Some how this got posted in another category...not sure how that happened, so I'm reposting it here.
I am brand new to OW, but I'm sure I'm not the only one with this issue. I saw a thread started on the General Swimming board, but I don't know if there is a specific way to deal with this in OW situations. I have my first OW swim coming up in September (3 miles). Although the distance is not the issue, getting over the mental issues are. I have swam twice in the afternoons when the swells are bigger than my usual 6 a.m. jaunts, which would be closer to the race environment, and both times I've come out of the water shaky and tingly. I'm attributing it to sea sickness...? I'm not nauseous, per se, but a bit dizzy to be sure. I'm thinking during a race situation I will be distracted by the other competitors. I will have a paddler with me since this is my first time out, and I have a health issue.
I'm thinking I'm lifting my head up too often since I'm looking for specific buoys. In the race, the 1/2 way point and the ending point are so far apart that I might not feel the need to lift my head as much...?
Anyway, any tips from the experienced OW swimmers?
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I wonder if you are swallowing air or over-stroking to get over the waves? The gas happens to me when a pool is very busy and the waves in the pool are high or rough. When I am swimming around Portland or further north, I get a really weird feeling in my chest, stomach and head. i was once told by an old man at Bar harbor that it was because I was turning too much as i trying to get my arm over the wave. It would screw up my sense of where my hand was relative to my body.
This is really interesting, Craig! I will pay attention next time I'm out in the swells.
But you made a good point...I (mistakingly) swam at our Y pool during a particularly active water aerobics class. At first I was happy about it since I really was swimming in choppy conditions! But then I started to feel sick again, and I was having small seizures (I have epilepsy). I related it to the epilepsy since I don't do well in the early evening, but I think you may be more on target...I noticed that I was rolling too far to breathe. Got dizzy, got out.
Hmmm...definitely something to pay attention to, thanks!
I wonder if you are swallowing air or over-stroking to get over the waves? The gas happens to me when a pool is very busy and the waves in the pool are high or rough. When I am swimming around Portland or further north, I get a really weird feeling in my chest, stomach and head. i was once told by an old man at Bar harbor that it was because I was turning too much as i trying to get my arm over the wave. It would screw up my sense of where my hand was relative to my body.
This is really interesting, Craig! I will pay attention next time I'm out in the swells.
But you made a good point...I (mistakingly) swam at our Y pool during a particularly active water aerobics class. At first I was happy about it since I really was swimming in choppy conditions! But then I started to feel sick again, and I was having small seizures (I have epilepsy). I related it to the epilepsy since I don't do well in the early evening, but I think you may be more on target...I noticed that I was rolling too far to breathe. Got dizzy, got out.
Hmmm...definitely something to pay attention to, thanks!
