I did 1500yds at the pool this morning as planned. That is good.
One of the things that I did was count strokes. Not so good.
First I counted strokes using breast stroke. It took me 25 strokes. I'm sure that's not great, but I don't really know how to do breast stroke and I only do it occasionally to mix things up.
Then I counted freestyle (front crawl). I expected a much lower number since it's a much more efficient stroke. Not so much. It took me 22-23 strokes. Yikes! I counted several times to make sure I was counting correctly.
This simply won't do. I decided to stop at Borders and pick up the Total Immersion book. Surely it can't hurt. First impression - there is a lot to read!
My next scheduled swim is Sunday morning bright and early, so I'm going to have to read, study up, and make myself some drill sheets (enclosed in a plastic baggy) between now and then so that I can practice the basics and begin to learn how to swim like a fish.
If anyone has any other ideas (dvds, swim drill resources) please let me know asap.
Happy Friday. Happy Weekend. Best wishes to everyone racing, especially the Ironman CdA folks.
EDITED SUNDAY AFTERNOON: I found a site with some short clips showing the various drills used in Total Immersion and studied those along with the book. I spend most of my time at the pool practicing the overswitch. At the end, I couldn't resist trying to swim using most of the concepts. I went slow, focussed on form, and counted. It only took me 17-18 strokes to get me from one end to the other. WOW. Hopefully I'll have the hang of it in a few weeks. If it doesn't make me faster, it should at least make me more efficient, requiring less energy in the long run.
Total immersion has some good drills in it and great basics. Good Luck and great job on the swim.
ReplyDeleteIm not sure if you already have them, but paddles are a great way to build arm strength and get a feel for a better pull.ocjjw
ReplyDeleteSince I don't swim, I can't offer any advice, but I'm super impressed with your swimming! :)
ReplyDeletethe drill in total immersion feel very weird. Just keep in mind to rotate your hips down not up. Also the book doesn't concentrate much on catch much, so you need to keep that in mind as well.
ReplyDeleteI know nothing...
ReplyDeleteYou're doing a great job on your swimming...
I'm pretty much a Gale Bernhardt fan - so my recommendation would be to check out her swim workout book for triathletes (in a waterproof binder!) Here's a link for the BT review of it: http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=223
ReplyDeleteI think there's even some videos on YouTube about swimming freestyle using the TI method. I like TI, I really feel like it helped me a lot.
ReplyDeleteonce you get the form down..just concentrate on proper form...dont worry about speed initially..proper form will ultimately shave time for you...
ReplyDeletegood luck
soon you'll go from guppy to shark
I have done Total immersion, it's pretty good, it will get you to T1 for sure.
ReplyDeleteThere is some TI DVD's that will help with the book. Hard to understand just reading it..
But I think a combo of Total Immersion training and regular swim training seem to work the best.
Good swimming Lisa, and way to keep working to improve it. SWTrigal has a good video on her blog, too, about swim form.
ReplyDeletebtw, I take about a gazillion strokes in one length of a pool :/
I have never counted strokes before. I am afraid of what I will learn.
ReplyDeleteI do have the Total Immersion book myself... and have read bits and pieces.
When I was trying to reduce my count, I did sets where I exaggerated the time I spent on each side. It also helped me to visualize lengthening my body - from the tips of my ever-reaching fingers to the tips of my toes. My coach told me to wait until I saw my entering hand to turn my head for a breath too.
ReplyDeleteGood luck! Keep us posted on your progress.
You count strokes? OCD much?
ReplyDeleteOooooo I have no idea what to tell you, but I've heard other peeps talk about Total Immersion. I think there is even a DVD?!?
ReplyDeleteHey Lisa - I've been reading TI and it's kinda good I think for feeling the body position etc in the water.
ReplyDeleteHave you tried swim golf? Add the time it takes in seconds + strokes for 50m (or yards).... do a PDQ 50, a "normal" 50 and a slow-stretch 50... it's quite interesting findings!!
That's awesome. I took some of the concepts of TI to heart when I started swimming last year, and I do 14-16 strokes in my pool. I just rebought the book and the video, so I plan to practice more. Good luck!!!
ReplyDeleteI look at those little clips from time to time also just to refresh in my mind the form. Your stroke count always goes down when your form is good. Mine is pretty consistent, but if I find myself slipping, I focus on form. Of course a lot of that goes out the window in a tri, but you do the best you can.
ReplyDeleteGlad TI is working for you - I took a workshop there last year and have the book and DVD - all very helpful! (Though I'm still slow as mud!)
ReplyDeleteKeep on swimming! Counting strokes is a great drill. Focus on the glide. You'll go more slowly at first but will reach the other side in fewer strokes.
ReplyDeleteWow, that sounds fantastic. Great work!
ReplyDeleteI may be asking you about this total immersion thing once I get home and start training for my August tri.
ReplyDeleteI have some drills I can email you if you want!
ReplyDelete