Getting back into it

Originally posted by vr4nothing I swam competitvely as a kid about ten years ago... Anyone have any tips for getting started again? Yep... Go swim! Try and average at least 4x/wk. Don’t wait till you are “ready”, just go enter a meet as soon as it is possible. Be patient. 3x/wk will basically just maintain your current level of swimming fitness (unless you are doing a lot of structured cross training that specifically targets swimmers... maybe). 5x/wk or more is great, but if you’re just starting back you want to keep your goals realistic. I find that swimming 4x/wk allows me some satisfactorily measurable progress (but then again I frequently attend the school of “If at first you don’t succeed then lower your standards” :-). All I do is swimming mostly. I’m starting to get back into Yoga, and I’m finding it extremely helpful. If you had swimming talent before it will come back quick. If you never had a lot of swimming talent, but are willing in spirit, then you have a grand opportunity before you. Do what feels good and try to make it fun. Diligent study and practice, along with good coaching and/or feedback from folks knowledgeable in technique, can be a very rewarding experience. Regular swimming is an outstanding exercise in self-discipline. If you really apply yourself, you will learn a lot about yourself. I wish more “regular” folks showed up at meets, it would be a lot more fun. Also: Better to make the silly meet mistakes now before you are “ready”, as opposed to when you are primed and charged to snag an all-time personal best record. And most importantly, by starting a collection of timed events now you will have a much more tangible record of your progress (for when you think you are ready). Of course you could also follow the advice of Ellen DeGeneres: “Don’t wait! Procrastinate now!”

Originally posted by vr4nothing I swam competitvely as a kid about ten years ago... Anyone have any tips for getting started again? Yep... Go swim! Try and average at least 4x/wk. Don’t wait till you are “ready”, just go enter a meet as soon as it is possible. Be patient. 3x/wk will basically just maintain your current level of swimming fitness (unless you are doing a lot of structured cross training that specifically targets swimmers... maybe). 5x/wk or more is great, but if you’re just starting back you want to keep your goals realistic. I find that swimming 4x/wk allows me some satisfactorily measurable progress (but then again I frequently attend the school of “If at first you don’t succeed then lower your standards” :-). All I do is swimming mostly. I’m starting to get back into Yoga, and I’m finding it extremely helpful. If you had swimming talent before it will come back quick. If you never had a lot of swimming talent, but are willing in spirit, then you have a grand opportunity before you. Do what feels good and try to make it fun. Diligent study and practice, along with good coaching and/or feedback from folks knowledgeable in technique, can be a very rewarding experience. Regular swimming is an outstanding exercise in self-discipline. If you really apply yourself, you will learn a lot about yourself. I wish more “regular” folks showed up at meets, it would be a lot more fun. Also: Better to make the silly meet mistakes now before you are “ready”, as opposed to when you are primed and charged to snag an all-time personal best record. And most importantly, by starting a collection of timed events now you will have a much more tangible record of your progress (for when you think you are ready). Of course you could also follow the advice of Ellen DeGeneres: “Don’t wait! Procrastinate now!”