do believe in drills and will do my best to up the ante. Takk! Mary

Craig, I am really cracking up over this Norge-Swede thing and I hope we're not bugging the other folks in the thread being off-topic! So, my dad, Sigurd Lokken (that Norwegian enough for you?) was born in the USA but didn't speak English until he went to school when he was 5. He grew up in Pigeon Falls Wisconsin where his dad was the book-keeper in the general store, and no one spoke English. My great-grandfather's name was Thor Thorson. Another was a Nelson, so maybe we're related. As for food, I'm thinking you're lucky because you didn't mention lutefisk which is basically dried cod which is boiled until it's fish jelly... with bones in it! I grew up in Berkeley California because my dad was a Lutheran minister (duh!) and got a calling out there to be the Campus Minister at UC Berkeley in the '60's and 70's.... they were exciting times. Now I'm off to the pool to do those catch-up drills! Mary PS: Norwegians are so smart, we even tell jokes about ourselves, like: "Mama, I have da biggest feet in da third grade. Is dat becoss I'm Norvegian?" "No, it's because you're NINETEEN."

Mary, My grandmother was born in Wisconsin when her father was there to work on one of his uncle's farms. Do you know where in Norway youor family is from. My great grandmother was born in Oslo. My great grandfather was born in Gran Matiland (it is a town on a highland fjord). Their housekeeper, Ruth, was born on a farm up very north. She was sent to work for my great grandfather to raise my grandmother because she "was too ugly to get married" every one said. She spoke a dialect of Norwegian htat is said to now be dead. Many linguists believe that in those valley, farming communities Norwefgian broke off from Swedish. Were you brought up LCA or Missouri Synod. We were LCA. My Swedish grandparents were one of the original families who started the church. Very LCA. At the church in Clermont, IA, they used a song board. Once I asked my mom why they used one & we didn't have one in the church in Galesburg. She told me that it was because there were so many people who only spoke Norwegian in Clermont that was the only way they could follow the service. I didn't occur to me until I was in high school that if they couldn't follow the English-printed order of confession, they wouldn't be able to read the service anyway. So what did it matter! When we were in Iowa, we couldn't watch TV or listen to the radio on Sundays. My great grandfather wouldn't allow it. We would sneak over to my grandmother's cousins house (she was related to both of them but they weren't related to each other) there we could listen to the Cubs onthe radio. My great grandfather was so ole that if wqe had turned onthe TV or a radio he wouldn't have been able to do anything about it. One thing great about Scandinavian immigrants is how important sports were to them. Norwegians in Iowa are very much responsible for that state having had great women's programs for over one hundred years. Do you still have any relatives in Norway? I have several who are named Liervik. Leirvik is sort of the Norwegian Johnson. They live mostly around Oslo. Oslo is one of the most beautiful cities inthe world. I had two cousins who were ski jumpers. I think both participated in the Olympics. They were absolutely crazy but extremely intense. Can you imagine jumping off of a ski jump? One thing so great about threads is if people don't want to read this, they don't have to!

OK, so here we go! (since you gave me permission to go off topic and all!)... My mom's family is from the Lyster Fjord which is off the Sogne Fjord (one of the most beautiful places on earth!) and the site of the 211 KM Cold Water Swim record by Lewis Gordon Pugh. (got some swim stuff in there :D )... We are LCA. Growing up in the super-liberal People's Republic of Berkeley my family wasn't as strict as yours sounds. Plus, we were pretty much alone out there since the rest of the family was in Wisconsin. And speaking of women and sports, a distant (Norwegian, naturally) cousin of mine from Iowa was on the Women's Hockey Team that won the GOLD at the Olympics at Nagano 1998! My dad's family comes from Lillehammer.... anyone remember that little town north of Oslo? He used to ski yump... yust dat he yumped one time too many and ended up in a tree... never yumped again!! Uff Da!! It's funny being Norwegian in Italy. We're considered exotic. :cool: Mary