I have been a right side breather for over 50 years. Last year, I tried for a full year to breathe on the left but encountered a lot of problems and I am a patient person when learning something new/different.
Here are the problems:When I breathe on the left: I get a headache quickly; also, I get extremely dizzy, and finally, I start seeing spots optically. I also don't swim straight which I am famous for doing and that is because my non-breathing arm is probably traveling to the left.
I can breathe on the left for about 10 to 20 strokes before these problems start occurring. Today, after I came home from swim training, I started thinking about why all this is. The one thing I did do was, as I was sitting, was I turned my head to the right and my chin goes beyond my shoulder. I tried this to the left and it wasn't even close to my shoulder. So now I am thinking that muscles/tendons in my neck are not lengthened and flexible when turning it to the left thereby the problems I may be encountering when I try to breathe to the left.
So, if anyone has any ideas, or knows of any exercises I could implement to get my neck to turn to the left, let me know. I truly don't think that swimming 19 miles breathing only to the right is the way to go; it may even cause me to abort the swim.
Breathing to the left is almost impossible because once my vision starts to go, I get nauseaous. Ideas?
Donna
Maybe you could google and find more about the neck muscles and what could help you. It is very concerning that you are getting dizzy, sick and seeing spots. That seems like some kind of nerve impingement that you never have discovered until now when you are forcing something new. I can also see why you have to solve this before trying this swim. Being able to switch sides seems important.
For me, finding a knowledgable massage therapist and chiropractor have kept me pain free. But they do have to know what they are doing, and I certainly would not trust your island girls!:p
I wish I could help more, my neck muscles are tight, and massage therapy helps a lot. The therapist tells me that at times they feel like they are made of cement. It always feels better when she loosens them. Helps headaches too, so that is why I think you could get help with this.
Maybe you could google and find more about the neck muscles and what could help you. It is very concerning that you are getting dizzy, sick and seeing spots. That seems like some kind of nerve impingement that you never have discovered until now when you are forcing something new. I can also see why you have to solve this before trying this swim. Being able to switch sides seems important.
For me, finding a knowledgable massage therapist and chiropractor have kept me pain free. But they do have to know what they are doing, and I certainly would not trust your island girls!:p
I wish I could help more, my neck muscles are tight, and massage therapy helps a lot. The therapist tells me that at times they feel like they are made of cement. It always feels better when she loosens them. Helps headaches too, so that is why I think you could get help with this.
