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?
Hi NancyEE,
Using fins can result in moving through the water faster. How much faster depends on the tempo of your kick, the size of the fins, your body position, and the flexibility of your ankles.
All other things equal, bigger feet and hands will result in faster swimming. Fins make your feet "larger" which means you can move more water. Your web mitts do the same thing for your hands although not as well as rigid paddles.
BUT, if your tempo is slow and your technique is not good, wearing fins and mitts won't help much and could even be a deterrent to faster swimming.
To give you an example of the potential impact of fins on speed through the water, in my younger days I could kick a 25 in 15-16 seconds. With medium sized fins, I could do it 8-9 seconds. I was streamline kicking (no arms) in both cases.
As for the YMCA idea, I used to do that. The hard part was finding a Y where I traveled and determining of their lap swim times meshed with my daily schedule. I ended up doing what ElaineK suggested and paying the daily fee for a local fitness center.
Good Luck
Paul
Hi NancyEE,
Using fins can result in moving through the water faster. How much faster depends on the tempo of your kick, the size of the fins, your body position, and the flexibility of your ankles.
All other things equal, bigger feet and hands will result in faster swimming. Fins make your feet "larger" which means you can move more water. Your web mitts do the same thing for your hands although not as well as rigid paddles.
BUT, if your tempo is slow and your technique is not good, wearing fins and mitts won't help much and could even be a deterrent to faster swimming.
To give you an example of the potential impact of fins on speed through the water, in my younger days I could kick a 25 in 15-16 seconds. With medium sized fins, I could do it 8-9 seconds. I was streamline kicking (no arms) in both cases.
As for the YMCA idea, I used to do that. The hard part was finding a Y where I traveled and determining of their lap swim times meshed with my daily schedule. I ended up doing what ElaineK suggested and paying the daily fee for a local fitness center.
Good Luck
Paul
