Hi all...
I'm just getting started with this whole serious swimming thing, and at 20 I'm trying to make up for lost time.
A friend of mine who was an excellent swimmer in high school is sort of coaching me now, although I'm a little skeptical about some of his advice. He suggests that I shave down like a competition swimmer in order to achieve a "better feel" for the water while I'm improving my technique. Is there any truth to this, and is there any other reason I should consider doing it? I'm obviously not anywhere near ready for competition, but I want to do whatever I can to learn quickly.
Any advice on this, and any other advice for a late starter would be really appreciated!
Former Member
Once you get the bug you will want to compete, Yes by all means get in there. It will also show where you are with your swimming.
If you can enter a meet, that would be a great idea. Don't worry if you're slow; everyone starts somewhere. Meets are great for setting goals to keep you motivated, like making a certain time in an event or just finishing an event legally. I know that if I hadn't started swimming in meets, I would definitely not be swimming now.
Is it a big problem that I can't flip turn? Would I be the only one not doing it at a meet, or is it required to finish legally?
Answers to all questions and others I haven't asked yet would be awesome!
Frankly, the art of swimming is all about conditioning your mind and body to adapt from the land to an aquatic environment and shaving (for the purpose of reducing drag) isn’t of much value.
However, shaving does provide an enhanced feel for the water for those who like the more sensual aspect of swimming.
Incidentally, since the topic of “shaving and drag” has come up, here’s a link I posted on the USMS site regarding the closely related subject of drag and the new suits:
forums.usms.org/showthread.php
My opinion is just enjoy your training and try not to get too emotional about the competitiveness issue.
Happy Swimming
:D
Originally posted by sundevil86
Is it a big problem that I can't flip turn? Would I be the only one not doing it at a meet, or is it required to finish legally? Answers to all questions and others I haven't asked yet would be awesome!
I think I’ve seen every legal start, stroke variation, and finish possible under USMS rules at meets I’ve attended. Properly executed grab turns are perfectly all right.
Other than maybe nationals or worlds, there is no minimum speed requirement at a sanctioned USMS meet. If you have any desire to attend meets, by all means enter the first one that is most convenient to you. Every meet you attend is going to teach you something new, so you may as well start now. You will then also have more timed results available to you to track your progress.
You can start, swim, and finish anyway you want... as long as it is legal. Do yourself a favor, and read up on the official rules yourself so you don’t get burned. I can’t imagine anything worse than putting months, or even years, of practice in for an event only to get DQ’d (disqualified) for some silly mistake.
USMS rules index page:
http://www.usms.org/rules/
Swimming rules:
www.usms.org/.../part1.pdf
Fortunately I’ve never had a DQ, but I’ve seen it happen. And some of them were not very pretty.
If you swim freestyle, it's very hard to get disqualified. As long as you start without false-starting, swim in your own lane without pulling on the lane ropes, and touch the wall with some part of your body at each turn and finish, you should be fine.
Originally posted by sundevil86
Just an added question about my progress...is it reasonable for me to want to compete once before the end of this summer? I'd really like to if I could, but based on my current ability, I'm not sure.
I don't see any reason to delay competing. Just remember that there are three ways to win:
1) You win if you come in first.
2) You win if you place higher in an event than you ever placed before.
3) You win if you get a faster time for an event than you ever got before.
The first time you race, you're guaranteed to do both 2 & 3, so you're guaranteed to win!
If you're ever tempted to worry about what other people think of your performance, remember that the worst you can do is come in last, and if you do, there will always be one person who will be very glad you came, and that's the person who comes in next-to-last!
Bob
