Hardest time of the year to train!

Since I'm just recently (this past summer) getting back into this swimming thing and having only taken three years off since college I find that I'm more excited and it's easier for me to swim this time of year. Historically for me this time of year has meant getting into some serious heavy yardage with "Hell Week" coming during winter break. My biggest meet of the year was usually in February, March, or April and a huge emphasis was put on the winter season. That combined with being from New England means I don't feel like it's truly swimming weather unless any amounts of excess water on my body or in my swim bag immediately freezes upon leaving the pool area. I actually find it harder to swim in the summer since most pools decent for swimming are indoors so I have to drag myself inside during the 2 months of the year where it's enjoyable to bike, walk, rollerblade, etc. I wish I could help you out but I guess my point with this post was maybe knowing that others are hyper-motivated this time of year will help if you're a very competitive person.

Rich, That is so true! I do love to eat all the wonderful food this time of the year and not worry too much about my weight because I know I'll burn off the calories in the pool! Thanks for that reminder!

My problem is that in December school holidays (summer holidays, two months long) start and my local pool will become somewhat empty and I will be swimming alone with all those lanes beside me. All those noisy kids and their noisy mothers will be gone, I will miss them so much. Plus in January I go to the beach for two weeks and miss my regular swimming schedule. I can only swim in the crystal clear warm waters of the ocean, but all that water keeping me floating, makes it take longer for me to tire out. Walking ten miles barefoot on the beach isn't that bad either. Well, so long from the Southern Hemisphere. Warmest regards, billy fanstone

p.s. BTW: I really like your avatar nkfrench! Is that a traffic sign you came across while driving?....Or did you find it somewhere else? I, uh, "leveraged" the image off the internet. Thought it was funny and I am a LOTR fan.

I agree!! For me it is very difficult to train this time of year. Our pool closes in December for maintenance and cleaning and I swim at a motel pool that is too short and too hot. And then because of all the good stuff around the house, I overeat and feel awful when I do get in the pool.

I like the mid season taper because then it propels me into January where I once again to tear my body down until May. Beth: It is hard for me to train now too. I'm distracted. Also, since we both have sore shoulders, swim meets are not ideal and it's not real fun (or maybe advisable) to train hard with pain. I'm looking forward to scapular stabilization and a lot of drills in December and then, hopefully, "tearing my body down until May" in the pool when then another mental/physical break will be needed. Hang in there! :)

I think you just have to ignore the negative feelings as best that you can. They'll go away - in the Spring! The other thought I have is that most people struggling with motivation just don't have GOALS. The goals will keep you involved during the challenging times.

I kind of used the idea that I could eat quite guilt free knowing that I'd be in the pool again to work it off. Then again I only do a mile 3x a week...I see others racking up a lot more distance... My way of dealing with cold (at the pool) is to have a hot shower and gradually reduce the shower temp until it's about taking my breath away...after this getting in to the pool area feels heavenly. I also start my workout week on Monday night and after a drumming lesson. I swear this is a big factor because I am out of the house already. So it's easy to go to the Y, and then I've done the "first" of my weekly workouts so I am already amped to do the other 2. Afterwards...a hot shower is a great reward before going out to the cold air...

This can be a difficult time of year to train and stay motivated. One thing you might want to do is find a swim meet in Dec. and use that as a motivation as your big mid season meet where you taper. This might help you stay focused in the pool, keep ya motivated and keep ya from over eating all the yummy holiday foods and beverages. I just started my taper for my big meet coming up in two weeks. I feel busting my @$$ from Aug until May for Nationals is just way to long. Its good to have a mid season taper, for me anyways. I am sure some will argue that one taper is enough. I like the mid season taper because then it propels me into January where I once again to tear my body down until May. greg

This is actually the easiest time of year for me to get to the pool ... to actually swim. I do some swim administration for both my team (USAS & USMS) and also for the LSC, state swim association and a little for the LMSC. The "downtime" parts of the season in April and September when there are no meets is actually the busiest for me as there are all sorts of clinics, parent meetings, conventions, LSC meetings, new time standards to calculate/publish, and new swimmers joining the team to register and get started. In October/November and May/June all the teams are releasing their meet information for the rest of the season. In February/March, July/August there are the big meets with results to post and a lot of new team records and other achievement awards to process. My team also hosts meets usually November, April, and June which each usually take up about 40hrs of my time. At work I develop software. We put "freezes" on new s/w installs in December and most budgets run out by the end of the year, so most development is planned to complete before Thanksgiving and we don't get full speed on new projects until mid-January. That means no overtime and opportunities to take a few days off here and there. Plus, my company gives a long holiday break between Christmas and New Years. The only downside is that the public high schools in Texas mandate a 5-day shutdown of school athletic facilities ... which means our pool is closed Dec 21-25. I do have a health club membership ... yuck, 20y sloshy unpredictable temp/chemicals/crowding/etc pool ... I suppose I could tough it out ...