Hi all. I am about 8 weeks out from a 5K Lake Swim. I am a strong pool swimmer but never done this distance in "open" water - pretty new here. I am convinced I can muscle though it if need be, but would like to make a competitive age group showing.
I am training almost exclusively in pool, so looking for advice, links, or books on workouts, distances, pace, taper (?), etc. Thanks for any advice.
Parents
Former Member
That's a tough one. It might be a simple case of being too amp'ed. When swimming all out at that distance, I find I have to focus not only on intensity, but also on staying relaxed. If you don't balance power with flexibility, you can easily overwhelm your muscle groups and cramp. In the days when I routinely swam all out for 5K in a 25 yd pool, I always described the first 500 yds as spooky fast. Not because I was that fast, but that it spooked me to realize I had to do 10 more of those in a row. I finally adjusted mentally to that with practice. It helped me relax and my times improved.
That's a tough one. It might be a simple case of being too amp'ed. When swimming all out at that distance, I find I have to focus not only on intensity, but also on staying relaxed. If you don't balance power with flexibility, you can easily overwhelm your muscle groups and cramp. In the days when I routinely swam all out for 5K in a 25 yd pool, I always described the first 500 yds as spooky fast. Not because I was that fast, but that it spooked me to realize I had to do 10 more of those in a row. I finally adjusted mentally to that with practice. It helped me relax and my times improved.
