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?
Find someone who understands sports/works with athletes. I'm currently in PT and taking a forced break from the pool for the first time in like 45 years due to injury with a wonky shoulder and pain that I finally couldn't live with any more. I was very specific to emphasize my swimming / athletic background at primary care so that I was referred to an orthopedist who specializes in sports medicine. I was further very focused when discussing physical therapy to get to a PT practice that works with athletes with rotator cuff / shoulder injuries. I've only just begun PT, but my PT guy works with a lot of tennis players and has worked with swimmers in the past. He's not a swimmer, but through our initial conversation, he impressed me with his knowledge of the sport, how we train, etc. I really feel like I'm in great hands and on the road to recovery.
Definitely get a second opinion and push, push, push to get to sports-specific practitioners. Swimming is the greatest all-body exercise around; it's not a perfect and you can get injured, but it is a sport you should be able to enjoy for life.
Find someone who understands sports/works with athletes. I'm currently in PT and taking a forced break from the pool for the first time in like 45 years due to injury with a wonky shoulder and pain that I finally couldn't live with any more. I was very specific to emphasize my swimming / athletic background at primary care so that I was referred to an orthopedist who specializes in sports medicine. I was further very focused when discussing physical therapy to get to a PT practice that works with athletes with rotator cuff / shoulder injuries. I've only just begun PT, but my PT guy works with a lot of tennis players and has worked with swimmers in the past. He's not a swimmer, but through our initial conversation, he impressed me with his knowledge of the sport, how we train, etc. I really feel like I'm in great hands and on the road to recovery.
Definitely get a second opinion and push, push, push to get to sports-specific practitioners. Swimming is the greatest all-body exercise around; it's not a perfect and you can get injured, but it is a sport you should be able to enjoy for life.
