Hi all,
I just joined USMS and have committed to doing my first open water swim (1 mile) in two weeks! I'm way out of practice and have just recently gotten back into it. I've been swimming just about every day, but it takes me nearly an hour to swim a mile at the pool.
Am I in over my head?!??! Should I be this nervous and scared? I've been told I can do it, but I worry that I can't!? Right now, my goal is to finish...? Haha. Is that reasonable?
Any tips from you seasoned (or not!) open water swimmers would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you thank you and happy swimming!
Question for you. If I can comfortably swim 100's on the 1:15-1:20 pace, how realistic is it that I can do that in my first OW race? I have my first OW race coming up in early August. I am anxious and excited, and really have no idea what to expect. I figure I will wear my watch and try and keep track of some form of time for pace.
Thoughts?
You will invariably be slower in open water, the degree of slow-down dependent upon the body of water, currents, wind, etc. If this is your first race, I'd recommend NOT wearing your watch and focusing on two things:
enjoying the race / event,
let your body do what it's been trained to do
Caveat: I think wearing watches while swimming is almost never a good idea -- creates a small imbalance in your stroke and the disruption to your stroke rate / technique you will take to look at your watch is a "speed brake" that is not overcome by the knowledge of your pace. If you've been training enough, your body will settle into the right pace. If you've not been training enough, then constantly checking the watch to verify that you're off pace will only mess with your mind.
Question for you. If I can comfortably swim 100's on the 1:15-1:20 pace, how realistic is it that I can do that in my first OW race? I have my first OW race coming up in early August. I am anxious and excited, and really have no idea what to expect. I figure I will wear my watch and try and keep track of some form of time for pace.
Thoughts?
You will invariably be slower in open water, the degree of slow-down dependent upon the body of water, currents, wind, etc. If this is your first race, I'd recommend NOT wearing your watch and focusing on two things:
enjoying the race / event,
let your body do what it's been trained to do
Caveat: I think wearing watches while swimming is almost never a good idea -- creates a small imbalance in your stroke and the disruption to your stroke rate / technique you will take to look at your watch is a "speed brake" that is not overcome by the knowledge of your pace. If you've been training enough, your body will settle into the right pace. If you've not been training enough, then constantly checking the watch to verify that you're off pace will only mess with your mind.
