All,
I have decided to get back into swimming primarily for fitness, but also for a hobby and competition. I turn 36 in July and really haven't been back in the water since I was 18.
I began competing at 5 and continued through my Sr year of high school. I can't believe that I have been out of the water longer than I was in the water. That is dissapointing to me.
I am in good health at 5' 10" 165 lbs. I have done spurts of exercise my entire adult life. Most of which were 4-6 months of cardio work either on a treadmill or in spin classes. But find myself getting bored and lose focus.
Swimming has always been in the back of my mind and I feel that for me to stay committed to exercising, I need extra motivation. Therefore, I am determined to compete in a SCY meet in late February.
My initial focus will be on conditioning and stamina. My last attempt at swimming was somewhat shocking at how little I could do. I thought I would be able to jump right in and do 1500 yds on day one. Didn't happen. In fact, the most I could go without stopping was a 150. I ended up doing a set of 6 x 75's sloooow and then 2 x 100's.
This was 3 years ago and I did build it up some, but my commitment wasn't there and I only last about 3 months.
Now that you know my background, I have some qustions on how I should start.
What should I do to build up my stamina, endurance, and conditioning? I figured that I would spend about 2-3 months focusing on conditining and then be in a position to focus on training for events. Is that a good plan? I f so, how do I go about it?
Any advice would be great. I plan on leaning on you guys for answers and support. This seems like a great community.
Thanks in advance.
Nathan
Well...I did it. I got back into the pool this weekend.
Saturday: 10 x 100 on 3:00 intervals. Swam very relaxed and surprizingly comforatable. Did them all between 1:20 and 1:28.
Sunday: Same as Saturday. I wasn't as comfortable as my shoulders were a little sore and tight from the day before.
Monday: 200 warm up then 9 x 100 on 2:30 intervals. Swam all between 1:20 and 1:25. 150 easy cool down
As I suspected, my conditioning just isn't there. I know I could have done more and gone faster, but I am trying to avoid being too sore and to drained that I won't go back the next day.
My goal is to swim everyday--slowly building up the yards until I feel comforatble with my conditioning. Then I will start concentrating on workouts that will help me improve my speed and prepare me for events.
I will determine what events I plan to swim after about 2-3 months of conditioning work.
Thanks to all for your responses, and thanks to those responsible for this site. I feel comfortable saying that I wouldn't be nearly this excited about swimming without this forum.
Nathan
It sounds like you're up and running, but when I got back into the pool after my 15 year layover (seems almost like the mandatory minimum...) I found this plan that gets you up to being able to swim a 1650 straight in six weeks: ruthkazez.com/ZeroTo1mile.html
I didn't need six weeks personally, but I did each workout 2-3 times and when I felt ready, moved up to the next one. You might be able to give this a shot skipping the first few weeks. You'll be back in good shape before you know it!
I stayed away from joining a masters team for about 5 months in order to get myself into reasonable shape. I have since joined a team and it has indeed made a world of difference. It's a lot easier to motivate through a tough set if you (a) don't need to write it on your own and (b) have others swimming it with you for support/peer pressure.
Good luck and welcome back into the fold!
Well...I did it. I got back into the pool this weekend.
Saturday: 10 x 100 on 3:00 intervals. Swam very relaxed and surprizingly comforatable. Did them all between 1:20 and 1:28.
Sunday: Same as Saturday. I wasn't as comfortable as my shoulders were a little sore and tight from the day before.
Monday: 200 warm up then 9 x 100 on 2:30 intervals. Swam all between 1:20 and 1:25. 150 easy cool down
As I suspected, my conditioning just isn't there. I know I could have done more and gone faster, but I am trying to avoid being too sore and to drained that I won't go back the next day.
My goal is to swim everyday--slowly building up the yards until I feel comforatble with my conditioning. Then I will start concentrating on workouts that will help me improve my speed and prepare me for events.
I will determine what events I plan to swim after about 2-3 months of conditioning work.
Thanks to all for your responses, and thanks to those responsible for this site. I feel comfortable saying that I wouldn't be nearly this excited about swimming without this forum.
Nathan
It sounds like you're up and running, but when I got back into the pool after my 15 year layover (seems almost like the mandatory minimum...) I found this plan that gets you up to being able to swim a 1650 straight in six weeks: ruthkazez.com/ZeroTo1mile.html
I didn't need six weeks personally, but I did each workout 2-3 times and when I felt ready, moved up to the next one. You might be able to give this a shot skipping the first few weeks. You'll be back in good shape before you know it!
I stayed away from joining a masters team for about 5 months in order to get myself into reasonable shape. I have since joined a team and it has indeed made a world of difference. It's a lot easier to motivate through a tough set if you (a) don't need to write it on your own and (b) have others swimming it with you for support/peer pressure.
Good luck and welcome back into the fold!
