General Discussion Triathlon Talk » Where is your swim workouts? Rss Feed  
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2021-02-18 10:38 AM

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Expert
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lake forest, California
Subject: Where is your swim workouts?

Coming back into the sport after 7 years off, and in So Cal there's very little, if any pools open for lap swims

Where are you all finding a place to swim, and do you need to reserve times or go through special procedures?



2021-02-18 12:01 PM
in reply to: jbjboc

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Expert
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Middle River, Maryland
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Subject: RE: Where is your swim workouts?

In Maryland, our pools have been open since about Memorial Day.  We had sign-ups for a while and now it's just one person per lane more or less.

2021-02-18 12:39 PM
in reply to: jbjboc

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Master
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Atlanta, Georgia
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Subject: RE: Where is your swim workouts?
I haven't been in the water in 5mos but where my wife goes it's been signups since reopening last spring. No lane sharing, lots of mopping the deck, etc..
2021-02-18 4:25 PM
in reply to: alltom1

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Lethbridge, Alberta
Bronze member
Subject: RE: Where is your swim workouts?
On the TV news, I saw that somewhere they had cut a swim lane into the ice. That's a bit too hard core for me! Local pools have been closed but I'm hoping to get back to swimming soon.
2021-02-18 10:40 PM
in reply to: Micawber

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Master
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Eugene, Oregon
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Subject: RE: Where is your swim workouts?
Thank goodness, I live near one of the only pools open this winter in the whole state. It's outdoors. (Pool is heated, air is usually in the 30's to mid 40's when I swim.) Oregon has had year-round outdoor pool swimming for years in some communities, pre-Covid, so it's nothing new. It's just that most other swim options have been nixed as current restrictions don't allow indoor pools; the only other outdoor facility that usually stays open year-round is closed till late spring for renovation.

Booking is very stressful--online with limited slots that close within minutes; our monthly allotment has shrunk from 12 to 10 and now 8 per month. Even if you start exactly when booking opens (at noon on a workday--technically I'm not on break then), slots fill as you sign up. You can also "fly standby" and hope for an unclaimed lane ten minutes after the session starts. Same fee ($5), but 45-ish minutes max instead of 55-ish (the hour starts with entry to the facility, so it's not exactly an hour of swimming).

It's always a challenge to see how much workout I can actually get done before time's up. I've figured out that unless most is continuous swimming, my limit is about 3000m; have made it to 3100 or 3150 for a few distance-heavy swims. If there are a lot of rest intervals and short swims it might be as little as 2600. I've learned to be brutally efficient LOL! That's been my swimming. Open water has not really been an option here since mid-September, and won't be again (at least for mere mortals) until mid-June. But I'm grateful for what I have.
2021-02-19 6:59 AM
in reply to: Hot Runner

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Middle River, Maryland
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Subject: RE: Where is your swim workouts?

Originally posted by Hot Runner Thank goodness, I live near one of the only pools open this winter in the whole state. It's outdoors. (Pool is heated, air is usually in the 30's to mid 40's when I swim.) Oregon has had year-round outdoor pool swimming for years in some communities, pre-Covid, so it's nothing new. It's just that most other swim options have been nixed as current restrictions don't allow indoor pools; the only other outdoor facility that usually stays open year-round is closed till late spring for renovation. Booking is very stressful--online with limited slots that close within minutes; our monthly allotment has shrunk from 12 to 10 and now 8 per month. Even if you start exactly when booking opens (at noon on a workday--technically I'm not on break then), slots fill as you sign up. You can also "fly standby" and hope for an unclaimed lane ten minutes after the session starts. Same fee ($5), but 45-ish minutes max instead of 55-ish (the hour starts with entry to the facility, so it's not exactly an hour of swimming). It's always a challenge to see how much workout I can actually get done before time's up. I've figured out that unless most is continuous swimming, my limit is about 3000m; have made it to 3100 or 3150 for a few distance-heavy swims. If there are a lot of rest intervals and short swims it might be as little as 2600. I've learned to be brutally efficient LOL! That's been my swimming. Open water has not really been an option here since mid-September, and won't be again (at least for mere mortals) until mid-June. But I'm grateful for what I have.

I've done that a couple of times and while it's a badge of honor, I'm not sure I'd want that to be a regular process.  Yikes.

Our pool sign-up was a little chaotic at first, and the outdoor pool I use is three lanes for lap swimming and the other half a recreational pool, so there was competition from all the newly stay-at-home moms/dads/kids for the sign up spots, even if they're not using the lanes.



2021-02-19 12:44 PM
in reply to: 0

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Alpharetta, Georgia
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Subject: RE: Where is your swim workouts?

You might ask around your local tri club or staff at a multi-sport retail store if there are any "hidden" lap swimming pools in the area. 

When I moved a few years ago, I wasn't keen on joining a mega-gym or country club-style gym just for the lap pool. But someone at work overheard me talking about swimming and let me in on a small, church-run fitness center with an amazing lap pool. Total hidden gem - hardly anyone had ever heard of it. I swam there until I moved to a different suburb. This time I just started googling and ran across a city-run adult aquatics/rec center, which is SO MUCH cheaper than what I was paying previously. I can get a 10-punch card for $30, no expiration. Off season I'm swimming once a week, so this is only costing me $12/month. They have an online reservation system - it opens at 7:30 a.m. a week in advance. You have to be online within a few minutes of it opening to get the time slot you want. 

In a past life, I was a die-hard YMCA fan, but I know those facilities vary greatly across the country. 



Edited by lisac957 2021-02-19 12:44 PM
2021-02-20 3:29 PM
in reply to: lisac957

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Master
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Columbus, Ohio
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Subject: RE: Where is your swim workouts?
I'm swimming at the YMCA and have to sign up ahead of time, one per lane. The time slots are only 45 minutes, so lately as my training plan is ramping up, I can't get the whole distance in. I've emailed them to see what we might be able to work out. Right now I'll get in at 7:15a and they whistle everyone out at 8a, for example. And the next set doesn't open until 8:15. So I could sign up for two, but the sitting around for 15 minutes isn't ideal.

On weekends, I can't get a lane - it closes out too quickly and the hours are limited, so the competition is much greater for a lane. On weekdays I can get a lane in the morning if I'm willing to swim at the more run-down Y. (The newer one and that one are each almost the same distance from me in opposite directions.)

I can't wait until it gets warm and I can swim outdoors and not deal with it. I'm going to revise my custom training plan here on BT to move both my swims to weekdays since I haven't been able to get a swim lane on a Sunday in 6 weeks.
2021-03-01 12:16 PM
in reply to: alicefoeller

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Expert
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100025
lake forest, California
Subject: RE: Where is your swim workouts?

Well this was a good suggestion Alicefoeller- I joined YMCA and have some lap swim slots reserved. Seeing how I haven't been in the pool for a few years I think 30-45 minutes will be good for now

2021-03-01 5:50 PM
in reply to: jbjboc

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Master
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Eugene, Oregon
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Subject: RE: Where is your swim workouts?
Glad it worked out for you. Our local Y (where I used to be a member) just re-opened its (indoor) pool but at this point, I've gotten used to the year-round outdoor thing and just feel safer outside, so I think I'll just keep going with it unless slots get even more restricted. Our Y's a really old building (they're about to break ground on a new one) and poorly ventilated; even pre-Covid I had issues sometimes due to asthma in that facility. Hopefully a second outdoor pool will be opening later in spring after renovations are done, and OWS should be an option sometime in June again. Hard to imagine!
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