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Triathletes, do you think swimming or running is harder?
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| General Discussion | Triathlon Talk » Triathletes, do you think swimming or running is harder? | Rss Feed  |
 2019-02-11 4:00 AM |
 56 |  Subject: Triathletes, do you think swimming or running is harder?This discussion topic frequently appears in other forums, like swim forums and run forums, but I'm afraid that the opinions their may be biased - marathon runners who can't swim 10 laps must think swimming is very hard, and marathon swimmers who can't run a mile must think running very hard. Therefore I think opinions from triathletes may be more accurate to the reality because triathletes have to swim, bike and run competitively! For fairness purposes, please also consider the time and environment needed as well: - compare 1.5 km swim to 6 km run, 5 km swim to half-marathon run, and 10 km swim to marathon run (roughly 1:4 ratio) - compare pool swim to track run, swimming in a flat lake to running in a flat road race, swimming in rough ocean to cross-country running For me, my swimming speed is worse than my running speed. I need around 31 minutes to swim 1.5 km, and around 28 minutes to run 6 km currently. However I can swim relatively longer than run. I can't tolerate running more than about 13 km - even running 10 km already places a great stress on my ankle. I tried for a maximum of 20 km continuous running in the past, and the result was painful even getting off the bed the next day, and I needed nearly a week to resume running afterwards. Instead, after swimming 5 km continuously, I didn't get any ill effect and could still swim for a few more km on the next day, and the maximum continuous swimming I have tried is 10 km, and two complete rest days were already enough to resume swimming. I am swimming about 14 km per week now as I am now completely focused in swimming only; this is equivalent to running about 56 km per week if I were to focus in running solely, but this idea already scares me to hell because I can't imagine how much my ankles would hurt by running nearly 10 km per day, 6 days a week. Therefore, in my opinion, I think it is easier to go long when swimming, but harder to go fast, when factoring in the conversion ratio. I'm very interested to know other triathletes' thought! |
| 2019-02-11 10:49 AM in reply to: 0 |
1508   Cypress, Texas | Subject: RE: Triathletes, do you think swimming or running is harder? Physically running is harder. It puts more stress on the body, you feel more pain, you get more injuries, you can't do as much volume, etc. Mentally swimmer is harder. You have to learn swimming strokes, you have to lean body position, breathing, turns, sighting, etc. The drills never end. You always have to work on form. Swimming hard for 8 hours a week is harder than running easy for 8 hours a week but running hard for 8 hours a week is harder than swimming easy for 8 hours a week. 8 hours of work is 8 hours of work. This is like asking if a pound of feather is heavier or a pound of bricks. Swimming will take you years of consistent practice to get competitive just like it takes years of consistent training to be competitive as a runner. It takes about 3 years for people to start to peak in an endurance sport. If you take a runner and have them train only for swimming for three years they should start to hit their potential. If you take a swimmer and have them train only for running for three years they should start to hit their potential. Will the swimmer be as fast as the runner? Will the runner be as fast as the swimmer? No...they are different people and have different talents so they will not get the same results. The swimmer could be faster or slower than the runner at running and the runner could be faster or slower than the swimmer at swimming Will the swimmer work as hard at running as they do at swimming? Will the runner work as hard at swimming as they do at running? Absolutely!!! Their work ethic and training drive will not change. They will work just as hard at one sport as they do at another regardless of whether they are faster or slower at it.
Edited by BlueBoy26 2019-02-11 10:52 AM |
| 2019-02-11 12:12 PM in reply to: miklcct |
Master 8247   Eugene, Oregon Bronze member | Subject: RE: Triathletes, do you think swimming or running is harder? Hmmm.... I maybe have a bit different background than most triathletes. I have been a swimmer and runner since I was a kid, only took up biking (in the training/racing sense) after I started tri at age 41. Pretty much throughout my life, my swim and run have been almost equal if you use the 4X formula (the time it takes me to swim a mile, for example, would be pretty close to a 4-mile run split). Maybe my swim would be a bit faster now; when I was in my teens and 20's they would have been very close. In some races, I place better on the swim; in others, on the run. My guess is this isn't so much because I'm a super-fast swimmer, but because a lot of triathletes are very weak on the swim--they tend to come from running or cycling backgrounds. I would say that swimming (as a sport, in general) is mentally harder and running is physically harder, for a number of reasons. Especially in the pool, swimming can be really monotonous and requires a lot of mental discipline. It is more technique-oriented than the other legs of tri and you have to spend a lot of time working on that, especially for people who learned as adults. The fact that there's no impact allows you to push yourself (or be pushed, for coached swimmers) every single workout in a way that's not generally done with running. Plus it engages the entire body. So it's good at developing the ability to suffer. In the race, it can be stressful due to water conditions and large numbers of people at the start. Running in my opinion is much more enjoyable (usually outside, can explore different places) but physically harder, especially as one gets older. High-impact, easier to get overuse injuries, etc. I also find I often don't enjoy it as much during triathlon training because I am so often running with fatigue or muscle tightness from other training, mainly the bike. |
| 2019-02-11 12:24 PM in reply to: Hot Runner |
Pro 15655 | Subject: RE: Triathletes, do you think swimming or running is harder? You can drown swimming.....that's all I need to know about which is harder. |
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