You can put someone else in the hospital by swimming breastroke in a tri. Don’t do it.
Nonsense. It’s up to the overtaking swimmer to be aware of WTF is going on around and ahead of them. This is coming from someone who has passed entire previous waves in a race, and has seen just about everything in the water.
really struggling with the swimming portion(freestyle). Can never seem to get enough air
In most cases this is due to not exhaling while your face is in the water - you end up trying to exhale and inhale all at once when you turn to breath, and you can’t process enough air that way, so by the time you get to the far wall you feel “out of breath”. Try swimming very slowly - so slowly that you aren’t in need of a lot of air, maybe with a pull buoy (or two) to keep your legs up, and simply practice breathing, exhaling fully under water, then turning to get a full inhale. Don’t worry about making rapid progress across the pool. You should find that it’s not that you can’t get “enough” air, just that you haven’t been giving yourself a chance to get it and use it.
This is great advise. I will also add that you should practice your breathing while you stand there in the pool bend over at the waist and do the arm movement and learn to exhale in the water that way. This can take the stress off of your lungs as you will not be needing much oxygen to your muscles and will get you conditioned to the movement. One thing that I have also used with somepeople is using a buoy like mentioned then working on more of a body rotation as most people breath by rotating mostly shoulders. If you can rotate your body more you will have more time to breath and learn the mechanics of it. Most swim coaches will teach rotating head and shoulders and not the hips.
No - - not nonsense. It happened to someone I know. I don’t care how bad of a swimmer someone is - - breastroke kick is powerful and can give someone else a concussion. Murkey water, sun in your eyes, some fool from a wave ahead of you doing breastroke - - you CAN get kicked in the head.
No - - not nonsense. It happened to someone I know. I don’t care how bad of a swimmer someone is - - breastroke kick is powerful and can give someone else a concussion. Murkey water, sun in your eyes, some fool from a wave ahead of you doing breastroke - - you CAN get kicked in the head.
Of course you can get kicked in the head…but it’d be your own fault. Sun in your eyes? That excuse shouldn’t fly if you are driving, and it doesn’t fly if you are swimming. If you can’t see, don’t blindly swim. What if someone is treading water while fixing their goggles, and you swim into them? I’ve passed numerous breaststrokers from previous waves, and it’s my responsibility to see them enough in advance to avoid them. My responsibility.
O.K. Everyone just do whats best for themselves…is that your motto? Love how you link swimming in a triathon to driving…no related at all, but nice try.
Agree- this past Sept I was moving through the waves and a set of feet in front of me decided to switch to breast stroke as I was coming along side of them, I’d say abruptly but there is no need for them to announce it, I didn’t get quite far enough away and took a solid kick to the hip. Not his fault, I was over taking him and didn’t go wide enough.
OP- I believe it has been said above but as long as you don’t throw yourself in the middle of the pack at the start and immediately begin the breast stroke, there is no problem. Again, as said above, freestyle will become faster for you and the only way to get better at something is to practice it.
O.K. Everyone just do whats best for themselves…is that your motto? Love how you link swimming in a triathon to driving…no related at all, but nice try.
They are completely related: you are responsible for not running into anything, whether you are driving or swimming in a triathlon. If the sun is in your eyes while driving, you stop driving. If the sun is in your eyes while swimming and you can’t see what’s in front of you, you stop swimming.
It’s not “everyone just do what’s best for themselves,” it’s taking personal responsibility for your actions. Nobody in front of you is responsible for getting out of your way, as long as they are acting within the rules. That goes for breastroke in the water or singletrack on a mountain bike.
I know - - the sport has gotten to the point where it really is too much to ask that you have basic skills in each discipline before attempting it - - you have a good point. From what I see of most peoples driving, they are exactly the same. Everyone look out!!!
You can put someone else in the hospital by swimming breastroke in a tri. Don’t do it.
Nonsense. It’s up to the overtaking swimmer to be aware of WTF is going on around and ahead of them. This is coming from someone who has passed entire previous waves in a race, and has seen just about everything in the water.
x2. I’ve been caught napping in a race, swam up on someone else doing freestyle with a vigorous kick and snotted blood for the next 100m. Shit happens. As long as the OP realizes the dangers and stays out of the middle, he should be ok.
Note for the pedants: I am absolutely advocating learning freestyle, but with awareness and consideration, breaststroke is a viable option.
John
Please, don’t put anyone else at risk–do the responsible thing and take some swim lessons. I couldn’t swim either when I first started 2 years ago, so went and got some lessons (I can recommend Blue Dolphins if you’re in the Chicago area). After the lessons and a lot of practice my mile time is about 35 minutes–not bragging cos I know that kind of pace is solidly in the ‘mediocre’ category…just presenting as an n=1 demonstration that lessons + practice makes a huge difference.
Nobody in front of you is responsible for getting out of your way, as long as they are acting within the rules.
True, but I don’t think there is anything in the rules about turning around at the half way point and swimming in the opposite direction. This would be stupid and hard for everyone else to avoid, yet legal. It is best to learn freestyle just as it is best to do everything in as safe a manner as possible. Not to mention, it is faster. Come on, my 8 yr old daughter could swim a 500 free with no problem after only a few days messing around in the pool.
I know - - the sport has gotten to the point where it really is too much to ask that you have basic skills in each discipline before attempting it - - you have a good point. From what I see of most peoples driving, they are exactly the same. Everyone look out!!!
its a race legal stroke and the OP seemed to be comfortable with it, how does that not qualify as a “basic skill?”
I’m getting into triathlons for the first time and am really struggling with the swimming portion(freestyle). Can never seem to get enough air. Does anyone use swim using breaststroke ? I feel like I can go just about as fast and for sure longer.
Welcome! I was where you are in Decemeber. I did my first sprint distance (500m swim) on the 5th Dec, I was badly under trained, unfit and had no clue about what I was in for, but I still went ahead and did it. I completed nearly the whole thing in breast stroke in the massively fast time of 18:50 (dead last on the day) and I got over taken by 90% of the womans pack who started 5 minutes after me. I also suffered from the lack of oxygen problem then.
After this I realised there had to be a better way and found a swim coach, after a month of weekly private swim lessons, I moved up to joining his tri focused squad, this morning I did 1.6KM in the pool at squad (the fast lane of squad did 2.75km). I no longer have the problems with breathing (I was doing excatly what the people above mentioned about not breathing out in the water).
I’ve now done 1 750m & 2 500m swims in sprint tri’s and am still dead last but getting faster and more importantly more confortable, my final one for the NZ season is on 17th April, I’m hoping for a much better time (~10 min swim).
Moral of the story is get in there, do it & and join a swim club. You won’t regret it.
Do you feel you “need” a wetsuit to complete the swim also? Regardless of the what stroke debate, if you need to breast stroke AND a wetsuit, you are not a good enough swimmer yet. …Whats the distance you are doing?
I did my first Sprint Tri last summer and used the breaststroke. I started at the back of the pack - literally the last one - gave everyone else a 5 second start and then came out of the water ahead of 20 others - most of them doing FS. I was very conscious of others around me and had to stop a few times as others doing FS crossed my path. I came out of the water fresh and in good form for the rest of the race. Most members of my club are trying to convince me to change to FS and I am making the attempt to gradually transition and will keep working on FS, but as a recreational, not a competitive triathlete, I will use the stroke I feel will get me through the race in the best shape. I have enjoyed the conversation.
If your local pools have adult ed classes in swimming take the lessons. If not, take private lessons WELL BEFORE you seek coaching. Get comfortable with the water & your technique before you even think about going fast. Otherwise, do breaststroke & enjoy yourself.
Learn to go slow and stay very relaxed. Over rotate till you see the ceiling you will get more air that way. Do not lift your head to breath , rotate . When you can do this it’s easy to rotate less. Breath every stroke. Make sure you are always breathing, out or in but always breathing . Slow everything down.
I’m not saying you can or can’t use the breaststroke, but I think you will definitely enjoy triathlons a lot more if you learn freestyle. Faster, easier in a pack, and I would imagine on long course, save your legs for the bike and run.
Though if you are just looking to complete a triathlon, whatever, go for it.