Solo Swimmers

Well hi everyone, I have Elaine to thank for leading me here! I got a swim email, and happened to click on a link which as a solo swimmer I thought might help! Would love to take part in some competitive swims but no chance being where I am (Saudi Arabia) so I swim mainly on my own...which I don't mind, it's been nearly 10 years since I last swam and trained at my local triathlon club in the UK, I hardly ever see anyone else in the pools here...we have 4 outdoor pools, one 25 metre that the swim team. 4 times a week , which isn't nice to use after them as it's very murky! So I stick to the one near our villa which is 22 metres. There is only me in the pool normally, unless my husband joins me and complains if I ask him to do a few more laps!! Motivation is my big think, even though I'm a swim teacher and fitness instructor, this place is fantastic and so awful all at the same time as we have pools, gyms and a field/ sand track here and all free....but so easy to get in the mindset of "I'll do it tomorrow" , plus I had a totally hysterectomy in May, so getting back to fitness is always a challenge ! Plus the fact that I no longer want to be here, as we will be leaving to live in France in couple of years when our own fitness facility is up and running. As a fitness instructor I know the negative thoughts need to change to positive, otherwise it's just going to get harder'! i have also been asked to help coach the under 7's in the swim team ....even though I'm not a coach I'm a teacher so I'm struggling with should I or shouldn't I ! It would be good experience ! Anyway bit of a long winded HI....just want to get back to my regular solo swimming, I started back last week....slowly...only doing 600m as my husband wanted to come too...and he isn't a great swimmer so didn't want to push him to do what I would normally do, and we keep it to drills so he doesn't give up! Now I've had 4 days off and struggling to motivate myself to carry on!!!! :welcome: Welcome, Maria! I'm so glad you joined us! Other than your keyboard being apostrophe-challenged ;) , it was great reading your post and knowing you came to the right place. We all have had our issues with motivation at one time or another, and being a solo swimmer can make it even more difficult if there isn't anyone around to encourage you. My solution? Set goals! Since you are lucky to have a husband who swims, too, perhaps the two of you can sit down together and help each other set some goals. They can be distance/time goals (being able to swim a certain distance without stopping or swimming it in a set amount of time), mileage goals (join the Go the Distance program right here on USMS.org and keep track of your workouts, technique goals (mastering a particular stroke); or, whatever type of goal would keep you motivated to get you into the pool. If you have goals in place, you can encourage each other to achieve them. :agree: Good luck with your swimming! I hope you go ahead and help out with coaching, too. I'm sure it will prove to be a win-win if you do! So glad for everyone here and thankful for Elaine being a cheerleader and willing to share. :DNice of you to say-- thanks!

:welcome: Welcome, Maria! I'm so glad you joined us! Other than your keyboard being apostrophe-challenged ;) , it was great reading your post and knowing you came to the right place. As a retired software engineer, I can explain. The ASCII system (American Std Code for Info Interchange) has a numerical value for each character. i.e. A=65, B=66, a=97, b=98, etc. The apostrophe is #39. When text originates in countries with different character sets, the apostrophe may not be represented, so the app substitutes the numerical sequence instead.

As a retired software engineer, I can explain. The ASCII system (American Std Code for Info Interchange) has a numerical value for each character. i.e. A=65, B=66, a=97, b=98, etc. The apostrophe is #39. When text originates in countries with different character sets, the apostrophe may not be represented, so the app substitutes the numerical sequence instead. :agree:Thanks, Sumo, I didn't now that! I appreciate the explanation.

I'm still solo 99% of the time, but this month I signed up for a few coaching clinics. Yesterday I got some pointers, some drills, and got videotaped. It's the first time ever I saw myself in action in the pool and boy was it bad. Not awful, terrible, bad because the coach said I had improved quite a bit from last year, but it showed me I need a lot of work in a certain areas. I still can't kick in free style. After 40 years of running, my ankles are so stiff they will not bend beyond 45 degrees. That means as each foot moves down it is actually exerting a reverse thrust. I can get a kick board and motor for all I'm worth and stay dead still in the water. On the plus side, this same ankle angle makes me a rather decent back-stroker. Much, much work to do. Guess I'll have to spend more time in the pool.

Awesome! Do you think the coaching clinics are good? I wouldn't mind attending one but there's none in my area and I have no clue as to what they involve.

So a car hit me in August and sprained my right hand: 2 weeks out of the water, plus another 2 because the pool was closed for cleaning. Back in the water two weeks, just beginning to build up yardage, feeling really good, then slammed my right foot into a doorframe, breaking one of my small toes. :censor: Luckily I've been able to swim with the toes taped, but have to be careful kicking and VERY careful when pushing off walls. So it's a bit slow going, but I'm still in the water. Yesterday I did a 3400--building back up to my usual 3600 for my Sunday swim, which I haven't done since before I went on vacation in July. Still, I swear the universe hates me.

I'm sorry Nancy. That really stinks.

Still, I swear the universe hates me. :bighug: Think positive thoughts, and be optimistic that things will :cheerleader:get better! Good luck!

Hello, newbie solo swimmer here. It does get lonely swimming alone. I'm never alone in the pool, and have always wanted to approach and meet people and perhaps one day "swim together". At the same time, the last thing you want is to be that person that tries to talk to you when all you want is to go swim. So I bought a waterproof mp3 player and swim alone. I'm so tempted to ask the lifeguard to critic my form... . If I were you I'd just join a master's swim team. Technically, lifeguards are not supposed to have conversations with patrons

Hello, newbie solo swimmer here. ... I'm so tempted to ask the lifeguard to critic my form... Requirements for lifeguard are entirely different than swim coach. Do not assume the LG knows anything about form. I worked as a lifeguard as a teenager and had never participated on a swim team. My high school didn't even have a pool.