Those who took a lot of time off...how long did it take you to get back in shape?

I am wondering how long it will take. I have not swum competitively in about 20 years. I have done other exercise in these 20 years but have never been close to being in the condition I was in back then. I wonder how long it will take to get into at least moderate competitive swimming condition. I guess it is all in how one defines things. I currently swim about 3000 yards/work out and my times are a lot slower than they were back when I was in top shape. I am thinking 6 months might be enough to get into moderate shape. Anyone else here go through a similar long time away from the pool get back into fair shape? How long did it take you? I am back swimming again after a 24 year lay off. How fast you recover is going to depend on what you have been doing in the interim. For my part, although there has been no competitive swimming in the past 24 years, I have always remained fit. Ran half marathons, played some waterpolo in my late 20's and despite some intermittent periods of absolutely no exercise (which can be quite a good thing) have always remained 'generally fit'. I started swimming about six months ago and will be competing in my first meet this coming weekend. It is also going to depend on how much time you have to train. You will need to train at least three times a week for an hour to an hour and a half to get in reasonable enough shape to swim in a meet. Try and get in with a Masters team if you can. You will find the competition will encourage you to train harder and having a coach would be a bonus, too. Unfortunately, I neither train with a team nor do I have a coach and I feel my progress would be a lot quicker if I did. I know a lot of other members here will attest to that. If you don't train with a team or have a coach you should, at least, try to follow a workout schedule. You need to have some way of measuring your improvement. For me it is always increasing distance, decreasing rest time, increasing speed or decreasing strokes per length. I am constantly timing myself and racing against the clock. Good luck with your swimming and let us know how it goes. Syd

I am wondering how long it will take. I have not swum competitively in about 20 years. I have done other exercise in these 20 years but have never been close to being in the condition I was in back then. I wonder how long it will take to get into at least moderate competitive swimming condition. I guess it is all in how one defines things. I currently swim about 3000 yards/work out and my times are a lot slower than they were back when I was in top shape. I am thinking 6 months might be enough to get into moderate shape. Anyone else here go through a similar long time away from the pool get back into fair shape? How long did it take you? I am back swimming again after a 24 year lay off. How fast you recover is going to depend on what you have been doing in the interim. For my part, although there has been no competitive swimming in the past 24 years, I have always remained fit. Ran half marathons, played some waterpolo in my late 20's and despite some intermittent periods of absolutely no exercise (which can be quite a good thing) have always remained 'generally fit'. I started swimming about six months ago and will be competing in my first meet this coming weekend. It is also going to depend on how much time you have to train. You will need to train at least three times a week for an hour to an hour and a half to get in reasonable enough shape to swim in a meet. Try and get in with a Masters team if you can. You will find the competition will encourage you to train harder and having a coach would be a bonus, too. Unfortunately, I neither train with a team nor do I have a coach and I feel my progress would be a lot quicker if I did. I know a lot of other members here will attest to that. If you don't train with a team or have a coach you should, at least, try to follow a workout schedule. You need to have some way of measuring your improvement. For me it is always increasing distance, decreasing rest time, increasing speed or decreasing strokes per length. I am constantly timing myself and racing against the clock. Good luck with your swimming and let us know how it goes. Syd