Hey, solo swimmers! :wave: Welcome to the thread for all of us who train solo. Whether you train on your own due to a lack of a Masters team in your area (or for any other reason), this is our virtual locker room. Please post training tips that you think would be helpful, or anything else you would like to share with the rest of us. Have a rant? Go ahead and vent here! :rantonoff:
I'll start with a tip:
The most frustrating thing for me training solo is not having a coach on deck to evaluate my stroke and keep me on track, so I bought a waterproof camera and enlisted the help of my husband to periodically shoot video of all four strokes. Shooting underwater video became a knee/back buster, so I bought a camera mount and attached it to PVC pipe, so my husband could stand up straight to shoot underwater video. The camera gets dunked underwater, and he twists the pipe to pan the camera as I swim by.
Today, I bought a 2-pack of 12-inch "Gear Tie" reusable rubber twist ties (available at Home Depot), so I can tie the PVC pipe to the pool ladder (located in the corner of the pool) and shoot video myself. (If I angle the camera just right and keep it on wide angle, I can video me coming and going.)
10687
After each video session, I upload the videos to my desktop computer and compare my stroke to my favorite Go Swim stroke videos to see what I'm doing well (or not). I also post them on the Forums for feedback.
Ok, solo swimmers, what's your tip?
I think this is a great idea for a thread and Elaine's ideas about video are helpful.
I find 2 things very important for consistency in workouts; a pace clock(or watch) of course and always counting strokes every length. If your pace is what you want and your stroke count is what you want then your technique is likely OK(but can always be better, hence the need video or knowledgeable observer.) If you count strokes every length it becomes second nature and you don't need to think about it.
I generally love the challenge of coming up with my own workouts and love the freedom to modify them any way I wish. Where solo swimming becomes tough for me is midway in my meet preparation cycle.I try to do 3 taper meets/year(SCY,LCM and SCM) and like to do a 15 wk cycle to prepare. The first few weeks are usually easy to motivate for as I either was satisfied with the last meet and am excited about carrying it forward,or I was not satisfied and that is more motivating.The last few weeks are also relatively easy as I get excited about the meet.The middle weeks are where I have trouble,especially if I get a little sick or hurt and feel like my conditioning is going backwards.How do others cope with this?
Thanks, King Frog! Thanks for jumping off the lily pad and joining us solo swimmers over here. :banana:
Your suggestion about counting strokes is an excellent one. I took your suggestion back when I was a tadpole in USMS, and I have been obsessive about it ever since. I keep a dive slate and pencil next to my watch at the end of the lane to keep track of my workout and times as I go; and breaststroke always gets a stroke count notation next to every recorded time. For a 200 breaststroke, my stroke count (lately) has been recorded as "8-9-9-10-10-11-11-12" next to my (way too slow) "race" time.
I feel your pain regarding the middle weeks in your training cycle. I constantly live in that state with my swimming, not because of a lack of motivation, but because of physical issues that prevent my body from being able to tolerate consistent high-intensity training. It's constantly one step forward, two steps back, so I am forever frustrated that my race times (and practice race times) are slipping in the rankings and motivational chart within my age group. When I first started in USMS six years ago, I made breaststroke NQT's and was ranked well within the top half of my age group. Now, I am nowhere near NQT's and I haven't seen 50% in way too long. I've had to adjust my FLOG goals down in yearly mileage, and although I still get in the pool six days per week, 1-2 of those days MUST be easy drill work. Frustrating. :bitching:
K.F., I wish I could offer something helpful to you. All I can suggest is to write down your goal times, and bring them with you to the pool. Perhaps seeing them on a daily basis on a card at the end of your lane in the pond would light a fire under your lily pad? How about on those bad days if you change up your routine and just work on drills or your all-time favorite stroke, backstroke? How about signing up for an off event at your next meet, and work on that race on your bad days? That's all your fellow frog has to offer, I'm afraid. :bighug:
I think this is a great idea for a thread and Elaine's ideas about video are helpful.
I find 2 things very important for consistency in workouts; a pace clock(or watch) of course and always counting strokes every length. If your pace is what you want and your stroke count is what you want then your technique is likely OK(but can always be better, hence the need video or knowledgeable observer.) If you count strokes every length it becomes second nature and you don't need to think about it.
I generally love the challenge of coming up with my own workouts and love the freedom to modify them any way I wish. Where solo swimming becomes tough for me is midway in my meet preparation cycle.I try to do 3 taper meets/year(SCY,LCM and SCM) and like to do a 15 wk cycle to prepare. The first few weeks are usually easy to motivate for as I either was satisfied with the last meet and am excited about carrying it forward,or I was not satisfied and that is more motivating.The last few weeks are also relatively easy as I get excited about the meet.The middle weeks are where I have trouble,especially if I get a little sick or hurt and feel like my conditioning is going backwards.How do others cope with this?
Thanks, King Frog! Thanks for jumping off the lily pad and joining us solo swimmers over here. :banana:
Your suggestion about counting strokes is an excellent one. I took your suggestion back when I was a tadpole in USMS, and I have been obsessive about it ever since. I keep a dive slate and pencil next to my watch at the end of the lane to keep track of my workout and times as I go; and breaststroke always gets a stroke count notation next to every recorded time. For a 200 breaststroke, my stroke count (lately) has been recorded as "8-9-9-10-10-11-11-12" next to my (way too slow) "race" time.
I feel your pain regarding the middle weeks in your training cycle. I constantly live in that state with my swimming, not because of a lack of motivation, but because of physical issues that prevent my body from being able to tolerate consistent high-intensity training. It's constantly one step forward, two steps back, so I am forever frustrated that my race times (and practice race times) are slipping in the rankings and motivational chart within my age group. When I first started in USMS six years ago, I made breaststroke NQT's and was ranked well within the top half of my age group. Now, I am nowhere near NQT's and I haven't seen 50% in way too long. I've had to adjust my FLOG goals down in yearly mileage, and although I still get in the pool six days per week, 1-2 of those days MUST be easy drill work. Frustrating. :bitching:
K.F., I wish I could offer something helpful to you. All I can suggest is to write down your goal times, and bring them with you to the pool. Perhaps seeing them on a daily basis on a card at the end of your lane in the pond would light a fire under your lily pad? How about on those bad days if you change up your routine and just work on drills or your all-time favorite stroke, backstroke? How about signing up for an off event at your next meet, and work on that race on your bad days? That's all your fellow frog has to offer, I'm afraid. :bighug:
