Assorted O/W swim q's

Triathlon Forum
1

Hey gang,

It’s my time o’ year, where I can minimize my time of staring at a black line (not that I do a ton of that anyway compared to what I aughta, as my swim splits repeatedly prove :-P), and get out in actual bodies of real water to splash around. So, here’s a few q’s for the fishies and others about that:

1 - Wetsuit or no? The water’s warm enuff now that I don’t really need the wettie. Of course, swimming with it is the most tri-specific thing I can do I guess, so I usually do just that. FWIW I have a T1.
(it’s also good for safety reasons, as I swim in an estuary that has all kinds of funky and unpredictable tidal/current/wind things going on, along with commercial boat traffic and of course the recreatioal variety as well. Nice to know I’m nearly drown-proof.)
Is this like riding your race wheels all the time, such that you don’t get that nice speed (and mental) boost on raceday by having something to ‘upgrade’ to?

2 - Long and steady, or do shorter sets? I usually do the former in o/w, I just like to get into a groove (as best as I can, anyway) and try to become one w/ the water. Example - Fri am I swam out for 22 mins, rested :30, then swam back (apparently w/ the current) in about 17 mins.

2a - If shorter sets, I guess I’d hafta do them by time, since distance isn’t an option (and w/ the currents/tides/etc, it’s a totally variable thing anyway). What sorta intervals make the most sense?

3 - Paddles? I’ve used them on occasion in o/w, telling myself I’m getting a better workout. They are also nice to have in general, since w/ the currents, at least I always know I can get back if I end up swimming against it on the return trip. I have xs mentor paddles fwiw.

4 - Hit the pool still? I much prefer real water, but I know I’m not getting as good of a workout as I probably would in a pool. I also do a bunch of drill sets in the pool (helps break up the monotony) and I’ve found them helpful for improving my position and form, whereas I usually don’t drill in o/w, I just swim.
So I should probably still go get chlorinated at least once or twice a week, huh?

Thanks in advance for any input!
-M
(a newly minted MOP swimmer as of this season, hoping to move up to FOMOP eventually)

2

First off, swimming is not really my area of expertise. However, from my perspective it may be a good idea to use your OW swims for long, steady state type of stuff, and do pool swims for drills, intervals and the like. Whether or not you use a wetsuit is personal preference, but if you’re going to use it in your races it may be a good idea to use it in training as well. Plus, as you mentioned it does provide a level of safety.

Are you swimming by yourself with all the boat traffic around you?

3

I swim solo, but it’s either early am or late afternoon, so the boat traffic is pretty minimal (particualrly in the am, it’s nearly non-existant).

The weekends are pretty hairy, but I rarely swim there then:
Barges + motorboats + sailboats + jetskis (+ testosterone and alcohol &/or drugs) =
o/w swimming is a bad idear.

4

Mike, like you, prefer to swim openwater, but if you are not going to a pool, you should at least swim once a week with no wetsuit. As for what to do, if you swim open water once per week, then you can go steady, but if not, you can do something like one hour with 5 min at race pace and 5 min cruise repeat 6 times. If you have landmarks you can swim to, try and establish a 3 min point to point stretch and you can use it for intervals and actually guage if you are going faster or slower. Sometimes, racing openwater, we make technique changes and think we are going faster, but are actually going slower.

Dev

5

All I can say is “NO PADDLES”. That is just wrong for open water swimming.

6

open water is awesome, and thank god I live in Hawaii as that also means it’s warm and clear!

Swimming solo I usually use open water for longer constant efforts, tempo, etc. we often have chop here so technique work can be a bit tough.

Sometimes I’ll do intervals based on # of strokes. For instance, I know I’m a 16-17 stroke 25y swimmer so I’ll go 100 strokes open water to do a 100… Landmarks also work well for intervals too. One of the beaches I mainly swim at has a windsock flag about 240m or so out. We go mellow out and then build to a flat out sprint going back. Well actually it’s supposed to be a mellow out and just a bit faster back, but you end up neck and neck with the guy next to you, and well things usually get a bit crazy…

Damn, that ballon idea was a great one!

7

Paddles = no. Fins = yes (sometimes). They feel awesome in open water.

Skip the pool. I am in the pool 2-5 days a week, Nov-May: Right now I don’t miss it at all.

8
  1. Wetsuits - no. Train without it.
  2. Mostly long and steady. You can do some changing speed, but I think you’ll find best results working on steady state swimming.
  3. Paddles - no. I don’t think they’re a good idea in open water. I don’t think you should use any equipment in open water, but that’s just my personal preference.
  4. Going to the pool… only if you want to… I don’t think it’s necessary if you can get out in the OW every day.
9

Thanks all for the input.

Went sans wettie this am (probably woulda been a good day to wear it actually, breezy and temps in low 60’s), the water was nice and comfy, albeit quite choppy. Tried the compromise and went w/ fins however (which ended up being a good call due to the massive currents)

Had the lovely Endless Pool effect in action, as I swam out for a bit over 20 mins, turned around, and then made it back in under 5 - D’OH!!! :wink: