I need help with my swim this off season. I’m looking for tips, stories of improvement, miracle fixes, and anything else that could help. To give some background, I’m relatively new to the tri scene, did my first race (providence 70.3) in 2010, and I just can’t be competitive with my swim. In 3 HIMs I’ve never broken 35min, and at IMLP this summer I was stuck with a 1:17 swim. It’s extremely frustrating because my bike and run are relatively strong (HIM pr 4:54, IM 10:23), but the swim is killing me! If I could have shaved just 5 minutes off my swim (which would still be slow!) I would have picked up a Kona slot. When I’m in full training mode I will swim 3-4 times per week putting in ~3000yds per swim session with drill sets mixed in. I will look to Sara McClarty’s blog for workouts, although I do them on my own. I’m on a limited budget (teacher), so I can’t afford a personal swim coach and video analysis by Andy Potts, but is there a book/blog I should be reading? Video I should be watching? Is it worth it to join a masters team? What has worked for you? How/when did you start to break out in the water?
Yes, joining a masters group might be a big help. And you don’t need a “personal swim coach”, but getting a session (or two or three) with a talented swim technique instructor/coach will be an even bigger help. That’s how you can drop big chunks of time off your swim. If you’re new to swimming, very likely you’re making some big technique errors. And that means lots of extra drag, which means slower times.
I’ve given a lot of swim technique instruction to triathletes and I have a lot of experience teaching complex motor skills to other adults. Over the decades, I’ve also received instruction from many different swim coaches and I’ve also observed many swim coaches. From all of this, I’ve learned a few key things. For a technique instructor, I’d likely avoid swimmers that have 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 who also really knows triathlon, but what you really need is someone who (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 simply don’t know how to observe and troubleshoot your technique and then tell you how to correct it. Because they’ve never been down that path themselves.
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 end up being the best teachers. 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, understand, and execute.
Talking to people at your local masters group might be a good way to find someone like that. 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.