Ironmom by Mette Harrison

Ironmom by Mette Harrison

Author:Mette Harrison
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Familius
Published: 2013-06-11T00:00:00+00:00


Beginning Swimming Tips

It can be difficult to learn how to swim as an adult, especially if you have focused mainly on running or biking in the past. The rules are very different. Whereas running and biking are all about your heart and aerobic capacity, swimming is all about your technique.

Getting Started

True Beginners

Of course, if you are a beginner and have never learned how to swim before (like my mother-in-law who faced down her fear of water at the age of fifty-five), you will need to either take an adult swim class at a local pool, or, if that embarrasses you, hire one of the swim teachers at a local pool for private lessons. These are usually priced very reasonably. Group lessons cost about ten dollars a lesson for one half hour. A private lesson shouldn’t cost more than twenty to thirty dollars for a half hour. Sometimes private lessons end up being a lot less expensive in the long run because you can progress faster with individual attention.

Moving to the Next Level

If you know the basics of swimming, and can go from one end of the pool to the other without drowning, you are probably ready to move on to the next step. It is time to join an adult team or to simply go work out at the pool on a regular basis. You can watch other swimmers, either on top of the water, or with goggles underneath to observe proper swim technique. A coach can tell you what you’re doing and how to improve, or you can have a friend come and make a video of you swimming. Analyze it and compare with videos of professional swimmers online. Another source for studying technique is YouTube. On YouTube if you type in “total immersion” there are a lot of videos like this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3UqGYhbNN4&feature=related

“Total Immersion” is a swimming style for triathletes designed to make freestyle swimming easier and to help you save energy for the run and the bike. It is also just plain good swimming.

Master Swimming

If you are looking for a great website with videos, drawings, and articles that offer advice on swimming, go to usms.org. USMS or United States Master Swimming is the gateway to competitive swimming as an adult. They host many races locally, and others you can do “postally” (i.e. at your own pool and send the results in). Some of the articles, and most of the races, on the site are only available if you are a member. Membership in the USMS costs about fifty dollars a year. I think it is worth it, even if you don’t do a lot of swim racing. If you sign up in November of one year, you can get membership to the end of that year and for the entire next year all bundled into one price.

Racing

If you are worried about going to Master Swim races as a beginner, let me assure that there are all kinds of swimmers. You are asked your estimated swim time and will be put in a proper group of like swimmers for your heat.



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