Books for returning swimmer (sans coach)

To tell you the truth I just watch people swim and kinda copy what they do. Granted they are people that train year round and are like fishes in the water. I'm no speed demon but I can hold my own for only swimming for about 5 months.

If you are interested in weight training as well I liked: books.google.com/books

I'll add another vote for Swimming Fastest. It isn't particularly easy to read because it is science oriented and encyclopedic in nature. But section by section - it is authoritative and clear. I browsed the Janet Evans book at the bookstore. As much as I admire her - I thought the book was very much a "this is what I did" kind of book. It lacks theory and physiology. If only Swimming Fastest had an accompanying DVD to watch swimmers instead of looking at B&W photos and drawings.....

I assume you've already looked over the list of titles at www.usms.org/.../swimming.php, and are asking people which of those titles they would recommend? No, I hadn't been there. Thanks. But anyway, yes, I'm asking for recos. Looks like I should add Swimming Fastest to my list. Also, I noticed that The Swimming Drill Book was on the also-bought lists for all the other books. Anybody got thoughts on that one? As for "Weight Training for Swimming", I got the impression that this material would probably be covered by "Complete Conditioning for Swimming". And I might have to wait a few years to crack "Swimming Past 50". ;)

To tell you the truth I just watch people swim and kinda copy what they do. Granted they are people that train year round and are like fishes in the water. I'm no speed demon but I can hold my own for only swimming for about 5 months. Well, most of the folks at the pool I'm using, at the time I'm there, are seniors who are swimming, kicking, or even walking for fitness. Besides, I can't watch others and train at the same time. My goal is to get competitive again, if possible. Even if I don't make it, that's what I'm striving for. And a lot has changed since I was competing.

Swimming Fastest has got to be the worst recommendation for someone just returning to the sport. Swimming Fastest is very much a advanced textbook on swimming. If you want to be a student of the sport from a scientific perspective, this is a great book. Plan on spending months with the book. If you try to read the book, decide what you will do, then start training, you may never get back in the pool. Great book if you want to read about the theory of eddy currents created as your hand passes through the water and how that affects propulsion. Horrible book if you want to know how to get started after a couple hours of reading. Now that I have panned one of my favorite books, I don't think there is a good book to get you started. What I would do if I were you is take advantage of the USMS video library, and check out some of the DVDs to bring you back up to speed on the state of swimming, ask questions in the forums and grab some planned workouts from the workouts section of the forums. If you are unsure if Swimming Fastest meets you current needs, read this until you know if you need a copy or not. Welcome back.

If you want live examples, why don't you ask one of the USAS coaches if you can watch a practice and ask some questions about things you see that are different now? Watching a practice won't take any of their time, and they can probably answer all your questions in a few minutes. Even if there isn't a team nearby, it would be worth a one time trip. Thanks for the tip. I think for now I'll start with the vids and books, see how I do. I'll probably get a better perspective that way than watching a practice from the deck. And I'm extremely shy about barging in one someone else's time -- it makes me feel very awkward and uncomfortable. There's actually a team here, and I intended to start out with them, but for various reasons I've opted to do it on my own at the gym. I've got a 25 yard indoor pool I can use. The big downside is, no blocks and no diving. So I might get a guest pass from time to time at the aquatic center in the town where I work to practice that. I might decide to join up with the team later. As it is, I can pick my times and my workouts, adjust my schedule around my work, and not have to pay any more than I'm already paying for gym membership, plus I have my own lane which is nice at this point when I'm still slow. That sounds like a good way to begin.

My advice would be to see if you can get these books from your local library first before investing in them. I currently have Complete Conditioning for Swimming checked out and based on what I've read I will probably buy it when the book comes due.

I like to u-tube or go to flo-swimming and WATCH the concept I'm trying to work on at the moment. You have to be careful on u-tube, there are lots of great clips but there are also some bogus advice. Swim Smooth is another resource online with plenty of tips and visuals. I'm not sure of the address; just type "swim smooth" in your SE and I think you'll find it. They have some free and useful downloads and they send weekly updates with different topics. You don't need to spend any money in this age of technology! :)

I personally got a lot out of Janet Evan's book. It was at the perfect level for myself coming off a 27 year lay off from competitive swimming since age group. I would like to expand on that a bit and learn more about training for certain events. I guess I will try Mags book unless there is something in between. I find the technique stuff mostly useless as I am unable to follow it.