Very modest 100 freestyle goal--tips appreciated

these should help you find your innner fish and get your 100 WAY under 2:00 Swim Faster Faster will help you read them and apply them. Help My Speed is Horrible! Help My Flutter Kick is Horrible!

Thanks everyone for the replies! Ande, as usual, you offer a wealth of info! Thanks for the links! Rich, my dive is a little rusty. I'm thinking I should get a little practice during the weekend to refresh my "muscle memory"--and my courage. On that block I feel as if I'm fifty feet up--but I worked in late 2007 w/ a very helpful coach who helped me with the dive. Also, just for you, I might add a 50 breaststroke just to get some practice in it, but that won't be beautiful. ;) Syd, I have a vcr tape of my freestyle, not recent--haven't gotten around to converting it to a dvd so as to put it on the computer. The masters' coach has done a good job in giving me feedback, which has been very helpful in improving my workouts. I'm female, 58, and began masters' swimming in 2005, although I'd been swimming a good part of my life and would do lap swimming when running injuries hobbled me. Getting into a masters' group made a HUGE difference though in improving my stroke, etc. I wasn't consistent the past few years in the group workouts, but I tried to at least keep going on my own when my schedule didn't allow joining a group. Two years ago, I completed a 5.25 mile open water swim across the Great South Bay in NY. That was TRULY exciting for many reasons! But I've been doing shorter workouts now, trying to develop a bit more speed--I hope to return to the long swim again, but this is a nice, fun break. Eric, I'm ENVIOUS of your times! I figure I'll work my way down in 5-10 second increments per hundred and maybe in another 5-6 years, I'll be at 1:30. Luckily, I'm enjoying the journey--my first swim coach always headed his workout sheets, "Do the best you can do. Don't worry about what others are doing." It's advice that's good for lots of pursuits, not only swimming!

p.s. to Ande--I browsed through your various tips, and they're a great mix of technical advice and motivation! Loved the "act as if" tip! I'm going to apply it not only to swimming! Nice collection!

If you can do a half decent dive and swim your on controlled race you'll break that time! Stay calm and don't rush out of the gate too early.:chug:

It's difficult to say where you could improve the most without having seen a video of you swimming. However, if you were to increase your stroke rate, I am certain you would have a good shot at breaking that barrier. Two minutes sounds very do-able but then it is going to depend on your age, swimming history, physical condition, etc. It would be great if you could post a video (if you had one). Good luck.

Thanks for posting , Fish. I am 50 with no previous swimming background. After 17 months I am just barely approaching 90 seconds for 100SCY. I have been too embarrassed to post a time like that here. Thanks for the courage. The other day...10x200@5.00 holding 3:29...as good as it has been for me...maybe when I can do a ^@$#&^$ing flip turn...

FIsh (Again) Can I ask what your 5 mile time was? I considered myself too slow to swim that distance, but I guess not. I love endurance stuff, but have to figure out how to swim 4 hours without having my shoulders fall off. You DEFINITELY could do it, Eric! I wasn't sure at first if I should attempt a swim like that, since I hadn't a lot of ow experience and not a lot of speed--but it took place near an old family vacation spot so had that appeal--a kind of homecoming. For the distance of 5.25 miles, my time really pleasantly surprised me: 3:25:12! I finished second to last, but that was of no importance to me. I just wanted to make the 4-hour cut-off. I thought it would be close based on doing the same distance in the pool in training and going over four hours at that point. But my thought was "swim until I finish or until they stop me." As it turned out, there was a tide assist for the first half of the swim, and I was able to make some time due to that. However, the assist was off-set somewhat by the chop in the last couple miles. I was pretty green at the gills by the time I finished--but also flying high just having done it! Didn't wear a wetsuit either... haven't ever worn one for any ow swim I've done. Anyway, it would have been too warm, I think b/c the water temp was in the seventies and it was a pretty hot day. Should mention, it was the Great South Bay Swim, and the web site is greatsouthbayswim.com. Haven't checked the site in several days so not sure if it's been filled for this year, but it's an annual event and very, very well organized! I might go to volunteer--don't have the distance training to do it this time around but definitely want to do it again!

you're welcome keep looking you'll find it (you're inner fish that is) There's an "act as if" element in my username, come to think of it. It was four years ago that I chose it, and the same year, I did an ocean swim for the first time. Two years later, the aforementioned 5+ mile bay swim that I never thought I'd be able to do. I might have chosen "seeking my inner fish," and I can't remember if I considered that--I think I liked the alliteration of "finding" and "fish," and might not even have had in mind the positive outlook it suggested--that I was always finding it... and re-finding it. Perhaps the "inner fish" chose the username. :)

Fish, We have a 5 miler out here in SD iwht a 4-hour cutoff as well...but I grew up on the Island...I would love to come home and do that one at some point.

you're welcome keep looking you'll find it (you're inner fish that is)