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?
So this isn't an actual solo swimmers thing but since I was solo thought I'd share. I was doing a couple of easy laps after water aerobics this week as I've been cleared to swim but told to ease into it (still can't get a good stretch with my right arm). I stopped to watch a swimmer in another lane who was just motoring along. I thought she had fins she was so fast (she didn't). Her stroke and movement were perfect. I said something to the lady next to me about what an awesome swimmer she was.
And here's where it gets hilarious.
She said, "no, I don't like how she swims. She puts her face in the water and you're not supposed to do that."
She then proceeded to show me how she swims with her head out of the water and told me it was how you're supposed to do it. She said something about if you're a lifeguard you need to see where you're going.
I can tell you she didn't swim like any lifeguard I've ever seen. I told her it would hurt my neck to swim like that. She was adamant that swimming with your face in the water is wrong.
I just left her to her own thing. Where do people come up with this stuff? I'd usually try to tell her she's wrong and that nobody trains that way, but it was a lovely day and I was joyful just being back in the water and yes, feeling the water on my face, seeing the pool through goggles, I didn't bother. :chug: Cheers.
So this isn't an actual solo swimmers thing but since I was solo thought I'd share. I was doing a couple of easy laps after water aerobics this week as I've been cleared to swim but told to ease into it (still can't get a good stretch with my right arm). I stopped to watch a swimmer in another lane who was just motoring along. I thought she had fins she was so fast (she didn't). Her stroke and movement were perfect. I said something to the lady next to me about what an awesome swimmer she was.
And here's where it gets hilarious.
She said, "no, I don't like how she swims. She puts her face in the water and you're not supposed to do that."
She then proceeded to show me how she swims with her head out of the water and told me it was how you're supposed to do it. She said something about if you're a lifeguard you need to see where you're going.
I can tell you she didn't swim like any lifeguard I've ever seen. I told her it would hurt my neck to swim like that. She was adamant that swimming with your face in the water is wrong.
I just left her to her own thing. Where do people come up with this stuff? I'd usually try to tell her she's wrong and that nobody trains that way, but it was a lovely day and I was joyful just being back in the water and yes, feeling the water on my face, seeing the pool through goggles, I didn't bother. :chug: Cheers.
