Solo Swimmers

Thanks, Allen. That's great advice. Elaine, Del Webb is one of the builders who understands how swimming is great for the over 55 crowd and doesn't skim on their pools. The builder here said there aren't enough houses (800) to support a full sized pool, which is bull hockey. The pool hadn't been finished when I came to see the community. I couldn't get a straight answer on the size. They kept calling it a lap/fitness pool. Which is code for short.

Don't get discouraged. I had a shoulder replacement 2 1/2 years ago. Just know your limits & don't cross them. I am able to swim but only freestyle. I formerly swam back & fly & physically cannot any more

Reading some of the comments here makes me incredibly grateful for the 8-lane pool at my Y. They can have three lanes for water aerobics, three lanes for the swim team practice, and still have a couple of lanes left over for lap swimmers. In addition, there is a small pool, so people who are doing water exercises or getting in with their babies won't be taking up space in the lap lanes. Plus, the lifeguards and team coaches are generally good about moving people around if the big pool gets crowded and a newcomer can't get a space in a lane for a workout. The building hours are good and the times for lap swimming are generally reasonable--there is usually at least one lane open, if not more, and as soon as team practice/ aerobics class ends, the lifeguards open those lanes as well. What I don't understand is why the aerobics class always needs three lanes. I get this when there are 20 people, but do 5-6 people need three entire lanes to themselves? On the bonus side, the class is scheduled to run until 8:45, but generally everyone gets out by 8:30, so those lanes open up. The locker rooms were renovated last year and now have suit spinners. Now, if they could only get rid of the persistent funky smell, all would be good. Seriously, this is the best facility I've had the pleasure of using since I was in grad school at Syracuse and had the use of two 25-meter pools (that were always kept nice and COLD). My Y pool is on the cool side, but I'd really prefer it 5-7 degrees colder.

Wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute. I've got one I bet you haven't heard before. Today, the shallow poll was closed for some reason, so the water aerobics class took over 2 lanes of the lap pool, 25-30 old ladies and by old I mean at least my age. My wife was among them. I was in the lane next to the aerobics people. I kept noticing an odd, non-pool sort of smell at one end and eventually realized, the whole friggin' pool smelled like PERFUME! I swear I could even taste it. :bighug: Ohhh, that's the worst! It burns my lungs if I inhale perfume or men's cologne while doing sprint sets, and I have experienced both several times. Men have been just as guilty as women! :bitching: I've been known to stop mid-lane and choke, because of an allergic reaction to it. When that happens, I make sure to say in a somewhat loud voice to my other perfume-hating buddies, "I wonder who is wearing perfume (or cologne) in the pool. It's choking me! I wish they would wait to put it on after they get out of the pool!"

Aqua Dog says people should not used perfume in the pool since Aqua Dog is the fastest swimmer around. Uhhh, no, far from it! :cane:Aqua Dog says people should not use perfume in the pool, because it is a killer for those with allergies, and it's bad for the pool water! :agree:

:bighug: Ohhh, that's the worst! It burns my lungs if I inhale perfume or men's cologne while doing sprint sets, and I have experienced both several times. Men have been just as guilty as women! :bitching: I've been known to stop mid-lane and choke, because of an allergic reaction to it. When that happens, I make sure to say in a somewhat loud voice to my other perfume-hating buddies, "I wonder who is wearing perfume (or cologne) in the pool. It's choking me! I wish they would wait to put it on after they get out of the pool!" Aqua Dog says people should not used perfume in the pool since Aqua Dog is the fastest swimmer around.

Plus it just stinks! I do remember swimming at an LA Fitness years ago and having the pungent smell of garlic seeping out of a man's pores floating at the surface of the water. He wasn't in the water yet, so it was really strong. Gag!

What I don't understand is why the aerobics class always needs three lanes. I get this when there are 20 people, but do 5-6 people need three entire lanes to themselves? On the bonus side, the class is scheduled to run until 8:45, but generally everyone gets out by 8:30, so those lanes open up. Because they need to be able to touch bottom, which eliminates half the length of a lane, therefore the width of 3 lanes gives them room to move several yards in all directions. In the town fitness center we have only 4 lanes and they use 3 of them, so the lap pool is unavailable from 8-10:30 AM. At my YMCA there are 8 lanes as in yours, so water aerobics never shuts us out completely.

True newbie here. If you didn't learn to swim as a child, you were older (masters' age + ) what do you do? I watch some videos on Youtube and that's helped. I have looked at a few books. I'm doing some strength training but I have leg problems so just doing the best I can on that. What are tips for people who have done some meets but still don't know everything? Its really hard when you're the only one there. Thanks.

Wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute. I've got one I bet you haven't heard before. Today, the shallow poll was closed for some reason, so the water aerobics class took over 2 lanes of the lap pool, 25-30 old ladies and by old I mean at least my age. My wife was among them. I was in the lane next to the aerobics people. I kept noticing an odd, non-pool sort of smell at one end and eventually realized, the whole friggin' pool smelled like PERFUME! I swear I could even taste it.