newbie swimming question - Triathlon

Towner

01/02/2012 at 19:18

due to an old shoulder injury i find swimming front crawl difficult, am i going to be a complete numpty if i breast stroke??....i figure im not the quickest swimmer anyway, so just as well swim pain free...

(it will be my first triathlon, and the swim is in a pool)...thanks for your thoughts.....

Schmunkee - The List Fairy

01/02/2012 at 19:29

Towner - you can do it in whatever stroke you fancy. What distance are you doing though? Over longer distance you may find breast stroke saps some of the energy from your legs. Front crawl uses your legs less and so they are fresher for the bike

Towner

01/02/2012 at 19:36

its only a sprint distance, so should be ok......i'll probably be back asking loads more stupid questions.

im quite comfortable with my ability on the bike and am a reasonable runner, but the swim is my big worry.....looking forward to it though.

Loon.

01/02/2012 at 19:43

Towner I've got a shoulder injury (full dislocation and 3 way break of head of humerous). I have worked at it and now find front crawl easier, I find breathing to the injured side helps (ie, injured shoulder is out of the water not in front). also if you work at front crawl and get the gliding phase going then it's not so hard on the shoulders. It took a long time before I could extend the damaged arm forward far enough to breath with the damaged arm in front, but I did get there and I have a lot less aches and pains and much more mobility in the shoulder. just a thought

Towner

01/02/2012 at 19:48

Thanks Loon, this is all new at the moment, but i will definately try to work on my crawl, its a long time since i did any serious amounts of swimming,but obviously i will need to swim more now that im hoping to do triathlon. will take on board what you said, many thanks.

Loon.

01/02/2012 at 21:17

good luck

for what it's worth, swimming is all about technique, dont know what swimming you have done before but it's well worth having a lesson or two. I found out I was doing everything wrong (and probably still am

)

Towner

01/02/2012 at 21:34

you answered my next question!....was going to ask about lessons!

thankyou.

Loon.

01/02/2012 at 21:43

there's a crap swimmers thread on here which is full of tips and support etc. I'm not a triathlete just swim for the fun of it, probably be able to get more tri specific advice on there

sarah the bookworm

02/02/2012 at 10:38

Towner - I didn't know you were doing a tri!

Lots of people breast stroke, but as others have said it's a slower stroke and more draining. Good luck though!

SallyR

02/02/2012 at 10:56

I went for some "adult improver" lessons to get advice before my first triathlon last year as I could only do 2 lengths of front crawl without collapsing. They should give tips on technique and how to deal with injuries/niggles and adapt your stroke accordingly.

Towner

02/02/2012 at 11:16

Bookie, yea been wanting to do one for a while,and we have a couple very close to me now,so there are no excuses!
Thanks sallyR. Will be making enquiries about lessons when I go to the pool on saturday.

halfamary

02/02/2012 at 11:20

Hi, I did my first triathlon last year. Running was def my strongest discipline before I did it, but I didnt perform well in the run as I hadnt realised how tired I would be by then. Although swimming well is important, I think getting fit for the bike to run part is the most important

Soup Dragon

02/02/2012 at 11:26

Towner - I'm learing the total immersion swimming and I'm just at the point now of learning how to do the recovery without rotating my shoulder. Its all done from the elbow. Feels a bit odd but it seems to work and puts no stress on the shoulder joint at all. It might be a way forward for you. Good luck

Towner

02/02/2012 at 19:29

thanks for all the replies people, plenty of food for thought. at least i know i wont feel stupid if i have to breast stroke now!

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