Master’s Swimming
I swam with a Master’s Team for the first time today. I’ve been thinking about working out with a Master’s Team for a few years now and, in connection with the move, promised myself that I would try it in LA. I’ve avoided it because first, I like the flexibility of training when I want, second, my swimming goals are secondary to my Ironman and triathlon goals and third, frankly it’s always intimidated me to swim with other people and be worried about keeping up or having bad form or whatever. On the other hand, I could probably use the push I would get from swimming with others and I also figured it could be a good way to meet people in town.
Today I swam with SCAQ (Southern California Aquatics). I did a “Distance-Quality” workout, which, in this case at least, meant sets of 150-300 meters, with some slower technique sets mixed in. It was a good workout and not nearly as scary as I thought it might be. I joined a lane and kept up pretty easily. I swam in the third lane out of four (the first lane is the fastest and fourth the slowest) and felt pretty comfortable there – I had to work to keep up, but it wasn’t that much effort until the end of the workout. I think that after a few workouts, I will probably move up to the second lane, which was just a little faster than the third lane, and would probably be about right to get me working harder. I can see how swimming with the team pushes you – I definitely did not want to get caught from behind or fall too far back from the person in front of me!
My only real complaint is that I felt like some people were dogging it a little bit. But, as Elizabeth reminded me, everyone has their own reason for joining the swim and some of those people might just be out there for a little fun exercise.
Swimming with the group got me thinking a little about motivation. The first step in any fitness program is actually showing up and completing the training session. As four years of training mostly on my own indicates, I am very self-motivated when it comes to training. Coach John helps by setting up my weekly schedule, but once I know what he wants me to do, I’m doing it. I can’t think of the last time I missed a workout because I just didn’t feel like training. Some people might need that external pressure to get them to just go to the pool or to have a meaningful workout once there. That’s not what I necessarily need from a Master’s Program. But maybe swimming with a team will help me with the next set of goals – improving my swim technique and getting faster and more efficient in the water.
I’m not 100% sold yet, but I can definitely see the benefits so I’ll join a few more workouts and take it from there.
Bike – May 2
Distance: 33.6 miles
Time: 2:03
Average heart rate: 126
Course: Griffith Park, Burbank
Conditions: Sun and clouds, 60’s
Run – May 3
Distance: 4.5 miles
Time: 34 minutes
Average heart rate: 147
Course: West Hollywood
Conditions: Sunny, 70
Indoor Bike – May 4
Time: 1:00
Average heart rate: 129
Run – May 5
Distance: 4 miles
Time: 30 minutes
Average heart rate: 146
Course: West Hollywood
Conditions: Sunny, 70
Swim – May 6
Distance: 3,280 yards (3,000 meters)
Time: 1:00