40+ Club : Where the Cool Kids Are

Options
1…681682684686687…934

Replies

  • Djproulx
    Djproulx Posts: 3,084 Member
    edited June 2017
    Options
    BettyM1017 wrote: »
    [
    I'm just starting to work on my swimming. My daughter wants me to do a triathlon someday. I have the more realistic desire of not drowning. Yes, I can swim; however, I'm terrible at regulating my breathing while swimming, and I'm gasping for air after every lap. Any suggestions?

    Anyone who can run through fire like you can will certainly be able to swim with a little practice!! It just takes some technique work and practice. I am an adult onset swimmer who started out 4 years ago, so I'm familiar with that feeling. I have some suggestions.

    First a couple questions:
    1) Do you swim the freestyle stroke, and if so, do you breathe on one side or both sides? (bilateral breathing)

    2) how is your technique (other than breathing?) Specifically, do you keep your body flat to the surface, or do your legs tend to sink?

    3) How hard are you working to move through the water? More to the point, do you feel like its mostly just a breathing problem, or do you need to "fix" your stroke? How far do you swim during a session currently?




  • GingerPwr
    GingerPwr Posts: 1,984 Member
    Options
    Today in a nutshell: ate a lot of junk; didn't exercise.
    I feel like I needed the rest, but I didn't need to eat so much.
  • __TMac__
    __TMac__ Posts: 1,665 Member
    Options
    Training schedule says to row, but we're away for the weekend, so I ran instead. Sunny, cool day. Perfect!

    Swapped my usual post-run snack for a protein drink (chocolate flavored protein/greens powder, milk, and iced coffee). Not bad!
  • lscirilo
    lscirilo Posts: 3 Member
    Options
    Spinning bike at home 4X this week, 45 to 60 min each. crossfit 3X. Need to adjust my meal plan and follow it...I'm sure that's the reason I'm not loosing weight...
  • BettyM1017
    BettyM1017 Posts: 616 Member
    Options
    Djproulx wrote: »
    BettyM1017 wrote: »
    [
    I'm just starting to work on my swimming. My daughter wants me to do a triathlon someday. I have the more realistic desire of not drowning. Yes, I can swim; however, I'm terrible at regulating my breathing while swimming, and I'm gasping for air after every lap. Any suggestions?

    Anyone who can run through fire like you can will certainly be able to swim with a little practice!! It just takes some technique work and practice. I am an adult onset swimmer who started out 4 years ago, so I'm familiar with that feeling. I have some suggestions.

    First a couple questions:
    1) Do you swim the freestyle stroke, and if so, do you breathe on one side or both sides? (bilateral breathing)

    2) how is your technique (other than breathing?) Specifically, do you keep your body flat to the surface, or do your legs tend to sink?

    3) How hard are you working to move through the water? More to the point, do you feel like its mostly just a breathing problem, or do you need to "fix" your stroke? How far do you swim during a session currently?




    1. Freestyle, I breathe on one side (right side)
    2. My technique used to be better. It's funny that you mentioned the sinking legs. That's exactly how I feel. I definitely feel like my kick is a mess these days, like I'm working way to hard to move forward which contributes to my need for more oxygen, I think. My arms feel good, but I'm like a duck. Calm on the surface, and paddling like crazy underneath.
    3. The lanes are 25 meters. I make it one length, and I have to stop and catch my breath. I am warmed up before I start to actually swim. I do about 16 lengths, pausing to catch my breath in between each length, and then I'll switch to a much easier backstroke for a few lengths, and finish with a couple of lengths with a kick board and walking a couple of lengths. It's really only a 30 to 35 minute workout when I'm done.
  • BettyM1017
    BettyM1017 Posts: 616 Member
    Options
    Easy 3-mile run today. No Hardcore 22 today. The humidity the last 2 days had kicked my booty! I was sweating just drinking my morning coffee today!!
  • GingerPwr
    GingerPwr Posts: 1,984 Member
    Options
    Trying to run with a head cold is not fun. Only got in 2 miles, but that's better than just lying around so I'll take it.
  • gam3rguy
    gam3rguy Posts: 3,773 Member
    Options
    "P90X3 Dynamix"=Done!
  • __TMac__
    __TMac__ Posts: 1,665 Member
    Options
    Upper body & core day. Otherwise known as band practice, on a drum.
  • Beeps2011
    Beeps2011 Posts: 11,995 Member
    Options
    Well, here is my week-update: (i) I got 5 workouts in this week, 2 x lifting, 2 x yoga and 1 x cardio. I also walked one evening; (ii) I did NOT log everything I ate. Even with "best intentions", I am just lazy, lazy, lazy about this. I wonder why I have NO "staying power" when logging??? There were YEARS when I logged every day, all day long. I think I must find it BORING and so I just cannot force myself to do it anymore; and (iii) the scale did NOT budge.

    But, that also means I did not GAIN....so that is good.

    I am still drinking 10 glasses of water per day. My workouts are good. I have eliminated LNS to about 1 x per week. So, I feel like I am doing everything right....until I cease using the Estrogel, my bet is that my scale weight just will not come down. And then, when I do cease the Estrogel, those 10 lbs will disappear with very little effort.

    We shall see!!
  • Djproulx
    Djproulx Posts: 3,084 Member
    Options
    [/quote]

    1. Freestyle, I breathe on one side (right side)
    2. My technique used to be better. It's funny that you mentioned the sinking legs. That's exactly how I feel. I definitely feel like my kick is a mess these days, like I'm working way to hard to move forward which contributes to my need for more oxygen, I think. My arms feel good, but I'm like a duck. Calm on the surface, and paddling like crazy underneath.
    3. The lanes are 25 meters. I make it one length, and I have to stop and catch my breath. I am warmed up before I start to actually swim. I do about 16 lengths, pausing to catch my breath in between each length, and then I'll switch to a much easier backstroke for a few lengths, and finish with a couple of lengths with a kick board and walking a couple of lengths. It's really only a 30 to 35 minute workout when I'm done. [/quote]

    BettyM - Great! There are no surprises in your answers. You've just described me and at least 10 other swimmers I know as we learned to swim over the last few years. So here are a couple suggestions for starters.

    1. Freestyle breathing - Since you breathe on one side, you probably take in plenty of air by breathing every time you lift your right arm. So therefore the trick is to work LESS hard, so you are not having to gasp for air. Try to think more about your exhaling while underwater. You should be exhaling a slow, steady stream of bubbles when your face is in the water. Then, as your lungs are just about empty, you are lifting your right arm and turning your head (NOT lifting the head) so that you can take a breath as your mouth comes out of the water. One trick to help you get this rhythm is to repeat a cadence to yourself as you swim. For example, I breath from both sides, so I started out by thinking to myself " Bubbles.....Bubbles......BREATHE.......Bubbles......Bubbles.......BREATHE" And this mantra matched my stroke, so I would say bubbles, (left arm stroke) bubbles (right arm stroke) then BREATHE as I made another left arm stroke and lifted my head for a breath.

    2. Technique and associated sinking legs: This will be a game changer for you, because it is for everyone who learns to swim. Swimming is all about reducing drag. So that means you want to be STREAMLINED and are trying to "hide" your body from the water. Now think about a seesaw or fulcrum. If your head is too high, your legs will sink, exposing more of your body to the water and that creates drag. So you will either have sinking legs, or have to work very hard to move yourself forward. So lets take your legs out of the equation for now. The way to do this is to use a Pull Buoy. Those are the figure eight shaped foam floats you squeeze between your thighs. By doing this, you get several benefits. First, your legs don't sink and you don’t kick,which saves energy. This reduces your drag and lets you move through the water easier. Secondly, this removes the need to gasp for air and lets you focus on breathing technique and improving your stroke mechanics.

    3. As a new swimmer, you want to focus on quality over yardage. Swimming is all about efficiency, so you are doing yourself a disservice if you continue swimming after your form breaks down. So start slowly and when you sense that your form is breaking down, stop swimming and pick it up again the next day.
    Finally, a great approach would be to have a good swimmer observe your stroke and offer feedback if possible. If not, you could find many videos online that show what good form looks like and then have sometime take a video of you while you swim, so that you can compare your stroke to a “perfect” stroke.

    This is only scratching the surface, but too long to post more here. Happy to provide additional details via pm or email.

  • caramelgyrlk
    caramelgyrlk Posts: 1,112 Member
    Options
    Great day kids, so much running around for my daughter's upcoming graduation. Long walk in the woods with the dogs. Welcome to the newbies. Hope all of you stay around.
  • ClaireAlgar2015
    ClaireAlgar2015 Posts: 7 Member
    Options
    New to this forum... Hi all.
    I'm 41 in August and I'm finding losing the numbers on the scale harder than ever! I have probably a stone to lose, have lost 10lb since January but am stuck at 13stone.. I go to the gym and lift weights 3 times a week and have started jogging with couch to 5K app... my daughter thinks I'm too fixated on scale weight and to put them in the bin, anyone else have this problem?
    I used to find it easy to lose weight but since hitting 40 it feels s much harder
  • BettyM1017
    BettyM1017 Posts: 616 Member
    Options
    @Djproulx You rock! Thanks for taking the time to "coach" my swimming. I'll definitely pay closer attention to those details you described and find out more about the pull buoys. I know our pool has a supply of them in the cabinet with the kick boards, so I'll find some video on using them. You're right about the too much too soon. I'll scale things back a bit for now until I get my form down.

    Thanks again for your help!

    @gam3rguy So.....how was Spartan??!
  • gam3rguy
    gam3rguy Posts: 3,773 Member
    Options
    BettyM1017 wrote: »
    @Djproulx You rock! Thanks for taking the time to "coach" my swimming. I'll definitely pay closer attention to those details you described and find out more about the pull buoys. I know our pool has a supply of them in the cabinet with the kick boards, so I'll find some video on using them. You're right about the too much too soon. I'll scale things back a bit for now until I get my form down.

    Thanks again for your help!

    @gam3rguy So.....how was Spartan??!
    Spartan is ALWAYS fun. Savage coming up in two weeks!!

  • gam3rguy
    gam3rguy Posts: 3,773 Member
    Options
    "P90X3 Isometrix"=Done!
  • Morgaen73
    Morgaen73 Posts: 2,817 Member
    Options
    Ok chest and legs done :) and I'm pretty much back to where i was before we went on holiday end April ...

  • BettyM1017
    BettyM1017 Posts: 616 Member
    Options
    gam3rguy wrote: »
    "P90X3 Isometrix"=Done!

    Always a favorite!

Categories