SBR Utopia Season II - OPEN (Page 133)

After dumping the pull buoy for a long time, I'm actually back using it lately trying to work on the pull.  Combination of drills, paddles, and just swim with the buoy.  We'll see what happens.

Since we're talking about swimming, twitter-verse reporting that Gerry Rodrigues (re) posted the following from Matt Dixon.  Thoughts?

I think drills have a place in swimming, even for triathletes, but I would agree in the sense that the main forums in BT puts way too much focus on technique.  Yes, you need some technique to get the basics of swimming...but once you have a general idea, and you have addressed your really obvious flaws, your time is much better focused on intensity and yardage.  Most triathlete swimmers don't have the engine to hold good form for the duration of our target races.  I'd say I slightly fall into that boat as well. 

Could I benefit from drills?  Sure...but most of my low hanging fruit is simply working on building swim fitness.  It's still a balance...and not either or...but just getting back to the statement that many triathletes put way too much stock in form/drills.

I'll disagree somewhat.  Yes, you need volume to build a feel for the water, etc., but at the same time repeating the same bad habits over and over again with volume doesn't make you a better swimmer - just fitter.  I saw it time and time again at the driving range when I was pretty serious about golf.  Guys showing up with buckets and balls and just plastering them all over the place.  I'd be there forever methodically working on one or two things at a time, sometimes with a full swing, but a lot of the time on just part of the swing.  That's what frustrates me the most with swimming, I take a similar approach and it's not getting me where I want.  I've actually started doing more drills, and will see how that goes.  But I fully agree with Chris that if people do drills poorly then they would have been better off just swimming due to the wasted effort.

I'm really leaning towards a few sessions with a swim coach - but had one bad experience that resulted in no improvements, so I'm cautious about doing it again, although there is someone who has been referred this time.

I'm kinda in the middle.  I don't think it's right to just do drills or work on balance etc.  I think that anytime you get in the pool you should leave feeling tired - like you've had a good solid workout (possible exception being a taper swim).  However I also don't think that just going and mindlessly pounding out the yardage (I can't say meterage...) is the way to go either.  For as long as I have been doing triathlon I have consistently seen two other triathletes at my pool and they are no faster today than they were 5 years ago in spite of the time they spend in the pool.  They just keep working on the same flawed stroke over and over.  They both swim 1:10 IMs, one of them missed a KQ by 2 mins a couple of summers ago.  The one and only time I offered unsolicited advice in the pool was to her by pointing out to her why she was so much faster with paddles.  She could easily drop 5 or more mins in her IM swim.  She thanked me very much and.....  I still see her doing the same thing.    She also swam another 1:10 this year.  

Marc mentioned earlier that he experimented with changing things in his stroke to see what worked better and did so by doing hundreds of 100s.  I think this is a good approach.  If you are going to do a drill, do it for a 25 or a 50 and then try to incorporate it into swimming.  Think about that specifically while doing the full stroke and even moreso when you get tired.  Experiment to see what works and what doesn't.  When you find what does, pay close attention to it when you get tired.

Neil, I guess the question is, without someone watching you, how do you know you are doing them right?

And I don't see it as it's hammer vs. drills.  I do a lot of swimming that isn't hammering.  But isn't drills.  I am sure there are a few technique fixes that could get me another 2 minutes in an IM.  I suppose if I was close to KQ i'd care but that will never happen.

Again, this is certainly my bias as a non-adult onset swimmer, and my bad habits were learned long ago (but as a water polo player, i never really got swimmer-fast anyway). 

Many incorrectly separate fitness and technique (almost) entirely. That's just not true, they build together.

And with that, you do work on technique while also building fitness by swimming bunches of sets. Both advancing the technique and developing the fitness to maintain it. The reverse, however, is generally not going to happen. You're not really going to build much of any fitness by doing drills. Some quote wanting to be "efficient". You're not going to get the efficiency of a high level swimmer without also pushing the fitness part.

As a non-fish (never really swam for time until a year ago), I have a couple observations.  Not recommendations, mind you...

I've been approaching this by trying to be "mindful" on every single lap of some part of technique.  So, I'm not doing drills, per se.  Rather, if I swim a mile continuously (I know, this goes against all the recommendations I have read that say it's wasted effort, but it works for me), I'll focus for a 100 on catch, then a 100 on keeping my butt as close to out of the water as I can, then a 100 on rotation, then a hundred on head position, then a 100 with sighting… etc.

I will often swim longer sets (mile at a time, or out and back across a pond), but I don't consider any of those yards as "junk yards," as I'm pretty much always thinking of form and often work some good intensity into the long sets (like HIM or Oly pace).  I have had the kids video me underwater (OK, it was a tiny bit self serving to get them cameras that were waterproof last Christmas) , and that DEFINITELY helps to dial in what I focus on.  However, it's within the context of a swim workout, not a separate focus.

I even do this with interval training (if I am doing just 100's or 400's or a ladder or whatever, that's the workout, but every single lap I'm at least thinking about some part of my form).  The catch and my elbow are what I focus on most often, but I rotate through different things I've picked up from books/other swimmers/videos, etc.

In a year, it's taken me from a leg draggin' sloth to perhaps a yeti that can swim.  Not saying it will work for others, but it has allowed me to improve my form while getting my yardage in without spending a ton of time on drills (I'm as time crunched as anyone else).  My times have definitely dropped a ton in a year.

Happy to clarify further if the above is rambling (two beers into a very nice Friday with the family!).

Matt

Any technical peeps here?  I bought a samsung flat screen for the trainer room.   It's got a usb output, and rca plugs, but no headphone plug.  Is there a way to connect headphones?  I am pretty technically un-savvy, so not sure how it would be done......Season 3 of Walking Dead waiting for my winter training rides....

Thanks.   Didn't know that.  I'd be afraid that I'd destroy the headphones like that with sweat?

Unfortunately tv not wireless

Was going to suggest this.

Something sure has been going right. 304 NP for just about 2 hrs this morning. Done to ISLAGIATT.

Did you do that trick Marc mentioned where you put your quarq in the freezer, calibrated it, then warmed it back up before riding?  I can't even fathom that.

My totally newbie (I even screwed the date up within the first 5 seconds) attempt at GoPro video on the bike with telemetry overlay from my Garmin.  Syncing up the data was the easy part if you believe that.  Cutting down 29 minutes of video into something more watchable was what took the most time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsJwpkaWdOE&feature=youtu.be

Cool video Jason!  Is it just me or was there some sketchy looking pavement near the end on the 40 mph descent???

Also, based on what I saw it looks like the whole ride was somewhere between 300-500 watts.  

I'm not sure if others have been watching but Yanti is quietly making her way to the finish of IMWA!  8k to go with the clock at 14:25.

http://tracking.ironmanlive.com/newathlete.php?rid=1143240059&race=westernaustralia&bib=703&v=3.0&beta=&1386463500

You can look now, she's done in 15:49!