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.)
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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 train with a great masters group, not that near where I live, but worth the commute. ..The coach is excellent and gives feedback to all the swimmers, not just the speedsters. But when I can't make it to the group workouts, I do solo ones. My favorite of the different pools near me is the one at the local high school. That one always has lap lanes up during its posted hours, and, although the pool is typically shared w open swimming, I have yet to see more than 2-3 people in the lap lanes. Often, I have a lane to myself and the pool is kept in good shape. My least favorite is the pool nearest to me. The water is too warm, lap swim hours are sparse (and the aquatic director has no problem pulling rank and taking over lap space with lifeguard and swim classes. Add to that swimmers such as those Sumorunner described, and it's a place I reserve for my short, easy swims. Another y a bit further away has better hours and a better pool (w a hot tub!), but it gets pretty crowded, so can be frustrating to do a workout. Still, I've been able to get in some nice quality swims. I think having a few options for swimming really helps. Also a sense of humor, and flexibility in one's workout plan. For instance, in crowded conditions, I'm less likely to use paddles or try IM sets. And I tend to do shorter repeats b/c that way I can more frequently monitor whether lanes open up.
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I train with a great masters group, not that near where I live, but worth the commute. ..The coach is excellent and gives feedback to all the swimmers, not just the speedsters. But when I can't make it to the group workouts, I do solo ones. My favorite of the different pools near me is the one at the local high school. That one always has lap lanes up during its posted hours, and, although the pool is typically shared w open swimming, I have yet to see more than 2-3 people in the lap lanes. Often, I have a lane to myself and the pool is kept in good shape. My least favorite is the pool nearest to me. The water is too warm, lap swim hours are sparse (and the aquatic director has no problem pulling rank and taking over lap space with lifeguard and swim classes. Add to that swimmers such as those Sumorunner described, and it's a place I reserve for my short, easy swims. Another y a bit further away has better hours and a better pool (w a hot tub!), but it gets pretty crowded, so can be frustrating to do a workout. Still, I've been able to get in some nice quality swims. I think having a few options for swimming really helps. Also a sense of humor, and flexibility in one's workout plan. For instance, in crowded conditions, I'm less likely to use paddles or try IM sets. And I tend to do shorter repeats b/c that way I can more frequently monitor whether lanes open up.
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