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?
Physical therapist: you can't swim for a month until your shoulder heals.
You need a different PT.
When I had horrible pain in my shoulder, besides giving me exercises to do, the PT asked to see my stroke there on the table. I turned over and showed him the best estimation of my stroke and recovery. He immediately pointed out a flaw in the recovery that was the reason for my pain, At the time, I was swimming a lot at the Rose Bowl Aquatic center with their Masters club and never once got any feedback from the coach (a former COTY, even), even though I did ask on occasion. So having a coach is not always a remedy, but having someone who understands muscle and skeletal mechanics is a great deal of help.
BTW, I went into the pool the next day and got immediate relief from the pain. It took a few weeks to strengthen my shoulder muscles, but I was never told to stay out of the pool.
Physical therapist: you can't swim for a month until your shoulder heals.
You need a different PT.
When I had horrible pain in my shoulder, besides giving me exercises to do, the PT asked to see my stroke there on the table. I turned over and showed him the best estimation of my stroke and recovery. He immediately pointed out a flaw in the recovery that was the reason for my pain, At the time, I was swimming a lot at the Rose Bowl Aquatic center with their Masters club and never once got any feedback from the coach (a former COTY, even), even though I did ask on occasion. So having a coach is not always a remedy, but having someone who understands muscle and skeletal mechanics is a great deal of help.
BTW, I went into the pool the next day and got immediate relief from the pain. It took a few weeks to strengthen my shoulder muscles, but I was never told to stay out of the pool.
