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
Drats I hit reply before I meant to
Dorthy thanks for the input. I know that I will improve in time and it is great to hear from other people on how well they did. What about your fitness level, toning perhaps weightloss. Have you been successful with that?
Katie
Yes, I was not out of shape when I started, having been a life long exerciser, but I was fit-fat. I am down 40 pounds from where I started, my resting heart rate is 45-50, blood pressure is always around 110/60, cholestral is very low, I look smaller than I weigh because of my muscle mass, so I think swimming is awesome. Also, when I go to the same Master's group now to swim.....I swim in the fast lane!
Barb
That is so true. Your friend is very wise. I am still kind of on my own with the masters as well. I have a couple ladies who really chat but the others keep to themselves more than I thought they would. I often wonder if I am to hard on them. It is 5:30 am and perhaps they are shy. Who knows. I am there for me and just keep plodding along. I do like that the practice schedule is done for me. It is a no brainer. I hope you continue to enjoy your swimming.
knelson. YOU are right I guess you have to compare to compete. I guess I need to get into better shape before that happens.
slowswim. I have no doubt that you will be posting that you were in a race. It sounds like you have done a great job over the two years. I swam a lot as a child and teen so that will help me. Right now it is more the cardio and conditioning. I really need to shed a few pounds. I so hope this helps. WOW on getting your practices through email. You must be very dedicated I would find that tough. I am glad it works for you though.
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.
Comparing yourself to someone is not always a bad thing. If you can find someone who is/was a peer in a situation, it could benefit you both. Someone to provide motivation and advice.
In this case, Katie, you've got a couple folks who have been in your situation before. Now you don't know these folks per se, but at least they've all been through it and you have something against which you may benchmark your situation. You have an edge since you somewhat know what to expect.
Thanks for your input everyone. It is wonderful to know that I am not the only one who has done this but that I just need to stop it. I am doing this for me and no one else. I am also enjoying it. It is hard to explain but I am proud of myself.
Unfortunatley I got the family cold this weekend. I have a bad head cold. I started cold fx and am feeling a bit better but there was no way I could swim this morning. I felt really guilty and upset by it as I am just getting into the swimming. Oh well. I am hoping to get their tomorrow.
Dorothy OMG I am a fitfat tooooooooooooo, as I workout so much. I put 25 pounds on with my thyroid cancer and still worked out. I am in better shape than I was and there are some muscles under the flab I just need to see them and get some weight off. WOW 40 pounds:cheerleader: that is wonderful congrats to you !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am hoping that the weight naturally comes off for me to. I can feel inches in back coming off. Can I ask how long it took to notice a difference then how long it took to lose the 40 pounds. Did you diet at the same time LOL Okay I am nosey.
Katie
I think it's inevitable to compare yourself to others. If we didn't there'd be no point in competing. Try to use this as positive motivation rather than negative. If you keep slugging it out you'll get faster and before you know it you'll be racing the folks who are now leaving you in the dust.
I pretty much never swam until two years ago. Joined a USMS Team and had a coach. I had to move a year ago and lost both. I am coached via e-mail and still am making improvement.
I swim alone almost every time, but this Forum helps me stay motivated. I try not to compare myself to these swimming demi-gods here, but the tips and advice are great!
Mostly, I'm trying to get/stay in shape, but hope to race in a meet someday if I can get a respectable time. I would love to swim Back, but without a coach I don't want to learn too many bad habits that I'd have to unlearn.
Thanks everyone for the words of wisdom.
I am really really enjoying my swimming. More than I thought I would. The early mornings are getting easier to which is nice. My one ear bothers me so I have ordered some good earplugs for it.
I have found a couple of woman who swim about where I do, so we are sharing a lane. They actually maybe a little better so that is nice to. ( I am a little more out of shape and they have been swimming for longer than I have, I must remember I only started Sept 7th) This morning when we were given part of our workout the coach gave us a drill of swimming 400 metres at 75% H/R. He said lanes 1 to 5 do the 400 and lane 6 do 200. I immediatley thought I would be in the lane 6 group but nope. So I guess I am doing better than I thought. There were a couple of new people and I made sure I said hi as I know how intimidated I was in the beginning. The one lady looked terrified.
I think as I get my cardio and endurance up I will feel better. I do the entire workout but I seem to be breathing much harder than some. I am also about 2 lengths of the pool behind a large group. So my goal is to start making that smaller..
All in all life is good and I am enjoying it.
Katie:groovy:
