short version: swim is currently weak link. might want to do a few sessions with a swim coach, but not sure how to find a good one.
a little background:
i have some competitive background in running and cycling (and rowing) but none in swimming. did a few triathlons in 2011, focused on cycling for a few years, went back to triathlon last summer and trained kind of half-heartedly, went to nationals, qualified for worlds. decided to take things seriously and started working with a coach this past november. it’s the first time i’ve really trained seriously for it, and it’s going really welll; i’m destroying all my bike and run PRs and i’ve had a couple of really good results so far this season - overall amateur podium at a couple of pretty big races.
i’ve been working on my swim and although it has improved, it’s still definitely the weakest link. if i could get the swim closer to where the bike and run are, i’d be competitive at a level i never really expected to reach, and that would be cool. my coach is great - i know him personally and he has lots of experience coaching elite athletes - but he’s in FL and i’m in central NJ, so although i can send him video once in a while, he can’t actually come to the pool with me.
so: this is not a “how do i swim faster” thread, although i’m always open to suggestions. it’s a “how do i find a good triathlon swim coach” (near central NJ) thread.
Find a USA swimming swim club near you and reach out to them, to see who in the area is teaching adults or join a master program, normally the same coaches that are coaching kids are coaching them too.
so: this is not a “how do i swim faster” thread, although i’m always open to suggestions. it’s a “how do i find a good triathlon swim coach” (near central NJ) thread.
thanks!
Take out the bolded and go from there. Don’t look for a “triathlon” swim coach. Look for a swim coach. That should narrow it down a bit.
Is there a college near you with a swim program? When I was in college we had really good assistant coaches (Olympic swimmers) getting grad degrees. They would coach on the side for money (this was a long time ago though- but it never hurts to ask- Olympian grad students need beer money too.)
so: this is not a “how do i swim faster” thread, although i’m always open to suggestions. it’s a “how do i find a good triathlon swim coach” (near central NJ) thread.
thanks!
Take out the bolded and go from there. Don’t look for a “triathlon” swim coach. Look for a swim coach. That should narrow it down a bit.
i guess this is actually part of the question.
i realize any decent swim coach will help, but i also understand that open-water is different from pool swimming. my tri coach says some swim coaches will try to make your stroke look perfect, which doesn’t always translate well to OWS. just trying to make sure the coaching i get is as relevant as possible to the training/racing i’m doing.
Is there a college near you with a swim program? When I was in college we had really good assistant coaches (Olympic swimmers) getting grad degrees. They would coach on the side for money (this was a long time ago though- but it never hurts to ask- Olympian grad students need beer money too.)
yes, there is, and i’m looking into that. just wanted to hear what else people might suggest.
Is there a college near you with a swim program? When I was in college we had really good assistant coaches (Olympic swimmers) getting grad degrees. They would coach on the side for money (this was a long time ago though- but it never hurts to ask- Olympian grad students need beer money too.)
yes, there is, and i’m looking into that. just wanted to hear what else people might suggest.
Are you anywhere close to Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst??? I swam with a USA Swimming club there a couple of years ago when I was there for Army training, and the coaches were nice enough to let me swim with their club for free. I swam with their second fastest group, which was mainly 13-15 yr olds but they were cool and treated me like I was just a big kid. We swam 6000-7000 yd/night, 6 days /wk, plus 30 min of dry-land 3 nights/wk. Practices were 5-7:30 pm M-F plus 8:30-11 am Sat. Their fastest group swam mornings also for total 10 practices/wk.
Your tri coach…? And what might his/her qualifications might be? I know of no competitive coach who tries to make a stroke look pretty (now ARC WSI’s on the other hand…).
OWS is an Olympic sport. Most triathletes are poor swimmers. Look at USA Swimming Coaches and USMS coaches.
so: this is not a “how do i swim faster” thread, although i’m always open to suggestions. it’s a “how do i find a good triathlon swim coach” (near central NJ) thread.
thanks!
Take out the bolded and go from there. Don’t look for a “triathlon” swim coach. Look for a swim coach. That should narrow it down a bit.
i guess this is actually part of the question.
i realize any decent swim coach will help, but i also understand that open-water is different from pool swimming. my tri coach says some swim coaches will try to make your stroke look perfect, which doesn’t always translate well to OWS. just trying to make sure the coaching i get is as relevant as possible to the training/racing i’m doing.
Never had a coach that did that with me. If I did, my stroke would look a hell of a lot prettier, instead of the lopsided loping mess that it is.
As far as swim coaches focusing on stroke aesthetics. Hmmm I have not seen that, but I can’t speak to what your tri coach has witnessed. Anecdotal: best thing I ever did was stop listening to triathletes and start listening to a swim coach for my swimming ~ 5 years ago. I progressed more in 8 months with a swim coach than the prior 2 decades of advice from tri coaches and triathletes. Never once was how my stroke looked addressed.
it’s a “how do i find a good triathlon swim coach” thread.
I commend you for trying to do this. that’s half the battle right there. I’ve given a lot of swim technique instruction to triathletes and I also have lots of experience teaching fairly complex motor skills to adults. Over the decades, I’ve also received instruction from many different swim coaches and I’ve closely observed many swim coaches giving instruction. From this, I’ve learned a few key things.
For a technique instructor, I’d likely avoid one that has swum fast since early childhood. Because the big thing for you is not to just find a super fast swimmer as a coach. Yes, you should find someone who can swim fast (and it helps if they really know triathlon too), but what you really need is someone who (and here’s the kicker) can teach you how to swim faster. And, believe me, this is not so easy to do. Sure, many very fast swimmers who have been training since youth swim great, but they do it almost instinctively, they simply don’t know how to observe and troubleshoot your technique and then tell you how to correct it. Partly because they’ve never been down that path themselves.
But I have noticed that some fast swimmers who started out as slower swimmers (so they were not trained competitive youth swimmers), but then learned piece-by-piece how to swim very fast often end up being the best swim technique instructors. Because they know exactly what it took for them to “get” the fundamentals of better technique and better body position. And they’ll most likely to be able to help you in a way that you can rapidly comprehend, fully understand, and then easily execute. When a good swim technique instructor looks at your stroke, he doesn’t just say, “fix it.” He tells you step-by-step exactly how to fix it.
However, if you ever start working with someone, but then have significant doubts about their effectiveness, then listen to those doubts, because you’re probably right. Get someone better. While they are not easy to find, there are some really talented swim technique instructors out there.
Talking to people at your local masters swim group or triathlon club might be a good way to find someone like this. Another way is to ask every fast triathlete you know or meet. Ask every lifeguard you run into. Ask every swim or tri coach you meet. Rinse. Repeat. Persist. It will be well worth it.
so: this is not a “how do i swim faster” thread, although i’m always open to suggestions. it’s a “how do i find a good triathlon swim coach” (near central NJ) thread.
thanks!
Take out the bolded and go from there. Don’t look for a “triathlon” swim coach. Look for a swim coach. That should narrow it down a bit.
i guess this is actually part of the question.
**i realize any decent swim coach will help, but i also understand that open-water is different from pool swimming. **my tri coach says some swim coaches will try to make your stroke look perfect, which doesn’t always translate well to OWS. just trying to make sure the coaching i get is as relevant as possible to the training/racing i’m doing.
I can definitely understand that concern. I tried two swim coaches who kept wanting me to master flip turns and other things that didn’t matter to me. I couldn’t get them to understand that my goals were to fix my craptastic stroke and be able to do an OWS of 1500m in under 30 min.
Your tri coach…? And what might his/her qualifications might be? I know of no competitive coach who tries to make a stroke look pretty (now ARC WSI’s on the other hand…).
he used to coach one of the top american ITU guys, was on the 2008 olympic tri team coaching staff, and has worked / still works with several other elite athletes. he knows his stuff.
that said, the general response from most of you is clearly that you haven’t experienced this. cool. he said some, not all…but i figured (almost) any kind of swim coach would be better than no swim coach.
appreciate the suggestions so far. found a connection to an assistant coach at the university, so i might start there. for a little more context - my last olympic swim was just under 22. i’m not starting from nothing, but it’s still pretty far behind my bike and run, and i’d love to be closer to 20.
