IT is hard not to compare yourselves to others!!!!
Former Member
Hey all
As some of you may have read I started swimming with a masters program on the 7th of Sept after 22 years ( give or take a year LOL) I am 41 mom of 2, work full time , had thyroid cancer ( but now it is gone:cheerleader:) I am also 25 to 30 pounds overweight since my surgery.
Getting back into the pool was tough but now I love it ( the first day was the worst I was nervous). The problem is I think I should be swimming like I did when I was younger and I am comparing myself to the others in the pool. The coach says that I am doing great and do not appear as tired, but MAN I am behind a good portion of the people. I can actually get lapped in kicking with a board. I am so bad at it. My last practice I just told myself this is for me and swam for myself. I am figuring that no one is looking over at me and saying anything. It is all in my mind not theirs.
I guess I wonder how long until you see great improvement?I know that my cardio is getting better but still needs a ton of work. At my age will it take a full season to really improve? I am swimming 4 mornings a week.
It is interesting to note that even in our 40's we still compare ourselves to others. All in all this back to swimming is wonderful but tougher than I thought it would be LOL LOL
Katie
Consider yourself fortunate to have a number of people that you can use as competition. They'll return the favor and you'll all get faster.
It can be taken to an extreme though, don't do it if you lose form, cheat on turns, etc.
This is the benefit and drawback of swimming by yourself, which I have done since I started back in the pool this summer. It was great for a while, because I didn't want to compare myself to others. I didn't want that pressure that it's hard not to put on yourself.
But you reach a point where having other people in the lane with you will push you harder than you can push yourself. I swam a set of 10x100 with a very good swimmer over the weekend and held a pace per 100 about 5 seconds faster than I was anticipating swimming alone. To get to the "next level" I'm planning on joining a team.
Don't forget the old adage that "there's always someone faster" (new corollary--unless you're Michael Phelps) so even the fast swimmers (not that I am one) have to keep from getting discouraged by the competition.
Yeah, I know: :violin:
Consider yourself fortunate to have a number of people that you can use as competition. They'll return the favor and you'll all get faster.
It can be taken to an extreme though, don't do it if you lose form, cheat on turns, etc.
This is the benefit and drawback of swimming by yourself, which I have done since I started back in the pool this summer. It was great for a while, because I didn't want to compare myself to others. I didn't want that pressure that it's hard not to put on yourself.
But you reach a point where having other people in the lane with you will push you harder than you can push yourself. I swam a set of 10x100 with a very good swimmer over the weekend and held a pace per 100 about 5 seconds faster than I was anticipating swimming alone. To get to the "next level" I'm planning on joining a team.
Don't forget the old adage that "there's always someone faster" (new corollary--unless you're Michael Phelps) so even the fast swimmers (not that I am one) have to keep from getting discouraged by the competition.
Yeah, I know: :violin:
