help! my 1st masters practice

Originally posted by geochuck You do really have to be in swimming shape to join into a 2hr. workout, it sounds like the coach is someone I could work with. It seems this coach is considerate not like many of the master coaches I have run into who say you have to do this or you can not be with the group. Geochuck: He did seem like a really nice guy. He told me that in order to be a coach for their program, you must also be a swimmer and participate in the workouts. He also informed me that there is no required number of workouts to go to, although most of the swimmers go to 2-3 workouts per week. He said all of the coaches are very laid back and that the team's main focus is on having fun and meeting new people. Now thats a team I'd like to be part of!

Nancy, You're right, I didn't get out of shape and overweight overnight so I'm obviously not going to lose the weight overnight. I need to be patient with myself, but I'm the type of person who wants to see results right away (I guess we all are, aren't we?). Thank you for the advice on the workouts. I'm going to do some swimming on my own, like you said and concentrate on long swims rather than doing interval workouts. The kicking and drills are a great idea and will certainly help me tone other areas of my body. I've been trying to eat a lot of chicken, fresh vegetables and fruit rather than processed foods that are high in sugar. Are there any other ideas that you might have to help me kick-start my weight loss? Its embarassing to admit to this, but I'm 5'3" and I weigh 190 lbs, which is really high for my height. I could afford to lose about 50 or so pounds, and I'm sure losing the weight will help ease the pressure on my shoulders when swimming.

Congratulations Erica! The first workout is the hardest. If you read through some of the older posts, you will see that everyone going back to swimming after a long lay-off is nervous. Do a search for "weight loss" and you'll find a bunch of information. When I started swimming in October after a 25 year layoff & weight gain, I did alot of research. The main thing you should know is it will take about 12-20 weeks before you start losing significant weight. However, you will start losing inches right away. I would suggest that you take your measurements now so you can see your progress and don't weigh yourself. Within the first 3-4 months, I lost about 5 inches around my waist, 3-4 inches everywhere else and only lost 5 pounds. The main thing is to just stick with it and do the best you can. You will build up stamina, it just takes a little time before you really start to "feel" the water again. Good job!!!

I think everyone knows what they are putting in their mouths, I have known for years. It is gross, but I have finaly found that if I eat correctly I will lose weight, if I exercise I will loose weight. My meals now even comprise of green which I was determined never to eat. A little red meat, fish, a little chicken, a little pork a few spuds, lots of grains, fibre to keep everything moving. But it takes guts to give up the pleasures of life, eating, drinking and partylife styles. Yes it is hard to train but the benifits are great, I am down to a shadow of my self used to weigh 335 lbs now I am a svelt 250 heading for 220lbs, I don't know how long it will take but I will reach the goal.

You should take your measurements now, for sure. But recent randomized control trials on people who have successfully lost weight and KEPT it off has shown that the people who weighed themselves daily were more successful in the long run. I think the main thing is to not expect to see massive improvement right away, and not to lose heart and give up. I haven't ever had to try to lose 50 pounds, so I really can't imagine how hard that must be, and how daunted you must feel. ere are some weight loss suggestions from some diabetes researchers that I work with. I hope they help. 1. Do some (at least 30 min) of exercise every day, rather than only 4 days a week (ease into it, though). 2. Try serving yourself meals on the small plates rather than the big ones. 3. Don't eat out of the cooking pot. 4. Don't have seconds. 5. Don't eat in bed or in front of the TV or in the car. 6. Eat something for breakfast. Choose something healthy like oatmeal or eggs. Bagels can be up to 500 calories. Granola has a huge amount of calories too. So does juice -- it has a lot more than soda, but at least it actually has vitamins. 7. Measure your portion sizes (ideally, with an actual measuring cup or scale) and read labels carefully. This includes looking at serving sizes. Also, I disagree with the not cutting back on calories now. Yes food is fuel, and you need it to survive, but you can make small cuts that will add up to 0.5 - 1.0 lbs per week without suffering too much. 1.0 lb per week is only 500 calories per day that you have to cut between diet and exercise (and you probably burned more than 500 with your 90 minute swim yesterday). 0.5 is only 250 calories a day. Plus, if you make small modifications to your lifestyle now, it will be easier to sustain once you've lost the 50 lbs. Definitely keep us posted on how you're doing. Your first swim sounded like it went great, and it sounds like a fun groups to train with. And you're in the MIDDLE group already. I've busted my butt for months to get there. You are going to do great.

Glad you decided to go! Congrats on your courage! I didn't get into serious swim practices until last year. I would sometimes just do plain lap swimming during running injury recoveries... even tried an open water mile a few years ago b/c I missed running in races and wanted to compete in something. Finished second to last and hadn't a clue about open water swimming or masters' practices or anything! Last year, they announced a masters' group starting up, and I was curious, but like you I wondered if I would fit in. Figured everyone would be super-fast and that the workout would be mega-yards. I called the coach, fully expecting him to say that everyone would be highly competitive and much faster and I should hold off. But no, that excuse was taken from me. He was so friendly and positive, I thought Okay, I'll try it. I came out of the water feeling all rubbery... wondered during the sets if I was going to end up draped over the lane ropes... had to ask what a pull buoy was. Was the slowest swimmer there. Still not fast... but what did the coach focus on? THAT I COMPLETED THE WORKOUT! He would encourage as well as push... I'd hear "good job!" as often as I'd hear critiques (friendly critiques) of my stroke etc. This coach took my workout as seriously as he did that of the faster swimmers. His enthusiasm and confidence were contagious. I was disappointed when he had to back out of the masters' swimming coaching due to mounting school and work commitments, but his influence kept me at it and wanting to return to masters' swimming, so I joined another group and am back again... and again the slowest swimmer at the practice, but loving it! With your experience, you'll be in the faster lanes soon and new people will be saying, "I'm not sure... that DV looks wicked fast... will I be able to fit in?" And you can tell them your story.

and there's so much new stuff to learn! Biomechanics are always shifting, rule changes abound, your own age will alter your choices (and consequences), plus - a bonus - there's a lot of fun people out there. There's less to prove and more to gain in so many ways. Good Luck, DV

So how did it go?

First off, I'd like to thank ALL of you for your great responses and your encouragement. It sure isn't easy getting back into the pool after so many years of not swimming, but you're all right...you have to start somewhere. Well I came into last night's practice and introduced myself to the coach. I gave him a little bit of my background in swimming and told him I literally have not touched water in 6 years. There were 6 lanes reserved for the team's workout and 2 open lap lanes for regular gym members to do laps. The coach told me to do some laps in the open lanes and he'd watch me and see how I did. After about 500 yards or so I was really hurting and could feel how out of shape I was. He told me I did well after such a long time out of the water and that I would probably fit into one of the middle lanes for the workout. The team is currently doing a taper so the yardage isn't as high as usual, but I still didn't think I could endure a 2 hour workout. So I swam for 90 minutes on my own doing laps to try and build up my endurance. The coach said I should give myself a few weeks of practicing on my own and then I could join the team for workouts. I'm proud of myself for going, and I kept trying to tell myself that I have to start somewhere and I can't keep putting it off. I just can't believe I let myself get this out of shape and gain so much weight. I've been trying to eat healthier and cut down on proportion sizes. I'm going to start doing some walking on my hour lunch break to try and accelerate my weight loss. Are there any suggestions that you could give to help me lose weight but without over-doing it? Also, how many times a week would you recommend that I swim to get myself back into "swimming mode" but again without over-doing it?

You do really have to be in swimming shape to join into a 2hr. workout, it sounds like the coach is someone I could work with. It seems this coach is considerate not like many of the master coaches I have run into who say you have to do this or you can not be with the group.