reality check in the pool...

You do know that it's virtually impossible to win a tri in the swim, right? The fastest swimmers usually get smoked on the bike and run, anyway. You shouldn't be worrying about your speed at all at this point. You just started swimming and you're already putting in more yardage than a lot of people do. You'll be fine.

23 minute 5k run. That's an excellent pace. And you say you used to race bikes so I'm guessing your bike speed is impressive as well. So don't be concerned about your swim times - you'll be passing loads of people during the bike run portion.

Your swim times will come down - especially given the distances you are putting in. Use the log portion of Beginner Triathlete to keep track of your workouts and times and don't hesitate to look at other peoples logs to see what they may be doing re training.

Good luck - keep at it - you're doing great.

no kidding, you are already doing better then I was.  My first 5k was a 26 something and it took me a solid month and a half in the pool to hit 2000 yards and be comfortable with it.  BTW, I'm still at 2:10 per 100 sustained or 1:50 per 100 sprint over 50.  I'd say uou have nothing to worry about, just keep plugging away

i second that - you're ROCKIN'!

hey..... you guys are awesome! thanks so much for the good words of support! guess i'll just keep chuggin' along in the pool, and i'll see what happens during my first actual triathlon! i just bought somw swim stuff to help me improve... i got the pull bouy, goggoes and tri shorts. maybe i;ll also get the flippers. there are tri people at the pool, so i'll just see if someone can give me some pointers.

deannas... i'm glad to hear the swim isn't the usual deciding factor! that gives me some hope. no wi just need to get my weight down so i can be faster on the run.

calgaryrunner & vortmax... ya, my bike is pretty strong by comparison to the other two, from years of long days in the saddle. i did that 23 min 5k, but i'll tell ya, it almost killed me. my HR was btwn 180 and 190 for the whole run. i coulndn't do that in a tri... i'd probably be closer to 24:30 for that length run in a tri (i'm guessing).
i', not sure about my speed per lap in the pool... i think i average a minute per 50m. i did a couple lengthe as hard as i could, just to see how fast i could do 25m... and the fastest i could do was 22 seconds. but of course i'd stop and recover after that. i could never actually keep that up for more than 25m.

immyfish and snowgirl... thanks for the support!!!!!! you guys are awesome! yeah, i guess the time thing comes from weekends of 6-8 hrs each day on the bike when i used to race. we'd pull 200-250 miles just on weekends. that was about 7 yrs (and many pounds) ago! but still... 1.5 hrs doesn't seem too bad. i'd actually like to work my way up to a once a week 4,000 m swim. probably take me a good 2 hrs. that'd definitely get my endurance up!!!!!!


have a good monday guys...

Exactly.

I am 125 pounds and I would be LUCKY to complete a 5K in 23 minutes!

Although, in some age groups, those people FLY when they run... doing 6-7 minute miles... easy.

And, a tri is NOT won in the swim. I am a fast swimmer, but I get smoked on the bike and run everytime.

Don't worry too much about your times... just go out there and do what you can do... have fun. You certainly will not come in last, so don't worry about.

Of course, if you did come in last, you would get the most cheers!