triOK's Group - CLOSED (Page 20)

Yet another swimming question.

I don't know if I am doing the S right. I don't feel as though I am as efficient as I could be, so I looked up in a book and found I should be rolling from side to side more, and holding my arms differently.

This makes me exhausted and a little nauseated. I take about 2 seconds off my 25 yard lap time.

But, when I do it my old way, I'm relaxed, not sick, and I could do it forever.

So, do I try to do it the new way? Or stick with the old way?

Sometimes if you stick with the awkward feeling (but corrrect) technique for a while you notice a gain over the long haul. That is why it is swim "practice". It isn't like running or biking where more time spent in that discipline will almost always guarantee better performance. In swimming, if you keep doing it wrong you never get any faster...

The 'non-S' technique is much closer to what I usually do. I feel like I'm walking with my hands on the bottom of the pool...like there is an invisible ladder and I'm climbing it with my hands pulling myself through the water..is that right?

And, should I be rolling from side to side? That is the part that makes me sick.

When my right hand is out of the water and I'm breathing, I'm trying to roll to my left side so I'm sideways in the water. When my left hand is out of the water, I'm trying to roll to my right side so I'm also sideways.

It makes me dizzy. And I'm not even sure if that is what I'm supposed to be doing.

If your head is spooling back and forth with your body, that might be the cause of your dizziness. Find a spot a little ahead of your position and keep your eyes "fixed" in that general vicinity. Warning: If you hold your head in a rigid position, you might suffer from headaches, so keep your neck muscles flexible. The rolling is almost a natural thing as you get your body out of the way of your own stroke completion. It doesn't have to be dramatic. Your ladder image works only if you are using your hands to get you to your goal and only if you're completing your stroke at your hip. If you are pulling your hand out early, you are loosing some of the most powerful part of the stroke. The "S" in the stroke is partly there to generate "skulling" technique in beginning swimmers. The sweeping motion helped the swimmer to "gather" more water to push their torso over.

Maybe I'm rolling too much...I thought it had to be a dramatic thing.

This is an excellent article on core training. It has pictures and everything to teach you the exercises. I'm all for anything that will trim my middle AND give me good form. I'm going to try this out.

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/Article-detail.asp?Articleid=...

It sounds like the "old" way I was swimming is closer to the way I am supposed to be swimming. I rarely take my eyes off the line on the pool bottom. The only time I do is if I need to breathe or "pop up" to see where I am.

change of topic..I am going to volunteer at the IronGirl tri tomorrow morning in Irving. I was lucky enough to be able to volunteer for the transitions area so I will really learn a lot about transitioning from one sport to another.

And, I bought the most handy item:

http://www.overtonFitness.com/spibelt.php

it is a handy little belt you can use to hold on your number, that has a little pocket for your keys so they don't bounce when you run. The little bag stretches such that you can put a cell phone into it or even a camera. SO much better than a fanny pack. I love all the gadgets you can buy for tris!


Edited by grnidone 2007-07-21 6:22 PM

ok..the IronGirl was AMAZING! I'm trying to document all I learned: (I'm sure I'll post later with things I've forgotten.)

1. Register early, show up early. Early birds get the best bike spots. Running next to your bike takes time and is difficult to do in bicycle shoes.

2. The race can be made or broken on the bike. The girl who finished the swim finished the swim at least 100 yards ahead of the other 4 starter "pros" she started with, but came in well after the second swim finisher. (BTW, the swim winner is 14 years old and my hero.) Therefore, it seems really important if you want to do well, to do particularly well on the bike portion of the race.

3. Transitions are important as well. Try to time these to do these as quickly as possible. (Want to go really fast? Attach your bike shoes to your pedals that way all you need to do is put a helmet on your head and head out the gate. Strap them on while on the bike.

4. Use those fast tie shoe things for running shoes.

5. Show up early. There is usually an all athlete meeting at the beginning of the race. Showing up after the swim has started is a bad thing as most of the volunteers who are there don't know anything except to jump when told. (I was one of those volunteers.)

6. Put some sort of electrolyte drink in your bike water bottle. The heat takes it out of you, and even if you don't think you need it, you do. One poor girl was throwing up after the race...likely due to the fact it was hotter than hell and more humid than Florida, and her electrolytes were messed up.

7. You can *not* have too many towels. A small one for the face, one to line up your transition stuff on, a wet one to wipe off with, a dry one to dry off with. Keep a bandana on the bike to wipe off sweat.

8. You can have too much crap. Bring what you need and only what you need. Several people were digging through huge duffel bags looking for necessary items such as helmets.

9. Sunscreen. Enough said.

10. Helium balloons help you find your bike amongst hundreds of others.

11. Put your top tire of the bike OVER the bicycle rail. This makes the bike stay up instead of fall over, and won't cause it to fall and topple over 10 others next to it.

12. Have fun! This is the most supportive athletic event I've ever seen. People want you to succeed. The winner of the race -- who also won last year -- was running with the last few runners so they wouldn't have to finish last.


BTW. Best cheesy T-shirt of the day worn by a husband:

Front "I don't ~do~ triathlons. I do a triathlete."
Back "Supporter"

Wow, good timing on the tips! (6 days until my tri!)
Thanks for sharing that.....I will look forward to hearing more if you get around to it. I am going to practice my transitions today--just in the garage since it's pouring rain and I have to get to an appointment...but I think that the extra towel thing will come in handy, and if I can figure out the shoes-on-bike thing I might try that, although crashing because I am a dork might slow me down too much....

-Leslie

Here it is if you want to buy it


Actually quite a few more cute ones here: http://www.cafepress.com/buy/triathlon

I like the Spouse's triathlon:

"Wait for her to finish swimming
wait for her to finish biking
wait for her to finish running"

Edited by grnidone 2007-07-23 8:11 AM

Holy crap, skinny tires! I have to show off my new baby. Well, new to me, I bought her used, but at least it gets me off my MTB. I have been struggling with what to name her, so you guys will have to help me out.

 

 

 

How about "Dash" (from The Incredibles)?

Congrats--can't wait to find out how you like it!

My bike is named "The Banshee", but Robyn will say that Red bikes are cooler and faster...

What about Lightning McQueen from cars....he was red and FAST!!

If she were green, you could call her the screaming green demon of speed...or some variant. Congratulations on your new acquisition. When I started "doing" triathlon (I use that term lightly), my spousal unit thought it was too "geary". He's very much into efficiency and function over form. He conceded to my purchasing a used road bike, but was still skeptical of the 'whole mess'...he was also "just a runner" - keeping it simple. After watching several of my events, he caught the bug. We are now looking (just looking, mind you, but that is a LOT) for a good (used) road bike for him. I hope your races are even better with your fancy new wheels. Does anyone, when they get new shoes, still feel like they could jump higher or run faster, too??

Ruby Tuesday lyrics don't work either...