2 threads in one: Finis SwimSense and Graber mag trainer help.

Put the road bike on the trainer. It is the bike you will ride in the race so that is the one that you need to be riding. It only takes a minute to take it on and off. After you get the road bike on make sure the drum touches the tire, then turn the handle 3 more times to make sure it is tight. Then see how it does. It may be a problem with the mtn bike type tire and bouncing on the drum. I have an inexpensive mag trainer from academy that works great. Can't help with the watch.

As for the watch, did you remember to hit "Save" (lower left button) after changing the distance to 25 yds? I did not notice this when I first set up the watch...

Unless I'm missing something, how can your pool be 25 yards in length and 50 yards a lap?  Isn't a length and lap the same thing?  I.e., if I swim the entire length of the pool I've completed one lap?

Depends on who you ask.  In my world, a lap is two lengths.  Kinda like doing a lap at the track - you end up back where you started. 

Interesting.

Perhaps I clarify my question then.  Since the Swimsense is "automatic", does setting different pool length and lap distances confuse it?  Just curious.

Never used one so I haven't a clue...

When you configure the watch it asks for the pool length and if it is in yards or meters. My pool is a 25 yd pool. Each length is 25 yd, each lap is 50. I haven't had any issues with it misreading distance, but the furthest I have swam is 2000 yds.

Danny 

There was a big discussion here and the consensus was 2 lengths == 1 lap =)

Yep, I saved it.

So let's assume 25 yards is one length.  I go one length, it records 50.  Now let's assume one lap, 2 lengths, is 25.  If I go down just length, that's 12.5.  So even if it counts one lap as there or there and back, it's wrong by either 2 X or 4 X. 

I would ditch the "swimsense" all together and just do "workout" based swim training. I have several hundred swim workouts posted in my blog from 2004 to present. Feel free to peruse and steal and modify and alter as you see fit.

The swimsense appears to just make things more complicated...

AND, Finis decided to break their website for days the day I got mine :/

Thanks, awesome idea!!  

Question:  Would doing one of your workouts instead of just swimming straight laps for an hour be more beneficial?

I ALREADY have 4 masters swim classes planned per week (2 of those triathlon specific) and I was planning on 2 workouts on my own of straight laps a week.  Wouldn't the masters classes be enough?

And the SS would be awesome if it worked :\ 

Hi folks,

My name is John Anthony and I am the co-founder of SportSense (the company that has partnered with FINIS to build Swimsense).  

It is the case that the watch needs to be configured with the pool size.  If you swim in a 25 yard pool then it needs to be configured to 25 yards.  Make sure to change the number not just the yards / meters distance indicator.

To the original poster:  if your configuration settings are correct and the distance is still being doubled, please upload your workouts to your online Swimsense account (www.swimsense.com) and we will review the workout.  Also, please submit a ticket at support.finisinc.com if you are still having the issue and let us know your username so we can research the issue further.

 I will continue to monitor this thread if anyone has any other questions.

FWIW, when I swim, I rarely swim more than 400m straight unless it is a race.  Your best bet for swimming is almost always going to be intervals over straight swimming.

Also, why did you bother to choose a plan if you weren't going to follow it?

Shane

Huh, I was under the impression that I had to be able to swim the distance straight to be "prepared" for a tri.  So intervals all the way is better huh.  How many hours do you usually spend doing intervals, just one?  

I think I'm going to go plan-less.  Just shoot for 3/3/3 (or a 4th run) with one long run and ride a week.  I like the flexibility.  And I'm of the idea that if I tailor a plan to my strengths and weaknesses it'll work better for me.  And let's say I progress more in the bike than in the run, I can amp it faster on the bike and pull it back a little on the run.

Thanks SS, Finis had been down since Friday or so, finally back up, off to upload!!

By the way SS, it's weird because sometimes it'll do 75 yards instead of 50 a lap so I'll have an extra 25. 

Edited by GatorDeb 2011-01-03 3:40 PM

When I'm swimming, I will typically get in the pool for at least 2500m and more likely at least 3000m.  Time in the water is usually around 1:15 with about an hour spent swimming.  However, these workouts were with a coach on deck in a typical masters type workout.



This can work if you have a solid grasp of endurance training priciples and can apply them to your training.

Once again, I strongly suggest that you pick one of the D3 plans on the site, load into your planned training and post questions about your training in the support forum.  Having input from a handful of coaches is likely to be more meaningful and have less noise than those you post here.

Shane

What is the best thing I can do to gain speed?  Because I still average a minute / 25y.

What's a "D3" plan? 

Yes, there was a big discussion here a few weeks ago.  And I thought that th econsensus was that while some people call 2 lengths = 1 lap, no self respecting swimmer would do that, and that the convention in the swim world is that 1 lap = 1 length.  Regardless of grammatical correctness or the definition of the word 'lap'.

Edited by morey000 2011-01-03 3:56 PM

X2
If the drum is not tight against the tire it will slip.  Particularly if the resistance is turned up on your trainer.

One on one swim coaching.



The training plans available on this site to silver and gold members.

Shane

And someone else said not to use the rugged mountain bike tires but to use a smooth one.... but good idea on the crank thingie, going to try it.

And what's the best thing -that doesn't cost anything- I can do to gain speed?  

Thanks, but just wondering why do they call them "D3" ?  Makes me think Mighty Ducks for some reason.

Edited by GatorDeb 2011-01-03 4:11 PM

Speed in swimming is almost all about form in the water, and little about fitness etc. Swim better and you will be faster.

AAAAAAAAAARRRRRGGGHHHH nonononononononononononono

I read too late that updating the firmware will cause all workouts to BE ERASED ARRRRRGH.

And I paid an extra $20 to have the Finis delivered on the 31st so that I would have ALL my 2011 workouts recorded on it hahahahahahahaha

I'm going to go bang my head on a wall now. 

If it's any consolation, there is very little practical reasoning for having a year's worth of training on your Garmin. In fact, that much data in storage will slow down uploading. I clear mine periodically for that very reason.

Sorry you lost your workouts!  We recently announced that the FINIS Swimsense Training Log is free and you can upload an unlimited number of workouts.  It's also valuable to upload frequently as it will take less time to get all that data off your watch.

"I think I'm going to go plan-less.  Just shoot for 3/3/3 (or a 4th run) with one long run and ride a week.  I like the flexibility.  And I'm of the idea that if I tailor a plan to my strengths and weaknesses it'll work better for me.  And let's say I progress more in the bike than in the run, I can amp it faster on the bike and pull it back a little on the run."  

Let me get this straight, for a couple of weeks you've asked everyone how to train. Most advise was to pick a plan and stick to it. In a thread today you talk about having picked a plan and that was what you are going to do. If I remember you are doing the balanced oly. Now after soliciting all that advise. Saying OK that sounds good. You are going back to ignoring all the good advice you have gotten. WOW. I'm done yall have fun with this one.