Swimming straight in the open water
How do I swim straight in the open water?
This is a major challenge to open water swimming (and even swimming in a pool with lane lines!), and the key lies in one of our other fun challenges in swimming: breathing!
Here’s a quick guide to swimming straight:
1. Simply doing alternate (or bi-lateral) breathing would go a long way towards making you swim in a straight. If you are comfortable with this, breathe every 3 strokes and you will be much more in line with where you want to go.
2. If you cannot get enough oxygen while breathing bilaterally, this can be a big problem on a distance swim. Practice swimming and breathing 2 strokes on the left, 2 on the right, then go to 3 breaths left, 3 right. Then try 2 on the left, 1 on the right, 3-1, etc. Find what works for in keeping you in line and stick with that plan in your race.
3. Practice sighting less often, as this will disrupt your stroke rhythm and balance.
4. Keep your strokes long and extend that arm out in front on each stroke and drive it forward.
5. Practice the One Arm Drill (in the Complete Guide), and pay attention to your arm pull, making sure you are not crossing in with your hand.
6. Practice open water swimming. Just being used to the environment will get you more comfortable, and you will intuitively pick up on
swimming straight out there.
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5 Open Water Swimming Tips
There are countless challenges to open water swimming for triathletes. Here are a few tips to keep in mind for your next race or training session:
1. Practice in the pool with workout buddies. It can be quite the shock and even panic can set in at the beginning of a triathlon, where there will be a large crowd all swimming towards the same point. It’s important to stay relaxed. If you can get a few training mates to jump in your lane and simulate the crowded feeling a few times before your race, you will likely remain in a calm state!
2. Don’t let the race be the first time you try your goggles out in the open water. Often times, even though your colored goggles are fine in the pool, when you get out into the open water, visibility becomes noticeably diminished. Goggles should not be a concern on race day, so get ones that work for you both in the pool and in the open water so there are no surprises come race day.
3. Practice high elbow recovery. Waves and chop in the open water will affect your stroke quite a bit, and if you’re getting your elbows high enough above the water on your recovery swim stroke, you won’t be as affected by these elements.
4. Stay to the outside. To avoid chaotic open water swim starts, find your own water and don’t worry about swimming a little extra or the need to get pole position on that first buoy. You will lose a lot less energy by staying on the perimeter, and you’ll be much less likely to be exposed to physical contact, which can be really draining!
5. For sighting, practice using landmarks instead of buoys. Open water conditions may not make it easy to see buoys from a distance, and the larger, more visible objects, like houses or hotels on the shore, or stationary boats will allow you to stay on track.
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How to Transition from The Pool to the Open Water
6 ways to ease your transition from pool swimming to open water swimming to prepare for a triathlon:
1.Chunk it down. If your race is going to involve a 1 mile swim, don’t try to swim a mile the first day out. Instead, just shoot for getting wet and swimming for 5 or 10 minutes. Even just swimming a couple hundred yards your first time out is fine. There’s no hurry to do it all at once!
2.Don’t use pull buoys. When in the pool, stay away from anything that aids in your floatation. This includes pull buoys, which many triathletes love so much! Buoys make it easier for you to swim because you’re not working on your balance in the water. In the open water, without walls, you will need to have great balance- something that you are always practicing when you get in to swim.
3.Learn flip turns. Swimming back and forth in the pool is easier than swimming continuously in the open water no matter how you slice it. But, by touching the wall and doing an open turn after each length, you’re giving yourself even more rest than necessary. Doing flip turns will be the closest thing to swimming continuously that you can get. Find a coach to teach you how to do flip turns or search the web for some good video demonstrations, and you will improve your endurance and ability to swim for longer periods of time.
4.Swim with a group. When you hit the open water, make sure to swim with a group or at least a partner. This will help you to lose any fears, stay safe, and have more fun.
5.Wear a wetsuit. For your first few times out in the open water, definitely use a wetsuit- especially if the water is cold and you will be wearing one in your race. The wetsuit will make it easier for you to swim by keeping you more buoyant. Once you get more comfortable swimming in the open water, practice without the suit for a challenge!
6.Expect a challenge. Transitioning from the pool to the open water is a whole new endeavor. You will have to set new goals, make adjustments to your stroke, and overcome new fears. All of this is normal! Keep in mind that this is all a process, and no matter how advanced you may have been in the pool, you should expect to take it down a few notches once you leave the friendly confines of lane lines and 80 degree water.
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