Here’s the deal, up until now all of my swim training has been done in the pool. However there is an OWS group in my area that swims Saturday mornings in the summer. I have a strong background in (pool) swimming and for me it is isn’t my weakest event. Open water is obviously a different animal however and I was wondering if anybody has noticed a significant benefit from Open Water practice.
The only thing holding me back from doing this is that the weekends are generally reserved for long bikes and runs. Running being my limiter.
Any input would be appreciated.
Here’s the deal, up until now all of my swim training has been done in the pool. However there is an OWS group in my area that swims Saturday mornings in the summer. I have a strong background in (pool) swimming and for me it is isn’t my weakest event. Open water is obviously a different animal however and I was wondering if anybody has noticed a significant benefit from Open Water practice.
The only thing holding me back from doing this is that the weekends are generally reserved for long bikes and runs. Running being my limiter.
Any input would be appreciated.
100000% do it. I come from a swimming background and found the open water swim sessions by the far the best thing I could have done for my swimming. Trust me on that. It’s a whole other world out there. I am already looking forward to my open water swim practices.
(Swimming is one of those things were you can still easily do a run or bike later on or a few hours earlier, so it shouldn’t be a problem that its Saturday mornings).
I don’t think it is necessary - other than once or twice before a race mostly to make sure you don’t freak out.
Also, ever notice how tired your shoulders and back get in a long course pool verse short course? Same is true for pool verse open water. There is a slight adjustment.
Mostly though, people practice open water because it is fun. I found some of my biggest stroke improvements came during open water swims because I could zone out the wall, clock, etc and just focus on my stroke uninterrupted.
If you’ve NEVER open water swum before - I’d say very important. You will definitely be in for a rude awakening the first time you jump into cold-$$$, rough water, often with waves for ocean swims, and people to boot, not to mention the weird initial feeling of a wetsuit.
That said, depending on how good a swimmer you are, you will get used to it in probably a single successful swim of over 20 mins. Not enough to be a ‘master’ of course, but enough to do justice to your swim ability. Once you’ve got it, it’s probably not that important to practice regularly imo as it sticks with you.
Do it until you are comfortable in the water, swimming with other people and are able to sight well. Some need a lot of OWS while others very little. I used to swim twice a week in a local lake, now maybe 2 or 3 times a month if I’m not already racing.
After that, do it if you like to but it’s not necessary.
jaretj
I have no swim background whatsoever, but for me the biggest thing is the sighting. Unless you are that good that you know you swim 100% perfectly straight?
Sighting will no doubt make your neck sore the first few times as well so best to either practice it in the pool or OWS.
I love open water swimming. As previously mentioned there’s something about getting into that endless rythm that’s just relaxing…if swimming can be relaxing?
Unless you intend to lead the pack for the duration of the swim leg, your best bet is to do some open water training with a group. There is a whole different strategy available in the open water, and you need to learn it firsthand. The biggest component of group OWS is position management. Your proximity to other swimmers, and their inherent swimming ability, will directly impact your performance. If you can find yourself in the wake of a strong open water swimmer without exceeding your energy budget, then you’ll find yourself coming out of the water faster than expected.
I haven’t had any issues with being uncomfortable in the races that I have done, but I have had issues with staying on course.
I have noticed that I am a bit more ‘gassed’ on exiting the water than I thought I should be and attributed that to race day excitement and poor pacing.
IF you can, do it. You can ride/run long after.
You have much to gain and nothing to lose.
Do it until you are comfortable in the water, swimming with other people and are able to sight well. Some need a lot of OWS while others very little. I used to swim twice a week in a local lake, now maybe 2 or 3 times a month if I’m not already racing.
After that, do it if you like to but it’s not necessary.
jaretj
X2. It’s a different experience for everyone. But I would say for most, the first couple of open water swims can be quite an eye opening experience. Definitely do enough open water swimming until you feel very comfortable. Otherwise you definitely risk the open water freak out at the start of a race.
I would say that balance is the key. Although you swim in the pool is strong, you will certainly need the practice of swimming in a crowd and sighting. Since your running is not a strength, you could do some runs after your swim. This way you are still working on both. Best of luck!
Sounds like you might want to do a few to nail down going straight(er), not to mention that doing some swims prior to longer runs or rides isn’t a terrible idea at all given that’s what happens in your races.
If I was giving up one pool sessions per month to go swim open water I’d consider it a fair trade. 2 sessions and you’re probably short changing yourself.
It’s one thing to go swim OW. It’s another thing to go practice the skills needed to swim in OW in a triathlon like rounding a buoy with 8 other people or the mass start, or practicing using the line of people in the wave in front of you are sight markers etc. I think these skills take more time to learn then sighting in open water.
Some of these skills are more easily practiced & developed in a pool with your swim mates.
Having done numerous seasons with some OWS, I agree that getting the feeling of the wetsuit and learning to sight are the main reasons. One thing I will disagree with others on is the pacing/feeling of OWS practice. I used to be one of those who just went and relaxed and cruised in the open water. The problem is that translated to just cruising and relaxing on race day. that is not a bad idea if you are planning on an IM, but if you want to race shorter distance, then you should train like you race. If I am training for sprints, I do open water intervals where I run in, swim for 5 minutes at race pace then run out.
I think that most of the value in practicing OWS is not in obtaining a quality workout, but rather in highlighting the differences between the pool and open water. In that regard, pacing is probably not a huge concern for the person doing 1 or 2 sessions a month. However, for sprints I will agree that OWS execution can make or break your day, so there is no point in wasting a workout by simply going through the motions.
One of the other important (and possibly unmentioned) aspects of practicing OWS is the continuous motion aspect. Your distances are not broken down into 25 yard increments that include a short break as you flip and push off. While the physical differential between executing pool turns and continuous swimming is not substantial, the time-and-distance perception certainly is. When practicing OWS I am always amazed by how little time has elapsed when I first check my watch.
If I was giving up one pool sessions per month to go swim open water I’d consider it a fair trade. 2 sessions and you’re probably short changing yourself.
It’s one thing to go swim OW. It’s another thing to go practice the skills needed to swim in OW in a triathlon like rounding a buoy with 8 other people or the mass start, or practicing using the line of people in the wave in front of you are sight markers etc. I think these skills take more time to learn then sighting in open water.
Some of these skills are more easily practiced & developed in a pool with your swim mates.
That’s interesting. Each one of your indoor workouts must be really packed full of stuff that it wouldn’t be worth someone to do 2 OWS sessions instead of indoor sessions in a span of 1 month. It’s not even that they are skipping swimming, they are still going OWS. Just thought that was different.
I’ve thought about this original question more. I would clarify that as long as the swimmer has the proper technique down (which the OP said he did), then OWS will help. If you don’t know what you are doing then OWS wont help and in fact the person might develop a phobia (which I have seen) of OWS.
I guess I am a little bit different compared to most though because if it was feasible I probably would do OWS once a week mixed with 1-2 times in the pool during the height of my training. In reality, I get maybe 2-3 OWS before race season. Note: I am not just going out there for fun, but I am essentially doing race pace OWS (with a group of 20-30 people) and I think its a greater workout even when compared to indoor swimming.
It really depends on how good and comfortable you are at OWS. It sounds like you’d benefit from some OW swims. If you can’t swim a straight line, then you need to be in OW practicing at least once a week. You also get a different type of workout in OW. Provided you put in enough time, you can get a very challenging aerobic workout which is specific to what you might do in a race. If you’ve done 50+ OW swims and your course is right on the mark, you can still get a fitness gain from it in addition to a mental boost.
Re: your excuse… Seriously? How long do you plan to swim? 5 hours, 6 hours? Most groups I’ve seen do an hour (max) and half that time is spent on chit chat. Do your 30min swim and then do your long bike/run. Simple.
Like others have said, it depends. How good of a swimmer are you? Is practicing OWS going to save you 15-30 sec or more come race time? If its only going to save you 15-30 sec on your swim, then I’d say its not worth it and spend your time biking/running (your weaker disciplines). By ST standards, I’m a fish (swam for a D1 college). I train LCM at my masters team. I MAY do an easy open water swim a week before a race but thats really it (depends what I get from my coach). The amount of time/energy I would have to put in the pool/ocean/lake to gain a full minute in my swim, is way too much. I’m better off just maintaining my swim endurance and focusing on developing my bike and run fitness.
just my 2 cents
Go do 1 OWS. You will know in the first 30 seconds if you need to do it again. Some are comfortable from the start, most get comfortable after a few swims, and a few panic everytime they get salt water in their mouth (or lake water).
You won’t know which you are until you do an OWS, and you first race is not a good time for that.
In a hour swim most people can get in about 2500 as a main set. Most people are lucky to get in that much in a hour of OWS.
You put a fair bit of caveats in your post. But for most people, their time is better served by getting in a good swim workout then OWS.
And yes, when I swim or write a swim workout, I’m fairly confident that it has more stuff & less fluff then the majority of triathletes swim workouts. At least that has been my observation over the last 15 years.